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I’ve been craving meatloaf for weeks, but I wanted something a little ✨different✨. So, I decided to throw just a little spin on the classic and make this cheese studded Cheddar Cheeseburger Meatloaf. This meatloaf-cheeseburger hybrid is just as comforting as the kind mom used to make, but with a little more personality (hello, melty nuggets of cheddar!). And hey, if you prefer a regular old meatloaf, try my classic homemade meatloaf.
“Amazing, delicious meatloaf recipe! I made it according to directions. This is now my go-to choice. It freezes well. And, so delicious on a bun as leftovers.” 😊
KERI
easy Cheeseburger Meatloaf recipe
Thick juicy chunks of beef studded with bursts of melty gooey cheese, all topped with a sweet and savory glaze, is the perfect comfort food meal I like to chow down on when the weather turns cold and it starts to get dark a little too early for my liking. The perfect combination of meatloaf and cheeseburger, I find this meal comes together in minutes and is perfect to feed all the hungry mouths at my dinner table.
RECIPE TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS
- I suggest using an 85/15 ground beef. The higher fat content ensures a more tender and moist meatloaf. You can use lower-fat, but your meatloaf will likely be a little firmer and less juicy. Also, try to use ground beef that has been double-ground, or that has a finer texture rather than a chunkier single grind. This will help your meatloaf hold together better.
- Experiment with cheese. As I was eating this meatloaf, I started thinking about different types of cheese that would work well here. Blue cheese, Swiss, feta, Gouda…OMG, the possibilities! I would definitely encourage experimentation with the cheese, though, during the testing phase, I tried both mild cheddar and sharp cheddar, and the sharp cheddar was far better than the mild.
- Add barbecue sauce. If you’ve got a bottle of barbecue sauce lingering in your fridge, feel free to use it instead of the homemade glaze.
- Use ground turkey. When I’m not in the mood for beef but am craving this type of meal, I’ll substitute with ground turkey, chicken, or any ground meat I happen to have in the fridge.
Cheeseburger Meatloaf
Cost $7.66 recipe / $1.91 serving
Ingredients
Meatloaf
- ¼ cup plain breadcrumbs ($0.08)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika ($0.10)
- ½ tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- ¾ tsp salt ($0.03)
- 1 large egg ($0.67)
- ½ cup onion (minced, $0.16)
- 4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese ($1.10)
- 1 lb. ground beef (85/15 blend, $4.98)
Glaze
- ½ cup ketchup ($0.41)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.03)
- 1 tsp yellow mustard ($0.03)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce ($0.02)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. In a small bowl stir together the breadcrumbs, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and salt. In a separate small bowl, lightly whisk the egg.
- Finely mince the onion. Roughly chop the cheddar cheese so that it is in pieces about the same size as a small bean.
- Add the ground beef, seasoned breadcrumbs, whisked egg, minced onion, and chopped cheddar to a bowl. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until incorporated.
- Place the meat mixture in a casserole dish or on a rimmed baking sheet and shape into a rectangle, approximately 7″ long, 4″ wide, and 1.5″ thick.
- To make the glaze, stir together the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Spread the glaze over the unbaked meatloaf.
- Bake the meatloaf in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160ºF. Remove the meatloaf from the oven, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, then slice into eight pieces and serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Meat Thermometer
- White Cutting Boards
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Cheeseburger Meatloaf Step-by-Step Photos
Get the oven going and prepare the seasonings and egg: Begin by preheating the oven to 350ºF. Stir together ¼ cup plain breadcrumbs, 1 tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp garlic powder, and ¾ tsp salt in a small bowl. In a separate bowl, lightly whisk one large egg.
Prepare the onion and cheese: Finely mince about ½ cup of diced onion (this was ½ of a small onion for me), and roughly chop 4 oz. sharp cheddar, so the pieces are about the size of a small bean. This will create little nuggets of cheddar throughout the meatloaf. I found that if I used shredded cheddar, the pieces were so small that they melted in and disappeared into the meat.
Combine all the ingredients: Place 1 lb. ground beef (85/15) in a bowl and add the seasoned breadcrumbs, whisked egg, minced onion, and chopped cheddar. Mix these ingredients with your hands until they are evenly combined.
Shape into a meatloaf: Place the meat mixture in a casserole dish or on a rimmed baking sheet, then shape it into a rectangle about 7″ long, 4″ wide, and 1.5″ deep. I suggest using a casserole dish that has at least a couple of inches of room around the meatloaf so the fat and excess juices have room to drain away. The meatloaf still stays moist, but can firm up enough to hold together in slices this way.
Make the glaze: In a small bowl, stir together ½ cup ketchup, 1 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp yellow mustard, and 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce. Spread the sauce over the cheeseburger meatloaf.
Bake: Bake the Cheddar Cheeseburger Meatloaf for 50-55 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160ºF. I highly suggest getting one of these digital thermometers to take the guessing game out of cooking meat. They’re very inexpensive and worth every penny.
Rest: Let the Cheddar Cheeseburger Meatloaf rest for 5-10 minutes after you take it out of the oven.
Slice and serve: Slice the meatloaf into individual servings and enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
Meatloaf is such a classic American dish that I find it only makes sense to make it part of a classic American “meat and potatoes” dinner, so I like to serve it with fluffy mashed potatoes. For a little more comfort and indulgence, loaded smashed potatoes work well. For a simpler meal, I’ll serve the meatloaf with a baked potato. And then even if this is a “meat and potatoes” dinner, I like to add a little green to round things out and prepare steamed green beans, or kid-favorite oven roasted broccoli.
HOW TO STORE
Store uneaten meatloaf in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the oven or in the microwave until heated through.
Freeze meatloaf leftovers tightly wrapped in individual portions or whole in an airtight container, aluminum foil, or a Ziplock bag. Defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Amazing, delicious meatloaf recipe! I made it according to directions. This is now my go to choice. It freezes well. And, so delicious on a bun as leftovers. 😊
This has turned into a ‘go-to’ when folks are coming for an easy tasty Sunday night supper. Thanks!
This is a regular in my rotation. I make it probably every six weeks or so. It’s awesome in the winter especially!
My teen boys were against trying meatloaf, but my husband and I love it. When I saw this recipe, I thought they might finally try it. Since they eat a lot, I doubled it. I made it according to the recipe, but swapped half the beef with pork. It was a hit- they went back for thirds.
A solid 5 star go to meatloaf recipe. Great flavor, holds together nice for a future sandwich and the sauce, awesome.
Excellent! Very smooth, melt-in-your mouth in every bite. Thank you
Has anyone tried baking these in a muffin tin? Cooking for two, so always looking for easy ways to portion things out.
Yummy! Use recipe as is! Delish!
When I make meatloaf, this is the recipe I use!! My husband also loves it. It’s very moist and I just love the cheese!
I mixed in about 1/4 – 1/3 cup of chopped pickle because what’s a cheeseburger without pickle? It was sublime. From this day forth, all meatloaf made in my kitchen shall have cheddar chunks and chopped pickle.
This recipe was terrific! Love the mouthfeel of the melty bits of cheddar. The glaze was tangy with the right amount of sweetness. Very comforting and dare I say better than Mom’s! 😜
Delicious.
I put the egg and the onion in the magic bullet to liquify and then added the liquid to to the dry ingredients. I used grated cheese because that’s what I had and the meatloaf was a huge success. Thank you!
I have this on my list to cook this week. Can you use Shredded cheese or is it better to use a block that you cut up?
You can absolutely use shredded cheese. XOXO -Monti
While you can use shredded cheese, the smaller pieces tend to melt into the meat and you probably won’t get the melty pieces throughout like you see in the photos above. The chunks make the cheese more pronounced in the mixture. :)
Would you recommend freezing before or after baking?
I would probably just freeze the slices after baking. :)
This meatloaf is amazing! Would it be possible to double the recipe versus cooking two separate loaves?
You could probably do that, although I don’t know how long it would take to bake through without testing it. :)