TVP & Meat - Loaf

Many moons ago, I sang TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein)’s praises and you haven’t heard boo from me about it since. Well, since Mr. Mari and I are trying to shed our Freshmen Ten, I pulled Ole Faithful out of the cupboard. The first thing I made was meatloaf, substituting the breadcrumbs for some TVP. Success! The meatloaf was super moist and flavorful (I soaked the TVP in chicken stock). Now I’m thinking about trying to use TVP as fried chicken breading. Stay tuned for that experiment! Meanwhile, click on over for some TVP & Meat - Loaf!

This recipe makes two meatloaves. One is for tonight’s dinner, the other is basted, baconed, wrapped and ready in the freezer for another night’s dinner. I find bacon to never be uniform; the slab is typically wider on one side that the other. So when I drape the bacon slices over the top, I flip every other slice over, alternating the wider and narrower ends evenly over the top.

TVP & MEAT - LOAF
makes 8 slices per loaf (typically 2 slices per person)

1/2-cup tomato sauce
1-tablespoon apple cider vinegar
¾-cup dried TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein)
¾-cup chicken stock, more if necessary
1-tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-tablespoon Dijon mustard
1-tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 large eggs
½-cup plain yogurt or milk
1-teaspoon dried thyme
1-teaspoon dried oregano
¼-teaspoon hot pepper sauce (like Tabasco)
½-cup or more chopped parsley, stems included 
1-pound ground beef (85% / 15%)
1-pound ground pork
½-pound ground veal
1-pound bacon, separated into two equal amounts

Heat oven to 350 degrees placing the rack in the middle of the oven. Line one rimmed sheet pan with aluminum foil. Cut another piece of foil the same size and place on counter. 

Mix the tomato sauce and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl and pour 2-tablespoons worth into a small separate bowl (this will prevent contamination). Set both aside. Mix the TVP and chicken stock together in a small bowl. Add additional chicken stock, if necessary, until the TVP is completely moist. Set aside.

Heat vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add onions and garlic. Sauté until soft, about five minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for about ten minutes. Add sautéed onion mixture, TVP mixture, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, eggs, yogurt, thyme, oregano and hot pepper sauce to a large bowl. Stir to combine well. Add parsley, beef, pork and veal. Mix with a large fork or your hands and thoroughly combine. If the mixture sticks to the bowl, add a little more yogurt until it releases (this will definitely help the mixture to remain moist).

Separate the meat mixture into two mounds on the aluminum foil. Starting with the one on the sheet pan, form it into a 5 x 7 shape. Baste the two tablespoons of tomato sauce over the loaf’s top. Drape a slice of bacon on top, along one end, meaty side facing the edge. Flip the second piece and drape it so it covers part of the previous strip. Continue draping all the pieces for that loaf. The last bacon slice should have the meaty side facing towards the other end. Carefully tuck one side of the draping bacon under the loaf. Repeat on the other side.

Bake for 50 minutes. Turn oven to broil and broil for 5-10 minutes or until bacon gets crispy. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing.

While the first loaf is in the oven, repeat the above steps for the second loaf prior to putting it in the oven. Wrap it in the aluminum foil, wrap it again and place in a gallon-size freezer bag. Freeze for up to two months. To use, defrost in fridge and bake as instructed above.

Separate the remaining tomato sauce into two - putting the one for the freezer in a small freezer bag that can be defrosted later. With the remaining sauce, heat in microwave for two minutes and serve tableside. Enjoy!

Rounding out the meal: The TVP/meat loaf was accompanied by sautéed snow peas and mashed cauliflower.