If you made too much meatloaf and are stuck with meatloaf leftovers and don’t want to repeat it for dinner several times this week, then you’ve come to the right place.
While meatloaf is delicious, repeating meals can feel boring, and if your house is anything like mine, it might also come with some resistance from your family.
After getting ideas from the list of leftover meatloaf recipes below, you may even find yourself more inclined to make “too much” meatloaf to make it easier to plan dinner for the rest of the week. After all, leftover meatloaf is really just cooked ground meat with seasoning.
1. Leftover Meatloaf Shepherd’s Pie
Who doesn’t love a good Shepherd’s pie? Filled with seasoned meat, and vegetables, and topped with mashed potatoes – it’s the perfect comfort food and by using leftover meatloaf and leftover side dishes, it becomes an easy dinner.
Simply break up your leftover meatloaf and mix it with the rest of the ingredients.
If you aren’t a fan of peas or carrots, try substituting them with different vegetables like green beans. And don’t worry if you don’t have leftover mashed potatoes, freshly cooked mashed potatoes work just as well.
2. Leftover Meatloaf Sandwich
Do you ever just save your meatloaf for tomorrow’s lunch and then feel exhausted from eating the same meal? Why not dress it up and turn it into a delicious, yet simple, sandwich.
There are a lot of sandwich recipes for leftover meatloaf but with this recipe, you just need some basic condiments, toasted bread, and American cheese.
Of course, once you have it in your mind to turn your leftover meatloaf into a sandwich, you can substitute or add anything you want.
3. Leftover Meatloaf Soup
You might be wondering, how in the world do you turn meatloaf into soup?
The recipe is extremely simple and quick. From start to finish, this soup only takes 20 minutes to cook and will leave you wanting more.
Another thing to love about this recipe is that you can even use your leftover meatloaf side dishes in the soup as well, such as green beans, carrots, and mashed potatoes.
4. Leftover Meatloaf Chili
Are you wanting an easy meal to completely disguise your leftover meatloaf? If so then this leftover meatloaf chili recipe is the perfect go-to meal.
The recipe is super simple too. Just add a can of undrained diced tomatoes and undrained pinto beans to a pan with ¼ cup of chili powder, add in your leftover meatloaf, and leave it on the stove until the meatloaf is heated all the way through.
The best part of this recipe is that you can do as much or as little as you want to adjust the flavor. You can even use this recipe to make chilidogs.
5. Leftover Meatloaf Casserole
The best thing about having leftover meatloaf is that you can use it in so many different dishes. If you’re wondering what to do with leftover meatloaf and you want something that completely changes the flavor, this recipe transforms your meatloaf into a delicious baked pasta!
For this recipe, you’ll need several seasonings including garlic powder, onion powder, basil, oregano, pepper, Italian seasoning, salt, and also some sugar.
You’ll also need Italian breadcrumbs (but you can use plain breadcrumbs and just add Italian season if you need to), frozen corn, tomato sauce, rotini pasta, cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese, and of course your let over meatloaf.
All you have to do is cook the pasta in boiling water, combine the rest of the ingredients and mix in with the mashed meatloaf, once combined, you put in a casserole dish and top with cheese, then bake until bubbly.
6. Meatloaf Hash
Do you wrap your meatloaf in bacon? If so, don’t wait to use it for dinner, use it for a delicious breakfast hash.
For this recipe all you need is 9 ingredients, olive oil, potatoes, an onion, a bell pepper, garlic, salt, pepper, eggs, and the leftover meatloaf. The recipe calls for a red bell pepper, but you can substitute yellow, orange, or even green.
You’ll start the recipe by cooking the potatoes, onions, and bell peppers in the olive oil and seasoning the mixture with the salt pepper.
Once the potatoes are thoroughly cooked, you add the diced up leftover meatloaf and cook until the meatloaf is hot. Finally, you crack the eggs and let them cook to your preference.
7. Meatloaf Spaghetti
Spaghetti with a meat sauce is a classic household staple because it’s easy and tastes great.
Using leftover meatloaf makes spaghetti night even easier. All you have to do is cook the pasta, then heat up the meatloaf and pasta sauce on the stove while the pasta is cooking.
Once the pasta is cooked you can top it with the meat sauce and serve it with cheese on top.
8. Leftover Meatloaf Tacos
Make Taco Tuesday even easier by using Monday’s leftover meatloaf to create the filling for incredible tacos. Your typical leftover meatloaf ideas won’t give you the kind of flavor that this recipe will.
You won’t even know you’re eating leftover meatloaf after you reheat the crumbled meatloaf in a mixture of refried beans, sauteed onions, chili powder, and tomato sauce.
One of the best parts about this recipe is that you can creative with your taco toppings, or you can even turn them into burritos.
9. Leftover Meatloaf Quiche
Are you a fan of quiche and looking for ideas for leftover meatloaf? Then this is the perfect use for your leftover meatloaf! The end result of this quick 45-minute recipe is a delicious breakfast or dinner. You’ll need a deep-dish pie pan or you can even a cast-iron skillet.
Perhaps the best part of this recipe is that you’ll have to dirty up two dishes to make it, three if you count the fork you need to beat the eggs.
Add the crumbled-up meatloaf to the pie pan (or skillet), then top it with cheese. Next, beat the eggs with salt and pepper, then add the milk and biscuit mix to the eggs and mix until smooth. Pour the liquid mix over the meatloaf and cheese and bake for 35 minutes.
If you’re wanting to add even more flavor, you can add vegetables like onions or bell peppers.
10. Leftover Meatloaf Sliders
These little meatloaf sliders make the perfect lunch, and they require very little preparation.
All you have to do is cut the meatloaf slices in half, heat them up in a skillet, then put them on your slider bun with toppings such as lettuce, tomato, cheese, and whatever condiments you prefer.
11. Meatloaf Naan Pizzas
If you’re craving pizza, you can still use your leftover meatloaf and satisfy your pizza craving with this amazing recipe. If you have kids, you can also include them in the process by letting them make their pizza.
Start with Naan rounds, add sauce to each Naan round, then add your chopped-up meatloaf and any other toppings you have such as pepperoni, then top with mozzarella cheese and bake in the oven at 400 degrees until the cheese is melted.
Use basil as a garnish on top to add some extra flavor. This twist on pizza night will leave everyone happy.
12. Meatloaf Stuffed Peppers
If you were to look up stuffed pepper recipes, you would be overwhelmed with options. The variety of stuffed peppers recipes can be overwhelming. Still, the best thing about this recipe is that it uses your leftover meatloaf to create a delightful savory dish that everyone is sure to love.
The recipe calls for leftover spaghetti sauce and leftover cooked rice, but if you don’t have these ingredients “leftover” you can use fresh sauce and freshly cooked rice.
You’ll also need green peppers, onions, and cheddar cheese. Once you mix everything together, you simply spoon the filling into the large green peppers and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes.
13. Meatloaf Stroganoff
Are you not really wanting to transform your meatloaf, but just want to elevate the flavor? Then this meatloaf stroganoff will be a great use of your leftover meatloaf.
Since the meatloaf portion is already cooked, all you have to do is heat it, then make the stroganoff sauce.
The sauce becomes a creamy flavor addition to the meatloaf by sauteing onions, garlic, and mushrooms before adding the base of the sauce, which consists of beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, and flour. The sour cream that is added makes it extra creamy.
You can serve it with mashed potatoes or egg noodles to complete the meal.
14. Meatloaf Egg Scramble
If you want to use your leftover meatloaf as soon as possible, no need to wait for lunch or dinner. You can make this incredible breakfast scramble in the morning.
One thing that makes this recipe extra quick is by cooking the potatoes in the microwave to soften them before adding them to the skillet. Once your potatoes, zucchini, and meatloaf are thoroughly cooked and heated, you add whisked eggs.
Once the eggs are done cooking you can top them with cheese and garnish with parsley.
15. Mac and Cheese Meatloaf
While this recipe starts with making the meatloaf fresh, don’t let that stop you from using leftover meatloaf. Skip the meatloaf steps and start by putting your cooked meatloaf in a casserole dish.
Follow the homemade mac and cheese recipe, and top your leftover meatloaf with the mac and cheese, then bake until the cheese is melted.
16. Cabbage Rolls
This recipe requires just 6 ingredients and is perfect for lunch or dinner when you want to use your leftover meatloaf. You just have to heat up the meatloaf in a pan with oil, sauteed onions, and garlic, then you add in the mixed rice.
You can add whatever seasons and flavors you want if you want to be more adventurous than using just salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture into the cabbage leaves and enjoy.
17. Meatloaf Sandwich
One of the most common ways to use leftover meatloaf is to make sandwiches. This recipe uses crusty French bread that’s been toasted in a skillet to give the sandwich a nice crispbread.
You can top the sandwich with whatever you like, but the recipe gives us some basic toppings like lettuce, tomato, cheese, and sliced red onion.
17 Best Leftover Meatloaf Recipes
Ingredients
- 5 slices cooked meat loaf
- 1 jar (12 ounces) beef gravy
- 1 can (15-1/4 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
- 4 c warm mashed potatoes (prepared with milk and butter)
- 3/4 c shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 1/2 c sour cream
- 1/4 c sliced green onions
Instructions
- You start by putting your meatloaf slices in a greased baking dish that’s about 2 and a half quarts. Pour the gravy on top of the meatloaf. Drain your can of corn, then put the corn on top of the gravy.
- In a separate dish, mix together your cooked mashed potatoes, ½ cheese, the sour cream, and the green onions.
- Once well mixed, pour into the baking dish, so it sits on top of your meatloaf, gravy, and corn.
- Bake the dish at 375 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and put it back in the oven for another 2 minutes or until the cheese is melted.