This really has to be one of the fastest, easiest dinners EVER. I have been craving meatloaf lately, but decided to just go ahead and cook all my vegetable sides along with the loaves to make my whole dinner in one swoop. This Sheet Pan BBQ Meatloaf Dinner is seriously so easy and customizable, I can see myself making at least ten variations on this simple theme. Watch out, because you’ll be seeing this on the blog a lot in the near future!
How Many Does This Recipe Feed?
This recipe makes dinner for two, and if you know me and my style of eating, then you know that I like things heavy on vegetables and light on the meat. This meal is super easy to switch up if you want different portions, though. To avoid overcrowding the sheet pan, use two sheet pans to double this dinner and feed four. Or double the meat mixture and keep the vegetables the same (using one pan) to do four portions that are heavier on the meat and lighter on the vegetables. It’s up to you.
Roasting Time May Vary
One last note. Roasting time varies on many factors, including the size and shape of your food, the temperament of your oven, or even the material and color of your baking sheet. So, take my roasting time with a grain of salt.
If your vegetables are done before your meatloaves, take them out early and return the loaves to the oven until they finish. If the vegetables need more time and your meatloaves are done, plate up the meatloaf and return the vegetables to the oven. Use your senses and watch for doneness. And please use a thermometer to make sure your meatloaves are cooked to a safe temperature, 160ºF.
Sheet Pan BBQ Meatloaf Dinner
Servings 2Ingredients
Vegetables
- 1 sweet potato (about 1 lb.) ($1.51)
- 12 oz. frozen broccoli florets ($1.19)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.26)
- 1/2 tsp seasoning salt* ($0.05)
- salt and pepper to taste ($0.05)
BBQ Meatloaf
- 1/2 lb. ground beef ($2.50)
- 1 large egg ($0.26)
- 2 Tbsp bread crumbs ($0.12)
- 3 Tbsp BBQ sauce, divided ($0.26)
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Peel the sweet potato and cut it into 1/2 to 3/4″ cubes. Place the sweet potatoes and frozen broccoli florets (no need to thaw) on a large baking sheet.
- Drizzle the olive oil over the sweet potatoes and broccoli florets. Sprinkle the seasoning salt over the sweet potatoes and then season the broccoli florets with a pinch of salt and pepper. Use your hands to toss the vegetables until they are coated in oil and spices, keeping the sweet potatoes on one side of the baking sheet and the broccoli on the other.
- Transfer the baking sheet to the preheated oven and roast the vegetables for 15 minutes.
- While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the meatloaves. In a medium bowl combine the ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, 1 Tbsp of the BBQ sauce, the smoked paprika, garlic powder, and salt. Work the ingredients together with your hands or a fork until they are well combined. Divide the meatloaf mixture in two and shape each half into a flattened oval.
- After the vegetables have roasted for 15 minutes, remove the baking sheet and stir each of the vegetables. Push each off to the side a bit to make room for the meatloaves. Place the shaped meatloaves in the center and then spread 1 Tbsp of BBQ sauce over each loaf.
- Return the baking sheet to the oven and roast for an additional 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meatloaves has reached 160ºF. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, plate up the meatloaves and vegetables, and serve immediately.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Sheet Pan BBQ Meatloaf Dinner – Step by Step Photos
Begin by preheating the oven to 400ºF. Peel and dice one sweet potato (about 1 pound) into 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes. Place the cubes on a baking sheet along with 12 oz. frozen broccoli florets (no need to thaw first). Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil over each, then season the sweet potatoes with your favorite seasoning salt and the broccoli with a pinch of salt and pepper. Use your hands to toss the vegetables (keeping each on its own side) until they are coated in oil and spices. Pop the baking sheet in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.
While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the meatloaf. Combine 1/2 lb. ground beef with 1 large egg, 2 Tbsp bread crumbs, 1 Tbsp BBQ sauce, 1/4 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp garlic powder.
Mix the meatloaf ingredients together until evenly combined. Divide the mixture in half and then shape each half into a flattened oval. Just make sure they are the same thickness all the way through so they cook evenly.
After the vegetables have roasted for 15 minutes, take the baking sheet out of the oven, stir the vegetables, and push them to each side a bit to make room for the meatloaves. Place the meatloaves in the center and spread about 1 Tbsp BBQ sauce over top of each.
Now put it back into the hot oven for another 20 minutes or until the internal temp of the meatloaves reaches 160ºF. As I mentioned in the intro to this blog post, roasting time can vary depending on an almost endless number of factors, so keep an eye on the contents and use your senses to take them out early or add more time as needed.
And this is what it looks like when finished. The sweet potatoes should be soft and with some browning on the edges. The broccoli should also have some browning on the very edges.
Plate it up and enjoy!!
Does the paprika make it spicy? Want to make this for my toddler.
No, my smoked paprika is mild, not hot. There probably are some hot smoked paprikas out there, but all the brands I’ve used so far have been mild.
This was *amazing*. I somehow forgot that dinner doesn’t need to take three hours, fifteen thousand ingredients, and a complicated sauce in order to be absolutely fantastic.
I am decidedly not a meatloaf person (and neither is my boyfriend). While it was cooking, we both reminisced about the crumbly, chewy, overwhelming beef smothered in ketchup that our parents made when we were kids. It only took one bite of this for us both to be converted. If you want to make this recipe, but are hesitant because you hate meatloaf–just try it.
Thank you Beth. This is one of those recipes that’s so simple and easy (yet utterly scrumptious and lunch-friendly) that I just know it’s going to save my butt multiple times in the future. Next time I’m making carrot fries and mashed potatoes.
We mad this last night and used ketchup instead of BBQ sauce- my daughter doesn’t like anything remotely spicy. It tasted fantastic! Love you recipes.
Another fave! Adding this to my weeknight rotation.
I doubled the broccoli and meat loaves and tripled the sweet potatoes for my family of five. Made the perfect amount!
Also—I added trader joe’s South African smoke seasoning to the sweet potatoes. The bacony flavor went really well with the bbq sauce flavor. Try it :)
This looks delicious and super easy!! Would I have to make any changes if I used ground turkey instead of beef?
Nope, that should be an easy and seamless swap. :)
Hubby and I made this for dinner tonight and decided after the first bite that it’s a keeper! Great idea to make the mini meatloaves, which cut down the fat and allowed them to cook in 20 minutes instead of an hour.
This is a perfect comfort meal for two!
I really don’t like sweet potatoes. If I use regular russet potatoes – probably a couple of them depending on size – would I need to adjust cooking times?
It should be about the same. It also depends on the size of the pieces, so you really have to play it by ear.
Meatloaf just isn’t the same for me without ketchup in the sauce. Do you have any suggestions on incorporating ketchup without messing up the ratio of everything else? I love your sheet pan meals!
I made this but used the ketchup/mustard/brown sugar glaze that I normally put on meatloaf instead of the BBQ sauce and swapped out the smoked paprika for regular paprika and it turned out wonderfully!
I never liked meat loaf as a kid, but this looked so easy I decided to give it a try. It was excellent! Definitely adding it to our rotation.
I did put only the meat back in the oven for 5 minutes since it wasn’t quite hot enough after the first 20 minutes.
I used Stubbs Sweet Heart bbq sauce, which came out great.
This one-pan method was so quick, convenient, easy, and delicious! I used some chunked butternut squash in place of sweet potato since that’s what I had on hand. The timing was just perfect as written.
I made an double-batch and prepped meals for my husband and me for the rest of the week and then some, in well under an hour, using only two half-sheet pans (I toss the veggies with seasoning and olive oil on the pan) and one bowl for mixing the ingredients — can’t beat that!
I have a bit of chorizo and sausage left from another recipe, and I think these mini loaves are the perfect way to use up the odd small leftover amounts going forward. Thanks for another great recipe, Beth!
I always love some pork in my meat loaf mixture, and the chorizo sounds terrific, too. Did the broccoli come out sweet? I have hesitated to roast it due to the fact that when overcooked it gets bitter.
The broccoli turned out delicious, and not bitter at all! I used fresh this time because I had it on hand, but I usually use frozen broccoli for roasting and get the same great results. I seasoned with salt and fresh cracked lemon pepper, and just kept an eye on things as everything roasted, stirring once and eyeballing the color and texture before adding the meatloaf.
I like pork in my meatloaf as well! I’m sure I’ll have fun experimenting with these mini versions!
What can you use instead of bread crumbs to make it gluten free?
Oats that have been blended into a more fine texture works (just make sure they’re marked gluten-free because some oats aren’t), or sometimes you can find gluten free bread crumbs at the store. :)
Or some folks are so sensitive that oats are too close genetically to wheat for them to tolerate. Maybe use some cooked rice?
How much less time if using fresh broccoli? Thanks!
I would actually say it may take more time for fresh broccoli. Frozen broccoli is blanched before being frozen, so it’s actually partially cooked already. It will definitely depend on the size of your florets, though.
Seems like it would be unsafe to put raw ground beef on the same pan as veggies. Am just being paranoid?
No, because the meat and the veggies are being heated at the same time to the temperature where bacteria will be destroyed.
As long as it’s being cooked to 160ºF, it is safe. What you wouldn’t want to do is let raw ground beef touch vegetables that aren’t going to be cooked (like a salad, or tomato slices that are going on a burger, etc).
Dear Beth, your article on “Sheet Pan Bbq Meatloaf Dinner” is awesome to read. I love the way you explain the recipe with beautiful images but I wish you could add a recipe video as well. by the way can you assist me about the food calories measurement of this recipe?
I LOVE meatloaf. What a perfect dinner for two in the most comforting way possible!! :-)