Jalapeno Cheddar Meatloaf

Jalapeno Cheddar Meatloaf Recipe is a twist on the classic meatloaf enhancing the flavor with fresh jalapeno and cheese and topped with a sweet and tangy glaze. This recipe is so easy and delicious it's sure to become one of your go to meatloaf recipes!

❤️ Why you'll love it

Bold Flavor: if you love jalapeno poppers with their cheddar filling, you are in for a treat with this spicy meatloaf.

Easy Meal Prep: this easy meatloaf recipe can be made ahead of time and refrigerated until it is time to cook, or cook ahead and reheat right before dinner time.

Leftovers rule: this is the best meatloaf for making sandwiches with leftovers.

🥘 Ingredients for Jalapeno Cheddar Meatloaf

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Full recipe and ingredient amounts are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Lean ground beef

Large eggs 

White onion: choose a medium onion and dice it fine. I like to use my hand chopper to do this quickly.

Hearty bread: you will make your own fresh bread crumbs by tearing the bread into small pieces.

Cheddar cheese: I always recommend buying the brick of cheese and shredding it yourself, however for convenience you can use pre-shredded cheese.

Jalapeno : choose a firm medium sized pepper.

Dried oregano

Dried basil

Salt

Garlic powder

Ketchup: I always use sugar free ketchup and recommend it as you are adding sugar to the sauce. You can also use plain tomato sauce instead of ketchup.

Worcestershire sauce: adds an umani flavor

Light brown sugar

Yellow mustard

Fresh Cilantro (optional for garnish)

Olive oil cooking spray

🔪 Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside
2. Add the ground beef, eggs, onion, cheddar, jalapeno, oregano, basil, garlic, breadcrumbs, Worcestershire sauce and salt to a large bowl. Mix lightly with hands until combined. Don't over mix.
3. Place meat mixture in prepared loaf pan, patting the meat down into the pan to pack it and spreading it out evenly. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, combine ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard. Using a spoon, spread sauce mixture over top of meatloaf.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour 10 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F.
6. Let baked meatloaf sit for 15 minutes. Drain fat from loaf and slice.
7. Serve with chopped fresh cilantro if desired.

🥄 Equipment

Large bowl

1-½ quart sized loaf pan

Instant-read thermometer

🥫Storage

Refrigerate: store leftover meatloaf in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days.,

Freeze: store in a freezer safe container up to 3 months.

Reheat: warm thawed meatloaf in the microwave until warm or wrapped in aluminum foil in the oven at 350 degrees until heated.

📖 Variations

Opt for the sauce: Use tomato sauce instead of ketchup for the topping if preferred.

Barbecue style: Barbecue fans can spread the top of the meatloaf mixture with barbecue sauce instead of the ketchup topping.

Spicy meatloaf or not: If you like a lot of heat, definitely add more than 1 jalapeno. If you just like a little flavor of the jalapeno, then don't go more than the one. You can also just substitute a green pepper for the jalapeno or leave the pepper out entirely.

💭 Tips

• Use a lean ground beef to reduce fat, a 90/10 is good.
• If you don't like using raw onions in the meatloaf, saute onions in a little olive oil along with the jalapeno peppers before adding to the meatloaf mixture.
• If you like a lot of heat, definitely add more than 1 jalapeno. If you just like a little flavor of the jalapeno, then don't go more than the one. You can also just substitute a green pepper for the jalapeno or leave the pepper out entirely.
• Cracker crumbs or dried bread crumbs can be used in place of the fresh bread crumbs.

📚 More Meatloaf Recipes

Dill Pickle Meatloaf - the classic take on a burger but in meatloaf form with incredible flavor from dill pickles.

Easy Barbecue Cheddar Meatloaves - super cheesy and tangy individually sized loaves!

Vegetarian Meatloaf - vegetarians and meat eaters alike love this veggie loaf.

Sweet and Sour Meatloaf with Ground Veal - a delicious low carb take on a sweet and sour nmeatloaf.

Heart Shaped Veal Meatloaf - perfect for those special occasions like Valentines da, anniversaries, or anytime you want to say I love you!

Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf Muffins - a tasty take on the bacon cheeseburger in a muffin tin.

🍽 Serve with..

Serve jalapeno cheddar meatloaf with a side of creamy mashed potatoes or garlic mashed cauliiflower with a side of air fryer green beans.

📖 Recipe