A classic ground beef meatloaf with extra savoury flavour, this meatloaf with mushrooms is easy to prepare, juicy and loaded with tons of delicious flavour! It’s a comfort food flavourite you’ll want to make time and time again.
I’ve been on a meatloaf kick lately and experimenting with all sorts of flavour profiles (ground chicken meatloaf is a favourite).
This meatloaf with mushrooms is the latest creation. The combination of ground beef and mushrooms is so good! It’s savoury, rich and, well, just delicious! And, just like my ground chicken meatloaf recipe, leftovers are amazing, especially on a meatloaf sandwich.
The Mushrooms
This ground beef and mushroom meatloaf isn’t overly mushroom-y or anything. What the mushrooms do, though, is simply add a lovely savoury flavour and some moisture to the meatloaf. I love to use either baby bella (cremini) or white button mushrooms.
After cleaning the mushrooms, roughly chop them up (you want them cut into relatively small pieces but not too finely chopped). If you have one, a food processor is a great tool to get the job done quickly. Or, you can chop the mushrooms with a knife if you prefer. Then it’s just a matter of cooking the mushrooms in a little olive oil and butter just so they reduce down somewhat before adding to your meatloaf.
Meatloaf Sauce
Going with pretty much a traditional route, for the meatloaf sauce I used a combination of ketchup, yellow mustard and brown sugar.
You just mix the ingredients together and top the meatloaf partway through cooking.
How To Make Meatloaf With Mushrooms
Here is an overview of how to make this meatloaf and mushroom recipe (refer to the recipe card below for full details):
- Cook some freshly chopped mushrooms. Then, in a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef with milk-soaked bread crumbs, ketchup, eggs, carrot, onion, Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, seasonings and the mushrooms.
- Mix the ground beef filling until everything is well combined.
- Transfer the ground beef mixture to a greased and parchment paper-lined loaf pan and bake.
- Partway through cooking, carefully remove the meatloaf from the oven.
- Spread the meatloaf sauce over top of the meatloaf, then place it back into the oven and continue to cook until it’s fully cooked through.
- Once cooked, allow the meatloaf to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing, then allow it to cool for another 10 to 15 minutes (this makes slicing much easier). As tempting as it might be to slice right away after it’s cooked, don’t! I get it, it smells good and you’re hungry. Story of my life, LOL. Allowing the meatloaf to rest and cool a bit, makes for way easier slicing.
Can I Make Meatloaf Without a Pan?
Yes, you sure can. However, I prefer and recommend to bake your meatloaf in a 9-inch x 5-inch loaf pan.
The benefit of the loaf pan is that it helps better control the shape of your meatloaf, meaning, well, more uniform shape as well as consistency in cooking time. Plus, it helps retain those delicious meatloaf juices.
Now, if you don’t have a loaf pan, don’t fret! This delicious ground beef and mushroom meatloaf can still be in your foodie future!
If you don’t have a loaf plan, line a sheet pan with some parchment paper and shape the meatloaf mixture into a loaf, similar in size to the loaf pan. Then it’s just a matter of cooking your meatloaf as per normal.
What To Serve With Meatloaf
My hands-down favourite thing to serve with this mushroom and beef meatloaf is mashed potatoes (talk about a comfort food combo).
Other than that, this meatloaf pairs wonderfully with a side of green peas, steamed veggies or a thick slice of homemade bread. And, it kinda goes without saying, a drizzle of gravy or a dollop of ketchup is great too.
If you’re looking to have something a little lighter with your meatloaf, serve it with a simple green salad.
Leftovers and Storing
This beef and mushroom meatloaf yields about 8 slices (depending on how thick you slice it).
There’s nothing quite like a cozy comfort food meal for a Sunday supper. When we do make this for friends or family, it definitely disappears fast.
If you do have leftover meatloaf, however, properly store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use within 2 to 4 days, reheating when ready to enjoy.
To use leftover meatloaf, the possibilities are pretty much endless. For instance, the meatloaf slices are great simply fried up in a pan, crumbled into pasta sauce, used in nachos or in sliders. And breakfast? Talk about good reheated with a fried egg!
More Yummy Comfort Food Recipes
- Hunter’s Chicken Recipe (Easy Chicken Cacciatore)
- Sheet Pan Chicken and Veggies
- Easy Ground Beef Stroganoff
If you make this ground beef and mushroom meatloaf, be sure to leave a comment below!
Meatloaf With Mushrooms
Ingredients
- Cooking spray, to grease loaf pan
- 6 tablespoons ketchup, divided
- ½ tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1.5 cups bread crumbs, about 3 slices of sandwich bread
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
- 6 ounces cremini or white button mushrooms, chopped small (about 1 cup after cooked)
- 2 pounds lean or extra lean ground beef
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup grated carrot, about 2 small carrots or 1 medium to large carrot
- ¾ cup finely minced yellow onion, about 1 small yellow onion
- 1 ounce grated Parmesan cheese, about ½ cup
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1.5 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- Chopped fresh parsley leaves, garnish to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9-inch x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper (the parchment paper should cover the bottom and two longest sides of the loaf pan, with some parchment paper slightly overhanging the longest sides — this makes for easy removal of the meatloaf after it's baked). Spray the parchment paper with cooking spray, then set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix 4 tablespoons of ketchup with yellow mustard and brown sugar. Set aside.
- In another small bowl, mix together the bread crumbs with milk and set aside.
- Heat olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes without stirring, then continue to cook for another 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have softened and released some of their moisture. Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl to cool while you prepare the rest of the meatloaf mixture.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the ground beef with the milk-soaked bread crumbs, remaining 2 tablespoons of ketchup, eggs, carrot, onion, Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, thyme, cayenne pepper and the cooked and cooled mushrooms. Mix until well combined.
- Transfer the ground beef mixture to the prepared loaf pan, gently pressing in, and bake for 1 hour. Carefully remove the meatloaf from the oven and spread the reserved ketchup mixture over top (before spreading the meatloaf sauce over top, if there is liquid/juices on top of the meatloaf, you can pour it off or allow it to run back into the corners of the pan — my favourite thing to do is the latter because there is so much flavour in those juices). Place the meatloaf back into the oven and continue to cook for another 20 minutes or until the meatloaf is fully cooked through (the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the centre of the meatloaf when checked with an instant-read meat thermometer).
- Once cooked, carefully remove the meatloaf from the oven. Allow the meatloaf to cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then remove the meatloaf from the pan and allow it to cool for another 10 to 15 minutes (this makes slicing much easier). Garnish with parsley if you like. Slice and serve. Enjoy!
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
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Tried this recipe?
If you do make this recipe, thank you!! It would mean so much if you could leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed it, and it helps other readers too!
KellyM
This was a wonderful recipe!! I am dairy-free and it was so easy to simply use oat milk instead of regular milk, and omit the parmesan (sad, I know!). My entire family loved this. I also added a large leaf of collard greens (chopped small) because I needed to use it up. I love the extra veggies you can pack into this. Thank you!!
Dawn | Girl Heart Food
Thank you very much!! I’m so glad you and your family loved the recipe, and such a yummy idea with the addition of the greens!!
PeggyR
Our local market had fresh local cremini mushrooms, so I made half the recipe for my husband and me, eliminating the brown sugar. The result was very a satisfying blend of subtle flavors in a moist loaf that, paired with mashed potatoes and broccoli, was just the thing for dinner on a February evening. I will be making this again.
Dawn | Girl Heart Food
Sounds like such a delicious meal! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thank you!
Valentina
I always love your meatloaf recipes, and this one is no exception. Mushrooms + meatloaf = delicious! 🙂 ~Valentina
David @ Spiced
*Mind blown* I do love meatloaf – such a classic comfort food – but I’ve never thought about adding minced mushrooms. Beef and mushrooms go so well together, so this just makes sense. Definitely going on my list to make when the weather turns cold <– that's when I really crave a good meatloaf!