Ironically, we got news of Chef Paul Prudhomme’s death at age 75 as I was writing this. RIP
I’ve been cooking this dish since we received K-Paul’s Cookbook as a gift in 1984. It was written to be mixed by hand and baked in the oven. I have cooked it hand mixed, using the Kitchen Aid stand mixer and on every kind of grill, including — most recently — the Big Green Egg.
K-PAUL’S CAJUN MEAT LOAF
FULL RECIPE Rewritten *Marc’s way* 8.09
Note: I’ve substituted sour cream, yogurt, or condensed milk, of necessity, but evaporated milk is best.
Recipe for 1 1/2# ground beef, 1/2# ground pork, 2 eggs, 1 C breadcrumbs
Spice mix
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne)
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp nutmeg
Combine in a small bowl and set aside.Vegetables
3/4 C finely chopped onion
1/2 C finely chopped celery
1/2 C finely chopped green pepper
1/4 C finely chopped scallions
2 tsp minced garlic
Combine in a small bowl and set aside.
Preparation
Melt 4 Tbsp butter in the Le Creuset red pot over medium heat. Add the vegetables and spice mix. Stir to mix thoroughly until mixture begins to bubble. Add 1 Tbsp Tabasco, 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce. Saute till mixture starts sticking excessively, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the pan bottom well. Stir in 1/2 C evaporated milk (see note), 1/2 C ketchup. Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to room temperature. Remove the bay leaves.
formed and waiting for fire to peak…
Mix by hand = Break 2 large eggs into a big bowl and lightly beat. Toss in the ground beef and pork a big pinch at a time. Add the cooled cooked vegetable mixture and 1 C breadcrumbs. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. Do not overhandle.
Mix with KitchenAid = Break 2 large eggs into the mixer bowl and lightly beat. Toss in the ground beef and pork a big pinch at a time. Add the cooked vegetable mixture and 1 C breadcrumbs. Attach bowl and flat beater to mixer. Turn to SPEED 2 and mix for one minute.
Transfer to the small glass (6”x 10”) ungreased baking dish and shape the mixture into a loaf that is clear of the sides of the dish.
loaf on the Big Green Egg
COOK
For the Oven:
Fan bake uncovered at 350° for 25 minutes, then raise heat to 400° and continue cooking until done, about 35 minutes longer to an internal temperature of 150°F.
For the Big Green Egg:
Set up the EGG for indirect grilling with platesetter – legs up – and porcelain grid.
Preheat to 350°F. Place baking dish on the grid and close lid. Bake uncovered at 350° for 25 minutes, then raise heat to 400° and continue cooking until done, about 35 minutes longer to an internal temperature of 150°F.
For a Charcoal or Gas Grill:
Cook over an indirect fire on a covered grille for about 50 minutes.
loaf on kitchen counter with scalloped potatoes
It’s better to overcook than undercook this dish, if you’re not sure. Serves 6.
Some Cooks Notes
Cooked 10.2015 — DIS is Good. Always. For Brian and Natasza, stand mixer and Big Green Egg. As ever, predictably good, though C thinks its too spicy. (I think its an age thing — she’s also way more sensitive to onion vapors — back in the day, she would beg for me to cook it..)
Cooked 8.2013 — Substituted a shallot for scallions. Used stand mixer. Cooked on Big Green Egg. Used same temps as for oven baking; platesetter legs up, grate on that, baking dish on grate. Just as good as always.
Cooked 8.2010 – Using Mariquita Dexter ground beef, and stand mixer… Wrapped meatloaf with caul fat. Seemed more dense than usual, and darker colored.
what we have here is a bare-ass meatloaf with ketchup sandwich on English muffin
Jerusalem 1989 –K-PAUL’S CAJUN MEAT LOAF
This is oh so wonderful, from the making to the cooking smells to the eating of the last meatloaf sandwich on white bread with ketchup, days later. In Jerusalem, I always made a half-recipe, because that’s what fit in the oven.
eats for one 