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Craving classic meatloaf without the leftovers? This single serving slow cooker meatloaf recipe is your solution! It transforms simple ingredients into a delicious, mini meatloaf perfect for those cooking for one. Created for your small slow cooker, it boasts a tender, juicy texture and a blend of rich, savory spices. This hassle-free meal satisfies your cravings in just the right portion, making it ideal for a personal treat or small households.
Looking for more single serving mini slow cooker recipes? Try our Ribs, Pot Roast, and Chicken Piccata.
Table of Contents
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Slow Cooker Meatloaf For One: Comfort Food Made Easy
- Ingredients
- How To Make Meatloaf In A Crockpot Or Slow Cooker
- Slow Cooker Tips
- Serving Suggestions
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Single Serving Slow Cooker Recipes
- Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
- Slow Cooker Meatloaf For One Recipe
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: This small meatloaf recipe uses everyday ingredients that are easy to find.
- No-Fuss Preparation: Minimal prep time makes this recipe perfect for busy individuals.
- Customizable: You can easily adapt this recipe to suit your dietary preferences.
- Perfect Portion: Cooking a single serving ensures no leftovers or waste.
Slow Cooker Meatloaf For One: Comfort Food Made Easy
This recipe ditches the leftovers and brings you the classic comfort of meatloaf in a single serving slow cooker version. We take ground meat (usually beef) and combine it with simple ingredients like breadcrumbs, an egg, and seasonings to create a delicious mini loaf. The beauty of the slow cooker is that it allows the flavors to meld perfectly while keeping the meat incredibly moist and tender.
Meatloaf has a long history, dating back to humble origins where people stretched their meat supplies by mixing it with fillers. It gained huge popularity in the US during the Great Depression, and since then, it’s become a beloved comfort food.
Interested in other single serving meatloaf recipes? Try our Oven Baked Meatloaf, Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf, and Turkey Meatloaf.
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this Crockpot meatloaf recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- Butter: You’ll need one tablespoon of butter to cook the onions and garlic. This step is essential for a moist and flavorful meatloaf.
- Vegetables: Don’t skip the chopped onions and garlic! They’re crucial for adding depth to the meatloaf’s flavor.
- Seasonings: Season with dried thyme, salt, and black pepper.
- Ground Beef: Use half a pound of ground beef. Feel free to substitute with ground turkey, chicken, or a plant-based meat alternative. If you have extra ground beef, try using it in other dishes like Beef Tacos or Lasagna Soup.
- Worcestershire Sauce: This adds a fantastic burst of flavor.
- Egg: One large egg is needed to help flavor and hold the meatloaf together.
- Breadcrumbs: You can use either store-bought or homemade breadcrumbs. Alternatively, 3 tablespoons of oat flour or almond flour, or 4 tablespoons of old-fashioned rolled oats can be used.
- Ketchup and Molasses: Mix these together for a delicious topping. BBQ sauce is a great substitute if preferred.
How To Make Meatloaf In A Crockpot Or Slow Cooker
See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Prepare the Slow Cooker: Cut a foot-long piece of foil in half lengthwise and then fold each piece in half again to make two long, narrow strips. Lay these strips in a cross shape at the bottom of your slow cooker. Adjust the strips so they don’t extend beyond the rim, ensuring they won’t interfere with the lid’s closure. Then, spray both the foil and the inside of the slow cooker with nonstick spray.
- Cook the Aromatics: In a small skillet, cook the chopped onions and a clove of garlic with a bit of butter until the onions are soft. Season them with dried thyme, salt, and black pepper.
- Prepare the Meatloaf Mixture: Transfer the cooked onions and garlic to a large bowl. Add ground beef, Worcestershire sauce, an egg, and your choice of bread crumbs, almond flour, or oat flour. Mix everything together, then shape the mixture into a round or oval loaf. Place the meatloaf on top of the foil strips in the slow cooker.
- Cook the Meatloaf: Set the slow cooker to low and cook the meatloaf for 6 hours.
- Add the Glaze: About 30 minutes before the cooking time ends, mix 1/4 cup of ketchup with 1 tablespoon of molasses. Spoon this mixture over the top of the meatloaf, then cover and cook for the remaining 30 minutes.
Slow Cooker Tips
- Foil Lining: To easily remove your meatloaf from the slow cooker, line the base with foil strips. This technique not only helps lift the meatloaf smoothly but also separates it from any excess oil.
- Pre-Cooked Onions and Garlic: For a moist and flavorful meatloaf, sauté onions and garlic in butter before mixing them with the ground beef. This step enhances the taste and texture of your meatloaf.
- Oven Alternative: Don’t have a slow cooker? No problem! You can bake this meatloaf in a conventional oven. Set it to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and cook for 50 minutes to achieve the same delicious result.
- Resting Time: After cooking, let your meatloaf rest, covered, for five minutes before slicing. This pause allows the juices to settle, ensuring a moist and tender meatloaf. Cutting it too soon can release these juices and result in a drier meatloaf.
Serving Suggestions
Serve your mini meatloaf with a side of mashed potatoes, pasta, or vegetables for a complete meal. Top it with a sprinkle of fresh parsley for added flavor and garnish.
RELATED – 40 Easy Recipes For Busy College Students
Frequently Asked Questions
The best size slow cooker to use to make this meatloaf recipe is a small, 1.5 to 3-quart slow cooker.
If you only have a large slow cooker, that’s fine too.
You can easily transform your large slow cooker into a small one by placing an oven-safe bowl inside of the bowl of your slow cooker.
More Single Serving Slow Cooker Recipes
If you like this slow cooker meatloaf recipe, you might also like to try these slow cooker recipes:
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
If you’ve tried this slow cooker meatloaf or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
Also, if you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Slow Cooker Meatloaf For One
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- 2 ounces chopped onions (about ¼ of a large onion)
- 1 clove garlic -chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- ½ pound ground beef
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon molasses
Instructions
- Cooking the Aromatics: Heat the butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and cook for 2 minutes. Then, add the chopped garlic, dried thyme, salt, and pepper. Cook for another 2 minutes while stirring occasionally. Remove the skillet from heat and set it aside.
- Preparing the Meatloaf Mix: Place the ground beef in a medium-sized bowl. Pour the onion, garlic, and butter mixture over it. Add Worcestershire sauce, an egg, and breadcrumbs. Mix everything together well with a spoon or your hands until it's fully combined. Shape the mixture into an oval.
- Setting up the Slow Cooker: Cut a 1-foot length of foil in half lengthwise. Fold each half lengthwise again to create two long strips. Lay these strips in a cross shape at the bottom of your slow cooker. Make sure the ends of the foil strips are trimmed to be level with or below the rim of the cooker so they don't interfere with the lid. Spray both the foil and the interior of the slow cooker with nonstick spray.
- Cooking the Meatloaf: Place the shaped meatloaf on the foil in the slow cooker. Cover with the lid and cook on low for 5 and a half hours.
- Adding the Glaze: Mix ketchup and molasses in a small bowl. After 5 and a half hours, remove the slow cooker lid and spoon this mixture over the meatloaf. Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
- Resting and Serving: Use the foil strips to lift the meatloaf out of the slow cooker carefully. Transfer it to a plate and cover with aluminum foil. Let it rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Thanks for a great base recipe! I modified it a bit, but it turned out fantastic. Will be making again.
Scaled recipe since I was making it for two people. Sautéed diced green peppers with onions. In addition to thyme, incorporated dry mustard, basil, and Greek seasoning (from Penzey’s). Along with the Worcestershire sauce, egg, and bread crumbs (used seasoned Panko), added a dash of hot sauce and 1/3 cup of catsup. Blended mixture and formed on foil.
Instead of using a Crock-pot, placed in my Instant Pot on Slow Cook mode at high temperature for 5 hours. Covered with a glass lid. If it isn’t done, you can place in oven for 10-15 minutes. Covered with a Sweet and Sour sauce from another recipe and baked for 10 min. Moist and delicious!
Best ever 2 person FAMILY crockpot meatloaf
Hi Joanie, Love the meatloaf. The nutritional values listed carbs, calories etc. Would that be for the entire meatloaf?? I do have to watch my carbs. Thanks for all the fabulous recipes.
Hi Cindy, I’m so glad you love the meatloaf. The nutrition information is for two servings.
If I doubled this for two people with, hopefully, lunch for one the next day, how much longer would I cook it?
Hi Tricia,
Cook the meatloaf for the same amount of time (about 6 hours on low). If you would like to check doneness with a thermometer, you will know that the meatloaf is fully cooked when it reaches a temperature of 165 degrees F when a thermometer is inserted in the center of the meatloaf.
Can you cook it on high for 4 hours
Yes, you can.
I love this meatloaf so much! Thank you for all the wonderful recipes. I didn’t have molasses so I used real maple and it was still wonderful.
I made this and it was awesome! I used meatloaf mix meat and it was moist, flavorful and so easy.
Tillia,
Thank you so much for letting me know you enjoyed the recipe. It makes my day!
have a wonderful week.
Joanie
This is genius! I love the flavors of the beef but it was the ketchup and molasses that puts it over the top for me, delicious. PLUS! Love your method for cooking the meatloaf inside the ramekin, I have never even thought of that.
This recipe for slow cooker meatloaf for one is AMAZING! So glad to have this up my sleeve for when my husband is away for the week or weekend!
I would never have thought to do this! I totally see this as an easy lunch in my future 😀
Meatloaf is a favorite of mine. My husband? Not so much. This is perfect, especially when a craving strikes me!
I absolutely LOVE this! I personally have a big family, but this would be an absolutely perfect option for my in-laws. The recipe sounds divine too! Passing this one along!