Good Spices for Meatloaf: Worcestershire, Mustard, Herbs and the Glaze

Meatloaf gets seasoned in two places. Inside the loaf go onion, garlic, salt and pepper, a savory liquid like Worcestershire or soy sauce, mustard and an herb. On top goes a ketchup-based glaze. Betty Crocker and Cook’s Illustrated fill those slots in pretty different ways, right down to whether the mustard is dry or Dijon, and the Cook’s Illustrated glaze hides a pinch of ground coriander. The amounts below are theirs.

Two recipes side by side

Neither recipe uses oregano.

The seasonings and what each does

Onion

Both recipes use fresh onion, though in very different amounts. Fresh onion is mostly water, 89.1 g per 100 g in USDA’s data, while onion powder has 5.39 g.³⁴ So fresh onion adds moisture to the loaf and powder doesn’t. Sautéing the onion first softens it so it doesn’t stay crunchy. See onion powder vs. onion.

Garlic

One clove per loaf does it for both recipes. Betty Crocker offers 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder instead,¹ the same swap North Dakota State University Extension gives for one clove.⁵ Powder spreads evenly through ground meat, and there’s nothing to chop. See garlic powder and garlic powder vs. garlic.

Worcestershire sauce, or soy sauce

Betty Crocker puts a tablespoon of Worcestershire in its loaf. Cook’s Illustrated uses a tablespoon of soy sauce and skips Worcestershire.² Both are salty, savory liquids, and either one fills the same slot. You’ll hear that Worcestershire is what keeps meatloaf moist. At one tablespoon in a loaf with a cup of milk or other liquid,¹ it’s a small share of the moisture, and we found no test of its effect. See Worcestershire powder.

Mustard: dry or prepared

Here the two recipes split. Betty Crocker uses 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard, Cook’s Illustrated 1 teaspoon Dijon.¹² McCormick notes that dried mustard and ground mustard are the same spice.⁶ Prepared mustard brings vinegar tang along with the mustard flavor. Dry mustard gives you the flavor without the extra liquid. We found no source that makes either one the standard for American meatloaf. See mustard powder, mustard powder uses and mustard powder vs. prepared mustard.

Herbs: sage, thyme, parsley or oregano

The named recipes go for sage (Betty Crocker) or thyme and parsley (Cook’s Illustrated). Oregano is a fine pick too. It has a strong aroma and a warm, pungent taste, and ATK counts oregano, thyme, sage and rosemary among the hearty herbs whose flavor is somewhat more heat-stable,⁷ which suits an hour in the oven. Swapping dried for fresh? The LSU AgCenter’s rule is one teaspoon of crumbled dried herb for one tablespoon of fresh.⁸ Betty Crocker’s own swap is 1/4 teaspoon dried sage for 1 teaspoon fresh.¹ See sage, thyme, oregano and cooking with oregano.

Paprika, pepper and heat

Cook’s Illustrated adds a teaspoon of paprika to the meat and a teaspoon of hot sauce to the glaze.² Both recipes use black pepper, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon. See black pepper.

The glaze: ketchup and what goes with it

Betty Crocker tops its loaf with plain ketchup, chili sauce or barbecue sauce.¹ The Cook’s Illustrated glaze builds on ketchup with cider vinegar, brown sugar, hot sauce and a little ground coriander.² Either way it’s sweet and tangy. The coriander is the surprise.

Where meatloaf comes from

Meatloaf is older than its 1950s image: food historian Andrew Smith dates the first American meatloaf recipe to around the 1870s.⁹

Doneness

Federal guidance says to cook ground meat to 160°F.¹⁰ FSIS says to check with a food thermometer, because color and texture aren’t reliable signs of doneness.¹¹ Betty Crocker bakes its loaf at 350°F for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, until a thermometer in the center reads 160°F.¹ Whatever your recipe says, make sure the center reaches 160°F before serving. A turkey or chicken meatloaf needs 165°F.¹⁰

Related

• Good spices for meatballs and spices for hamburgers
• Onion powder vs. onion
• Too much pepper
• The master list of herbs and spices