Jewish Xmas Loaf | Imamother

Amarante

Mon, Jan 08 2024, 1:42 pm

I have Frank Bruni's book of meatloaf recipes and I finally go around to trying this one. I like Asian flavors so this was very good.

My next one will be the duck meatloaf as I also love duck LOL

Jewish Xmas Loaf

Excerpt From: Frank Bruni - A Meatloaf in Every Oven

Serves 6

We invented this loaf—named for the urban tradition of Jewish families trekking to Chinese restaurants on Xmas—to reflect some of our most treasured Chinese seasonings and flavors. We’ve tucked five-spice powder, soy sauce and sesame oil into a rich slab of ground beef. Then, for a climactic punch of heat and flavor, we turn to Asian garlic sauce (widely available in Asian grocery stores and at specialty markets like Whole Foods), which contains not just garlic but coarsely ground chiles as well.

This recipe uses a tad more uncooked oats—the innocuously flavored workhorse of binders—than many other loaves call for, because this particular meat mixture would otherwise be too wet. And over several tests of this recipe, we doubled the glaze from our first try because guests wanted more, more, more. It mingles with the pan juices and should be scooped up and spooned over the slices of loaf for anyone who wants that, which should be everyone.

LOAF

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 large shallots, finely chopped
2 pounds ground beef
1⅓ cups quick-cooking oats
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
2 teaspoons five-spice powder
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup spicy Asian garlic sauce

GLAZE

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons spicy Asian garlic sauce
6 tablespoons ketchup

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet or a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with aluminum foil or parchment paper.

2. Warm the sesame oil in a medium-sized skillet over low heat. Add the shallots and sauté until they are soft, about 10 minutes. Let the shallots cool a bit.

3. In a large bowl, combine all the remaining loaf ingredients with the shallots and their oil. Mix thoroughly with your clean hands.

4. Pull off some of the meatloaf batter and create a tiny slider-sized burger; cook it in the still-slick skillet for a few minutes, until cooked through. Taste, and adjust the seasonings in accordance with your preferences.

5. On the prepared baking sheet or baking dish, form the mixture into a loaf with a uniform width from end to end.

6. To make the glaze, stir the soy sauce, garlic sauce and ketchup together in a small bowl. Slather the glaze over the top of the loaf, letting some drip off the sides.