The Best Smoked Meatloaf Recipe

This easy smoked meatloaf recipe is the quintessential Sunday night dinner. It’s loaded with familiar flavors of the comfort food you grew up with combined with that signature smoky flavor from the pellet grill.

 

You Will Love This

• This recipe takes meatloaf to the next level! Smoking meatloaf takes a Sunday night dinner favorite and elevates it with smoky flavors that your family will love. The best part is it’s super quick and easy to throw together and then the smoker does all the work!
• If you loved this recipe, be sure to check out my smoked queso dip, smoked mac and cheese, and Italian meatloaf recipe.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• 85/15 Ground Beef – Don’t use anything leaner than 85/15. Fat equals flavor and keeps the meatloaf moist. You could also use a mixture of ground beef and ground pork or Italian sausage.
• Italian Breadcrumbs – Feel free to use unseasoned breadcrumbs, but add an extra teaspoon of Italian seasoning.
• Whole Milk – You could use 1% or 2% as well but whole milk adds a little extra flavor.
• Yellow Onion – White onion will work in place of the yellow but I don’t recommend using red onion.
• Chili Sauce – If you don’t have chili sauce, use ketchup instead. However, chili sauce really gives this meatloaf a delicious flavor. If your family won’t enjoy the hint of spice from the chili sauce you can add a couple teaspoons of brown sugar to it or replace it with barbecue sauce instead.
• Eggs – The eggs in this recipe are going to help bind everything together. Beat them slightly before adding them to the mixture.
• Worcestershire Sauce – You could sub with soy sauce or tamari but Worcestershire is going to give you the best flavor.
• Italian Seasoning – You could also sub with dried thyme, dried oregano, and dried sage.
• Garlic Powder – Feel free to use 1 teaspoon granulated garlic in place of the garlic powder.
• BBQ Sauce – The BBQ sauce adds a lot of delicious flavor and works really well with the smoky flavors. Use your favorite BBQ sauce.

Instructions

Turn pellet grill to smoke setting. Add ground beef, bread crumbs, milk, onion, chili sauce, eggs, Worcestershire, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a large bowl.

Mix just until combined.

Form into a loaf and place on a pizza pan, wire rack, or grill pan lined with parchment paper.

Place meatloaf in pellet grill – I love my Z Grill – and smoke for 10 minutes.

Combine topping ingredients.

Turn grill to 250 degrees and smoke for 4 hours, brushing it with a 1/4 cup of the topping every 30 minutes until it’s gone. 

Insert probe into meatloaf after a couple hours and remove meatloaf from the grill when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Allow meatloaf to rest for a few minutes, slice, and serve with my air fryer green beans and herb roasted potatoes.

Tips

• You might be tempted to skip the step of brushing the glaze on while the meatloaf is smoking. But I promise, it’s worth the extra work! It builds this delicious tangy smoky crust on the outside of the meatloaf.
• If you like it saucy like me, make a double batch of the topping so you can brush half on the meatloaf and save the rest to serve alongside the sliced meatloaf.
• If you don’t have a pizza pan or grill pan, you could also place the meatloaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet. However, I prefer a pan that has holes in it so that the smoke can really penetrate all sides of the meatloaf.

Are you new to smoking?

Looking for an affordable smoker?
Not sure which wood pellet grill is best for your needs?

Click here to check out my full review of my favorite Z Grill wood pellet smoker! I’ll share with you everything I love about this grill and why you’ll want to add it to your backyard space right now!

Variations

This meatloaf recipe is super forgiving so feel free to mix in your favorites. Some of our family’s favorites include:

• Dijon mustard
• diced pickled jalapeno
• cubed cheddar cheese
• diced bacon
• oatmeal
• fresh herbs
• dried herbs

FAQ

Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

• Make-Ahead: This meatloaf is the perfect make-ahead recipe. Mix meatloaf ingredients together and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator overnight. Then follow recipe instructions, but before smoking, let meatloaf sit out on the counter for 30 minutes or so to ensure it comes to room temperature. You may need to add a bit of extra cooking time as well to account for the colder temp.
• Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
• Reheating: Reheat slices of meatloaf in a 250 degree oven until warmed through. Or zap it in the microwave in 30-60 second increments until heated through.

Type of Wood to Use

• I prefer to use hickory for this smoked meatloaf recipe. It’s got a robust flavor and it pairs really well with the BBQ sauce glaze. Mesquite would also be delicious.
• If you’re looking for a lighter smoked flavor, try using apple, cherry, maple, or pecan instead.
• I’ve also used a mixture of apple and hickory for this smoked meatloaf and it was delicious!
• If you need more help deciding what what type of wood to use, check out this article.

No Pellet Smoker Needed

• You can also bake this easy meatloaf recipe in the oven – no need to smoke it on the grill!
• Follow the recipe instructions in the card below but bake the meatloaf in a loaf pan or on a baking sheet at 375 degrees for about an hour, basting the meatloaf with the topping about halfway through. Cook until it reaches an internal temp of 160 degrees.

More Easy Smoker Recipes

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