So let's talk meatloaf. Not the paradise dashboard light kind (showing my age!) but the hearty, warming kind that is perfect for dinner on those chilly nights. It's usually a crowd pleaser for kids and adult alike and leftover slices are great in a sandwich or bread roll.

You can also re-heat your leftovers or pre-make this to have later in the week. The best way to do that is with your Combi-Steam’s “re-heat” function. In my brand of choice there is something called RegeneratOMatic which automatically re-heats using the perfect balance of steam and convection heat to bring your food completely back to brand new. It’s literally like you just cooked it! In other brands using some steam and some convection heat manually will do the trick too. It’s always worth referring to your user manual or attending a demonstration to find out the best way to work with your own appliance.

In terms of the recipe, you can really be creative with what you add to it. There's nothing wrong with playing around with things like grated zucchini and grated sweet potato or even Italian-ing it up with some olives and sundried tomatoes or going Greek with feta and baby spinach.

This one is kind of everyday Aussie but it does have some proscuitto or parma ham wrapped around it which I love because it gives it saltiness and texture, not to mention making it look a little fancy.

In this recipe your meat or food probe comes into play. Most brands will have these. You could certainly cook it without using the probe but for me it just takes any guess work out of knowing when it's ready. Usually in a regular oven it would also help to ensure you didn't dry it out but we all know now that our Combi-Steam doesn't really let that happen unless we're deliberately using a dry or straight Fan Forced (Hot Air) function.

Your food probe is perfect for any dish or meat where you want to cook to a perfect internal (or “core”) temperature. It sounds a bit “cheffy” but it’s actually super easy once you get the hang of it and takes all the guess work out. Think terrines using Steam, think roast Christmas turkey using Combination Steam (Hot Air+Steaming) or even when reheating a big lasagna or casserole and you need to know when it's hot enough in the centre to serve. You just plug it in according to your brand’s requirements and put as much of the probe into the food as you can, making sure the tip ends up inthe centre of your food (for meat it should be in the thickest part away and not touching any bones) to get an accurate food temp reading right there on your screen. Be sure to leave it in while you cook too! When you're done just wash it with some hot soapy water.

So here's a quick and easy dish that's sure to please and gives the amazing accuracy and technology of the probe a good work out!

Pork & Beef Meatloaf (serves 4-6 with some leftover - maybe?)

Ingredients:
500g each of pork and beef mince*
1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs (use crushed gluten free crackers/dry biscuits if GF)
1 egg (lightly beaten)
2 tbs tomato ketchup
1 tbs dijon mustard
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
½ cup chopped Italian parsley
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3-4 thin slices proscuitto or parma ham
1 medium carrot (grated)
1 brown onion (grated)
1 stick celery (grated)
1 bay leaf
1 tbs olive oil + extra or spray for greasing
S&P
1 tbs gluten free corn flour and 1 tbs water

Method:

1. Place the onion, carrot, celery, bayleaf and oil in a large loaf pan. Season with a 2 good pinches of salt and a generous amount of pepper. Place into the cold Combi-Steam. Select Combination Steam (Hot Air+Steaming). Set the temperature to 220°C. Cook for 10 minutes or until softened and just a little browned.*

2. Meanwhile in a mixing bowl (or using your stand mixer with beater attachment) mix the mince, breadcrumbs, egg, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, parsley and parmesan.

3. Remove the bay leave from the softened veggies. Add the veggie mixutre to the mince mixture and mix until very well combined and a little sticky.

4. Give the loaf pan a bit of a wipe and then spay or brush with some olive oil. Lay the prosciutto in the bottom of the pan, overlapping slightly to cover the whole base, and leave the edges overhanging.

5. Press the meatloaf mixture into the pan on top of the prosciutto and firmly push it into all the corners and sides and flatten it across the top. Fold the overhanging prosciutto over the top to enclose.

6. Connect your food probe to your oven (or according to your model’s instructions) and poke the tip of the probe into the centre (both of the width and depth) of the meatloaf.

7. Select your Combination Steam function (Hot Air+Steaming). Set the temp to 170°C. (For variable Steam set to 20%). Set your food probe desired temperature to 75°C. Start the program.*

8. The oven will automatically beep and then turn off when the internal temp of your meatloaf reaches exactly 75°C.

9. Remove the pan from the oven and drain off the juices into a saucepan. Set the meatloaf aside to rest for a few minutes before turning out and slicing.

10. Mix the cornflour and water in a small dish and whisk into the juices in the saucepan. Place onto the stovetop over medium heat and stir constantly until thickened.

11. Serve gravy with the meatloaf.

Notes:

*try not to use "lean" or "diet" mince for this recipe - a little bit of fat will give you much more flavour and a better texture
*In a V-ZUG Combi-Steam you can use RegeneratOMatic - Crispy in Step 1 to soften the veggies automatically. No need to set a temperature or time. Just put the dish into the cold Combi-Steam and wait for it to beep when done.
*In a V-ZUG Combi-Steam or Combair oven you can also cook with dish using Hot Air Humid as another option. Compare the two results and see what you prefer.

If you didn’t want to use the probe here I would recommend cooking using the same functions and temperature for around 1 hour but please check that it is cooked through and juices are running clear to make sure you are happy.

To make life easier and “get ahead” you can double this recipe and make two meatloaves the same size and just put the probe in one - they will both cook at the same rate - freeze the second one once cooled, for an easy option when you need it! If you have variable Steam you may want to turn off the steam for the last 10-15 minutes to reduce the moisture a little.

I bet you will love this one. I know I do. It's time for this Queen to sign off...I think it must be lunchtime as my royal tummy is really rumbling after all the food writing business!

Happy Combi-Steaming!

Yours in the kitchen,

The CSQ. x