Instant Pot Meatloaf

I've had my eye on an Instant Pot for a very long time but kept wondering if I really needed to add one more kitchen gadget to my already giant collection. Well...we received a generous gift card for Christmas and when Ken asked if I would like to use it for something to cook with??? Yes!!! We've had our Instant Pot for two weeks now. I should have bought one a long time ago. It has made my meal prep so much easier and faster. I'm not sure it will ever have a place in our cabinets as we have been using it every day...sometimes multiple times a day!

I worked on meal prep yesterday in anticipation of the ice storm. Potatoes and eggs cooked in the Instant Pot made a delicious potato salad. I use Greek Yogurt (for the probiotic benefits) and combine it with a bit of mayonnaise, organic cane sugar, salt and pepper for the dressing.

Then I wondered what else I could cook in this little magic pot to have on hand just in case. Meatloaf! But could I really cook a meatloaf in the Instant Pot and have it not become a soggy mess? Would it be as good as an oven baked meatloaf? Oh my gosh! No soggy mess and truly the best meatloaf ever!  Note: The beef was raised by a small family farmer. The onions, peppers and celery were pre-diced and frozen from our garden.

Instant Pot Meatloaf

1  1/2 lbs. ground beef

1  1/2 cups bread crumbs

3 eggs

1/2 cup diced onion

1/2 cup diced green pepper

1/2 cup diced celery

1 Tbl. minced garlic

1 Tbl. Chili powder

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups water

Mix meatloaf ingredients.

I used a 6 1/2 inch pie plate to make it easier to form the loaf. Criss-cross two pieces of aluminum foil over the pie plate. Place ground meat mixture onto the foil and form the loaf. Roll up the foil to form a bowl around the meatloaf. Remember to form the meatloaf in a shape so that steam can rise around it in the Instant Pot. Put a well in the center of the meatloaf and fill with ketchup or Bar-B-Q sauce. This step will ensure more even cooking and add flavor to the meatloaf.

Place 2 cups of water and trivet in pot. Place foil wrapped meatloaf onto trivet. Program manual for 40 minutes. NPR for 10 minutes then quick release. Internal temperature should be 155 degrees. Depending on the thickness of your meatloaf an additional 5 minutes cooking time may be required.

Allow meatloaf to cool slightly. Remove foil and place on serving plate. Brush with additional sauce if desired.

I was tempted to leave my meatloaf on the pie plate while it cooked, but this particular plate is not marked and I was afraid it would not be safe to use in the Instant Pot. The aluminum foil bowl worked great and easy clean up!

Hope you enjoy the recipe!