It’s hard to improve on a dish as perfect as meatloaf, but that doesn’t stop cooks from trying all sorts of variations. The recipe below takes a classic meatloaf recipe and kicks it up several notches by adding bacon and spicy-sweet barbecue sauce. These little twists turn an old favorite into a seriously crave-worthy meal.
Frying the bacon adds some time to the preparation, but you can do this ahead of time and keep the cooked bacon refrigerated until you’re ready to use it. Even better, why not make the meat mixture and form the loaf the night before? Then all you have to do in the morning is pop it in the slow cooker and turn it on. You’ll be thanking yourself at the end of the day.
Slow Cooker Bacon BBQ Meatloaf
8
15 minutes
8 hours and 5 minutes
8 hours and 20 minutes
8 strips bacon
2 pounds ground beef
2 large eggs
1 onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup BBQ sauce, divided
In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until lightly browned on both sides, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Once cooled, crumble.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the beef, eggs, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, 1/2 cup of the BBQ sauce and the reserved bacon.
Mix well and form the mixture into a loaf shape in the slow cooker.
Spread the remaining 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce over the top.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.
Broil for 10 minutes.
Let rest for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.