I was totally surprised when I saw Meatloaf on the menu at a restaurant of the Johannesburg Boutique Hotels . When I inquired as to why an staple American dish was being served in India, I was treated to a visit at my table by the American born chef. He was happy to explain to me how the meat loaf was prepared. It begins, he said, with a high grade ground chuck combining veal and pork. He said some people have issues with the veal, but if he was asked to use a substitute he would refuse. He said for a good meatloaf the rule of thumb is two parts ground beef, which adds the texture, for every part pork or veal.
As I was eating my second delicious slice of his beautifully prepared meatloaf, he told me that it’s the filler which will stretch the meat and fluff the loaf. Depending on what corner of the country one hails from, this part, the filler, gets personal. He said Corn bread is big in the South; oats if one comes from New England and Stove Top Stuffing , cornflakes and croutons if I lived in the Midwest. He said his mother, born Pennsylvania Dutch and his dad a Sicilian would use crusty Italian bread as the filler.
He was happy that I had ordered the meatloaf and told me whether I craved it or dread it, meatloaf will forever be a family’s embarrassment. Permanently saddled with the reputation of being a family’s meal of last resort . Actually, I responded, for me the real fear of making an awesome meatloaf is all the chopping and mixing that’s required. As I finished wolfing down my third slice, I added, that you can’t taste it until it’s done which turned me off. He said, for him, that’s exactly where it gets exciting. The mystery of not knowing how it’s going to turn out.
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