Low Carb Meatloaf that the whole family will devour! Wrapped in bacon, topped with the simplest little sauce, and baked to juicy meatloaf perfection. This is sure to be a family favorite.
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I’m a total sucker for meatloaf and meatballs.
My mom never made either one when I was a kid, so when I grew up and discovered how tasty they both are, I started making up for lost time.
We went through a period where we were eating meatloaf every few nights there for awhile. I’m sure the husband loved it. 😉
Anyway, we still have this low carb meatloaf at least once a month. It’s easy to prepare, hearty, comforting, and it’s just plain delicious.
I can never get enough of the sweet tangy sauce on top! It’s the best part of meatloaf, if you ask me.
Ingredient Notes:
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Beef – We prefer lean ground beef in our meatloaf. You could do a combo of beef and ground pork, if you like.
Keto Meatloaf Binder – You have two options in this recipe for a low carb meatloaf binder: crushed pork rinds or almond flour. The pork rinds end up being a bit more light and they don’t add carbs to the meatloaf. The almond flour seems to hold together a bit better, but produces a heavier meatloaf with a few more carbs. We like both, but usually go for the almond flour in my house.
Bacon – This is a keto meatloaf, so we’re going all out and wrapping our meatloaf in bacon.
Meatloaf Topping – This low carb meatloaf sauce consists of just 2 ingredients: sugar free ketchup and bottled Italian salad dressing. We like no sugar added Heinz ketchup or Primal Kitchen Ketchup. They add the perfect sweet and tangy flavor to this low carb meatloaf recipe.
Cheese – I’ve added Parmesan and cheddar cheeses to this low carb meatloaf so they’ll help bind the pork rinds or almond flour together and add some cheesy flavor!
This is a very delicious dish and will replace my usual recipe. Even better than any non-keto meatloaf I have made. I was skeptical about the Italian dressing being added to the glaze, but it is perfect. Thanks for this great new family favorite.- Erica
How To:
Meatloaf Mix – Mix together your beef with some minced bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Stir in eggs, crushed pork rinds or almond flour, cheddar, Parmesan, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix that up real good with your hands to combine and then pat it out into a loaf shape on your baking sheet. This low carb meatloaf binder is what will help the loaf keep its shape!
Bacon – This is such a simple but easy way to add even more flavor to the meatloaf and help keep it moist. Lay slices of bacon over the top of the shaped meatloaf mixture and pop it all in the oven. The sauce will come in after the meatloaf has baked a bit.
Meatloaf Topping – Once the meatloaf has baked for about 30 minutes, whisk together the meatloaf sauce and spoon it over the top. It’s just a simple mix of sugar free ketchup and Italian dressing! I know Italian dressing seems like an odd choice but trust me, it works really well! I add a second layer of meatloaf sauce about 10 minutes before it’s done. We like it saucy in our house! Serve it hot and see below for some suggestions on what to serve with meatloaf!
FAQs:
Every kid has asked this question at some point in their life. My parents never made it, so I was always kind of skeptical about how it might taste. A loaf of meat? It just sounds weird. And then there was the stuff they served at our school that was called meatloaf but may or may not have contained actual meat of some origin.
A meatloaf is exactly what it sounds like, a mixture of meat and breading (low carb in this case!) and other good stuff in the shape of a loaf and covered in a savory sauce.
Leave the meatloaf uncovered during baking. The bacon will provide a layer of fat that keeps the meatloaf from drying out, and you’ll want the bacon to crisp up a bit as it cooks.
I think it helps keep the meatloaf moist and it adds plenty of flavor, but it is not required. A few readers have commented that this low carb meatloaf recipe works just as well without the bacon!
What to serve with this keto meatloaf:
Cauliflower Mac and Cheese: The perfect side for meatloaf!
Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts: Roasted to perfection.
Cauliflower Potato Salad: The texture isn’t quite the same as regular potato salad, but the flavor is spot on!
Keto Mashed Cauliflower: The creamiest!
Keto Coleslaw: My mom’s famous recipe.
Ranch Dressing: A side salad with my homemade ranch is always a win!
Low Carb Meatloaf
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1/2 onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup almond flour *see note
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
- 1/4 cup powdered Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 slices thin-cut bacon
- 3 tablespoons sugar free ketchup
- 1 tablespoon bottled Italian salad dressing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Mince the green pepper, onion, and garlic.
- Add to a large bowl with the ground beef, eggs, almond flour, cheddar, Parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Use your hands to combine.
- Shape mixture into a loaf, about 7×4 inches, and place in a 9×13 baking dish.
- Cut the bacon slices in half and drape over the meatloaf.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
- Whisk together the ketchup and Italian dressing. Spoon half of the mixture over the meatloaf.
- Increase heat to 425 and bake an additional 10 minutes and then spread the remaining sauce over the meatloaf.
- Continue baking for 10-15 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
- Let rest 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
Mellisa says
Looking forward to trying this! Do you think I can use coconut flour instead?
Karly Campbell says
Hi Mellisa! Coconut flour sucks up a lot more moisture than almond flour does. I’ve never tried it in meatloaf, but if you do, you’ll definitely want to use a lot less or you’ll end up with very dry meatloaf.
Jennifer Thornton says
Great recipe! Everyone loved it.
Angela says
Just wanted to say thank you for sharing such a delicious recipe! I’ve made/tried many keto meatloaves and this is my very favorite one. I love bacon but I like this recipe better without it. Just my preference. The sauce is so good. Love the twang it gives to the meat.
Karly Campbell says
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Angela! 🙂
Chesney says
So this meatloaf is amazing! I don’t like ground beef, so I’ve made it with both Ground Turkey and Ground Bison. I use both the Crushed Pork Rind and Almond Flour 1/4 c. each. I practice Keto, so I added 1 Tbsp. Great Lakes Unflavored Kosher Beef Gelatin and it binds the loaf beautifully! Very moist! Still haven’t tried it with the Bacon, but we’ve already made this 3 times since discovering! Thank you!
Karly Campbell says
The gelatin is a great addition. I’ll have to try that next time!
Cynthia Wondercheck says
What is powdered Parmesan cheese???
Karly Campbell says
It’s the powdery kind that comes in the green shaker can.
Lois Mills says
I made this today and used the almond flour. Amazing! I used my electric chopper to mince the veggies. Will be making this again.
Karly Campbell says
So glad it was a success!
Mike Werner says
My 1st meatloaf in oven now.
Karly Campbell says
Hope you love it!
Cheri says
Do you have to use bacon at all? i’m not sure I have any right now.
Karly Campbell says
You could skip it.
KRISTEN AMELIA MCALHANEY says
Instead of adding the bacon on top could you add it to the mixture?
Karly Campbell says
Yes, I’d probably chop it up and then fry it first though.
Janis says
I had no green pepper so I substituted half red pepper and half celery. It was very good. You did not mention greasing the pan so I did not, but next time I definitely will do that. I like cold meatloaf, and this was just as tasty cold as hot.
Linda Sanders says
I made this recently with almond flour, and it was very good! Today I made it with 3/4 cup crushed bbq pork rinds, so I could compare and see which I like best. I think I’ll like them both! I liked the catsup/Italian dressing sauce too.
Melissa says
Do you cover the meatloaf while it bakes or leave it uncovered?
Karly Campbell says
Leave it uncovered. 🙂
Jillian says
Wow, wow, wow!!! I will continue to make this recipe if I ever go off low carb! It was SO much better than regular meatloaf. I did not use bell pepper, added a packet of onion soup mix, and used crushed pork rinds. I also used shredded Parmesan and a little mozzarella instead of cheddar. I loved the ketchup mixed with Italian dressing for the top. Unlike typical meatloaf, this was moist, flavorful, and a 100% keeper recipe. Just wow!
Karly Campbell says
Oh gosh, so happy to hear this! Glad it was such a hit and I bet the onion soup mix added so much flavor!
Cindy says
Can you use tomato paste invaded of ketchup just not and much
Karly Campbell says
I’ve never tried it with tomato paste. I’m not sure you’d have the same flavor.
Cindy says
My family loves, loves, loves your meatloaf recipe. I pulse the onions, peppers and garlic in my food processor…super easy. Great family meal when doubled! Thank you, it’s now a favorite!
Karly Campbell says
Great idea to pulse the veggies. I’ll have to try that for my onion haters! 😉
Jason says
Just finished this and had to stop myself from eating the whole loaf!!! Wow! Thanks for the recipe. Thinking about spicing it up a bit with some jalapeño or crushed red pepper, maybe next time I’ll try the rinds.
Karly Campbell says
Yum – a little spice sounds good! 🙂
Carrie says
Omg this was amazing. Even better than the meatloaf I used to make before we went keto! Thank you!
Chad Campbell says
Oh, that’s great to hear! 🙂
Lara Tilley says
Loved this recipe! My 21 year old son said it was the best meatloaf he’d ever had. Two adjustments I made we’re; I used half almond flour and half pork rinds and I subbed half a jalapeno pepper diced very fine for the bell pepper.
Karly Campbell says
Sounds delicious!
Norman Cooper says
Approximately how many grams, or ounces, for one serving?
Karly Campbell says
I didn’t measure this by weight. I just sliced into 6 equal pieces.
SuzyQ says
The note saying pork rinds can be used instead of almond flour but it won’t hold together as well isn’t true, at least for me. I’ve made this low carb meatloaf several times with no problems.
Shouston303 says
How much rinds do you use?
Belinda says
Can you freezer this recipe after it has been cooked?
Karly Campbell says
I think it would freeze fine, though I’ve never done it.