Meatloaf

This is an easy dish to put together and you can ring the changes with your own flavourings. You might want to experiment with Indian spices, Mediterranean or Middle Eastern flavours.

For this dish I used some a commercially made pasta flavouring mix made of dried eggplant, tomato, paprika, parsley and garlic which I soaked in water before draining and adding to the meatloaf ingredients. An alternative would be fresh or dried herbs and sun-dried tomatoes.

750g lean minced beef
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
seasoning of your choice such as ground cumin, coriander, Thai curry mix, tandoori mix or mixed herbs
3 tablespoons tomato sauce
1 medium onion, finely chopped

Place all ingredients in a large plastic bag and squeeze well to combine.

Oil a loaf pan and spoon in the mix. Bake for 60 minutes in a pre-heated 180C oven. After 50 minutes, spread some chutney of your choice over the top and bake a further 10 minutes.

Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving it in thick slices with the vegetables of your choice, or have it with a tossed salad and some jacket-baked potatoes.