This Meatloaf and Brown Gravy is a family favorite, this one is made a bit healthier than most, with a mix of half beef and ground turkey plus nutritious oats, topped with a delicious brown gravy – comfort food at its finest!
Meatloaf and Brown Gravy
This Meatloaf and Brown Gravy is the best meatloaf recipe ever! When I crave comfort food, this meatloaf hits the spot. I have tons of turkey meatloaf recipes, but for this recipe I wanted it to taste more like a classic beef meatloaf. To keep it light, I used a blend of lean ground beef and turkey with oatmeal instead of breadcrumbs. If you want to make this will all beef, that is fine too. And if you want some other meatloaf ideas, try Cheese-Stuffed Turkey Meatloaf and Bacon-Topped Petite Turkey Meatloaf with BBQ Sauce.
Many traditional meatloaf recipes have a mix of beef, veal, and pork, so using a lean beef and turkey mix made sense. It turned out great and still had the beefy flavor I wanted. I always keep ground beef in my freezer, perfect for making meatloaf. You can see more of my ground beef recipes here.
How do you make meatloaf moist?
The eggs, milk, and sauteed onions and celery will make this meatloaf moist. Another tip for not drying it out is to make sure not to over mix the meat, which will make it tougher.
Also, you don’t want to overcook the meatloaf. Use a thermometer to check the temperature of the meatloaf. When it reads 160 degrees, the meatloaf is done. Let it rest for ten minutes before slicing.
How do you make meatloaf gravy from scratch?
If you’ve never made gravy before, it’s actually pretty simple.
1. Start by combining beef broth, thyme, and flour in a small saucepan, whisking over medium heat until it begins boiling.
2. Then simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens, occasionally stirring about 5 minutes.
3. Pour any drippings from the meatloaf on the sheet pan into the gravy and whisk for another minute.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove the thyme.
What to Serve with Meatloaf and Brown Gravy
This meatloaf and brown gravy would be fantastic with macaroni and cheese, garlic mashed sweet potatoes, rice pilaf, or mashed potatoes. For a vegetable side, serve a salad, sauteed spinach, or roasted broccoli.
More Meatloaf Recipes You’ll Love:
- Sheet Pan Turkey Meatloaf and Broccoli
- Campfire Dinner Meatloaf Foil Packets
- Easy Turkey Meatloaf
- Skillet Harissa Turkey Meatloaf
- Meatloaf Cupcakes with Mashed Potato Frosting
Meatloaf and Brown Gravy
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped fine
- 2 medium celery stalks, minced fine
- 1 1/2 pounds 90% lean ground beef
- 1 1/2 pounds 93% lean ground turkey
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, plus more for garnish
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup fat free milk
- 4 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 3/4 cups raw quick oats
Beef Gravy: (makes 3 cups)
- 1/4 cup all purpose or gluten-free flour
- 3 cups salted beef broth or stock
- 1 thyme sprig
- fresh black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Place a piece of parchment paper or foil on a sheet pan.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft, about 7 minutes.
- Set aside to cool slightly.
- In a large bowl combine the beef, turkey, parsley, thyme, eggs, milk, salt, and pepper.
- Add the onion mixture and the oats and combine with clean hands until mixed well.
- Form into 1 long or 2 smaller rectangle loafs. Bake 50 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the middle reads 160 degrees.
- Remove from the oven and rest for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, when the meatloaf is almost ready, combine the cold beef broth, thyme and flour in a small saucepan and whisk well over medium heat until it comes to a boil, then simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens, stirring occasionally about 5 minutes.
- Pour the pan drippings, if any into the gravy and continue to whisk another minute. Adjust salt and pepper to taste, as needed, then discard thyme.
- Slice the loaf into 24 slices (if making 1, or 12 slices each if making this into 2 loaves) and serve hot with the gravy. Garnish with parsley if desired.
Last Step:
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Notes
Without gravy this one is 7 green points, 6 blue points, and 5 purple points.
This is absolutely delicious! I used lean ground beef and added 3 garlic cloves and Worcestershire sauce.
I was nervous to make this for my family since they are not a fan of ground turkey. The meatloaf had a good texture and was very moist. My family enjoyed it and I made as recommended except a lot less salt. I was very disappointed with the gravy… I am not sure if it was the brand of beef stock I chose, but I had to discard and go with canned gravy. I will make it again with different gravy!!
Absolutely delicious and this recipe makes A LOT! Â I made extra mashed potatoes and green beans and froze individual meals to enjoy at another time. So Yummy!!!!!
Perfect!
Made this for dinner with a few changes since my son has an egg allergy. I used 2 tablespoons ground flax seed with 6 tablespoons of water. I also thought I had quick oats but realized I didn’t at the last minute. so I used panko bread crumbs.  I also used ground elk meat.Â
It was delicious and I will definitely make it again. It was a hit with my husband and son. My husband said it was the best meatloaf he ever had.Â
Thank you for the recipe!
You eat Elk????? Isn’t there enough dead stuff laying around the grocery stores? NO animal is safe.ðŸ˜
I love all of your recipes, and this one did not disappoint! It’s comfort food without the guilt! Thank you for all of the amazing recipes!Â
Thanks Kelly!
Such yummy comfort food! Great recipe, will make again.
Thank you for the personal points WW links.. It helps so much.. Your foods are always awesome!
This is delicious! Highly recommend substituting dijon mustard for the milk. Makes it dairy free and amps the flavor way up!
I thought this was too bland. I only used a pound of beef and a pound of turkey. I grated onion directly into the beef/turkey mixture with chopped sun dried tomatoes, tomato paste, fresh garlic, salt, pepper and fresh parsley. I followed the guidelines mostly in this recipe, but used oat milk, 2 egg whites and one whole egg along with the oatmeal.
For the gravy, I saluted onion and sliced mushrooms, when they were browned I added salt free beef stock, heated, then processed in my nutri blender, which thickened the liquid.
Yum!!
Could I sub riced cauliflower for bread crumbs?
This was delicious!! Loved the difference between my normal ketchup meatloaf. I didn’t even need to use the gravy, the meatloaf was that good! My kids and husband loved it too so win, win, win!! Thank you for the great recipe which will now be on repeat
I love this recipe! Â I am not typically a fan of Turkey, but combining it with the beef makes this meatloaf moist and delicious. Â I also love the celery and onions, makes it taste like Thanksgiving. Â Adding this one to the regular rotation for sure!
I would make this as two loafs. Can I freeze the second loaf? Do I freeze before or after baking?
This hit the spot for comfort food. I served it with mashed potatoes and green beans. The gravy is a must for full flavor. It’s a huge portion. You won’t be hungry after this meal!