Croque Madame - sourdough, smoked ham, Mornay sauce, Sunnyside up egg
My meatloaf sandwich is the "I Would Do Anything For Loaf," and it consists of:
Leftover slice of meatloaf
Chipotle Honey BBQ Sauce
Sliced mild cheddar
Beer Battered Onion Rings
Spicy pickles
Toasted brioche bun
Here are the ones that Alexis and I made this weekend.
UPDATE: Several people have asked for it so I have posted the onion ring recipe.
Of course, the key to any meatloaf sandwich is staring with a juicy, well-seasoned meatloaf. So we started with the Cheddar Chipotle Meatloaf recipe from my second book, The Offset Smoker Cookbook.
Cheddar Chipotle Meatloaf pictured in The Offset Smoker Cookbook (Ulysses Press)
Even though my second book was all cooked on offset smokers, the recipes are easily converted to a kamado-style grill like the Big Green Egg or Kamado Joe. I cooked the meatloaf for these sandwiches on one of our large Big Green Eggs.
Toast the buns. Slice the buns and toast over the coals, or you can toast them in a skillet.
Reheat the meatloaf. Switch the grill to indirect heat. Place the slices on a foil-lined quarter sheet pan. Mix the BBQ sauce, chipotle, and honey and brush on to the slabs. Top each piece of meatloaf with a slice of mild cheddar. Place in the grill with the lid closed until the cheese is melted and the meatloaf heated through.
Make the sandwich. Place a slice of meatloaf on each bun and top with 2-3 onions and 2-3 spicy pickles. Drizzle with any remaining Honey Chipotle BBQ sauce.
Enjoy with a cold adult beverage!
Alexis made hamburger buns using the Rich Man's Brioche recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice. That's an excellent book for aspiring bread makers.
Toasting brings out the flavor of the brioche and adds texture, so don't skip this step.
I didn't have any leftover meatloaf, so I made a batch of the Cheddar Chipotle Meatloaf just for making sandwiches.
For the indirect heat set up, I used a spider rig, heat stone, and foil-wrapped drip pan. I placed an adjustable rig over this. You could also use a ConvEGGtor (aka plate setter) and standard OEM grate. Either way, a drip pan is essential because meatloaf renders a metric butt-ton of fat, and some might spill out of the loaf pan.
Ground meat absorbs smoke like a sponge, so having a clean-burning fire is important. Clean your grill out first. Use quality charcoal, such as; Jealous Devil. Allow plenty of time for preheating.
I used a stoneware loaf pan, but any grill-safe loaf pan should do. I just like how stoneware cooks on a kamado grill.
I cook my meatloaf in the loaf pan for 1 hour and 20 minutes, and then I invert it to finish cooking without a container. Here's how I flip the loaf pan. First, I pour off the rendered fat. Then....
Next, I glaze the meatloaf with Chipotle Honey BBQ sauce and put the meatloaf back in the grill for 40 more minutes. I apply sauce 2 or 3 times during this time.
The meatloaf is done once the sauce is set to your liking, and the internal temperature has reached 165°f.
For sandwiches, I like to slice the meatloaf about 1" thick.
I do my deep-frying outside because I love fried foods but hate the smell afterward. The table on the left is the Big Green Egg Modular Nest System, and the one on the right is a Challenger Designs Torch 48. Both are expensive, and both are amazing.
I fired up one of the Eggs to 350°f indirect.
The large BGE table gives Alexis lots of room to spread out her deep-frying set up. If you are looking to buy a home deep fryer, I suggest using one with the heating element INSIDE the cooking container like this one. They adjust the heat more quickly. I've had mine for about 5 years and would rebuy it in a heartbeat. I also HIGHLY recommend buying an oil filter set up for straining and reusing your cooking oil once it is cooled down.
I'll do a separate post for the onion ring recipe. Alexis had an excellent idea about substituting something else for the paprika.
Looking down "the line." People that see Alexis and I cook together often comment on what a good team we make. Someone recently said, "You two are like biscuits and gravy."
d
Always make double the onion rings that you anticipate needing. Onion rings, hush puppies, and homemade croutons have a high rate of shrinkage due to "quality control testing."
d
I don't use an internal temp for reheating the meatloaf slices since they are already cooked. I just go by look and feel.
I prefer the taste of sharp cheddars but use mild cheddar with this because mild cheddar melts more easily. If you really want sharp (I LOVE a good white sharp cheddar), use shredded instead of sliced.
Here's to Happy Hour on the back deck. That's how you quarantine!
I would do anything for loaf....yeah, including that. 😆
