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Cheesy Ninja Foodi Meatloaf. Learn how to cook a delicious meatloaf in the Ninja Foodi. This flavoursome meatloaf uses both the Ninja pressure cooker and the Ninja air fryer.
It is also perfect for an easy midweek dinner, and you can swap the cheese for ketchup or gravy, depending on how you like your ninja meatloaf.
Table of Contents
- Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
- Can You Use A Regular Loaf Pan In Ninja Foodi?
- What Is The Secret To Tender Meatloaf?
- Does Meatloaf Need To Be Covered While Cooking?
- Can I Put Aluminium Foil In The Ninja Foodi?
- Turkey Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
- Ninja Foodi Keto Meatloaf
- #1 Tip For Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
- Meatloaf Ninja Foodi Ingredients
- Can You Recommend A Ninja Foodi?
- How To Make Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi?
- How Long Do You Cook Meatloaf In The Ninja Foodi?
- How Can I Make My Meatloaf Better?
- Ninja Foodi Meatloaf And Mashed Potatoes
- What About Meatloaf In Ninja Air Fryer?
- Listen To Ninja Foodi Meatloaf
- Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker And Air Fryer Recipes
- Ninja Foodi Meatloaf Recipe
- Can’t make it now? Then save it for later!
Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
You know what I love about the Ninja Foodi the most? It’s the ability to quickly go from pressure cooking to air frying at the drop of a hat. You can start a meal off using the pressure cook, then get it wonderfully crispy with the air fryer lid.
One of those great recipes for using the Ninja Foodi pressure cooker and air fryer is meatloaf.
You start cooking the meatloaf using the pressure cooker. This ensures the meatloaf will be tender and delicious and then using the air fryer to melt the cheese and give it that wonderful texture that we associate with meatloaf.
This of course, is my latest way to cook meatloaf. It was my wonderful late uncle that sadly I only met on a handful of times that introduced me to meatloaf. It turned me into a meatloaf junkie and now I love instant pot meatloaf, air fryer meatloaf and slow cooker meatloaf.
If you like more ninja foodi ground beef recipes do try our ninja foodi hamburgers, and our ninja foodi spaghetti Bolognese.
Can You Use A Regular Loaf Pan In Ninja Foodi?
Yes, you can use a regular loaf pan in the ninja foodi and that is what is so brilliant about the ninja foodi, how your accessories for the oven, can all be used in the Ninja. But of course, they need to fit.
So as long as your regular loaf pan fits the ninja foodi then it is perfect to use.
What Is The Secret To Tender Meatloaf?
The secret to tender meatloaf is to cook it in your kitchen gadgets and wrap it in foil. By wrapping the meatloaf in foil, it stops it from drying out and the kitchen gadgets do a great job, because they stop it from cooking too fast and give it an all round cook.
You can do meatloaf in the air fryer, in the ninja foodi like we are showing you, or even slow cooker meatloaf.
Does Meatloaf Need To Be Covered While Cooking?
Yes, meatloaf does need to be covered in foil whilst cooking. This is for three reasons. Firstly, you cover meatloaf to help keep the perfect shape. Secondly, the foil covered meatloaf stays nice and moist because its all wrapped up. Then finally, the foil can be opened and used as a tray to keep your meatloaf on as you add ketchup or you add cheese, depending on how you like it served.
Can I Put Aluminium Foil In The Ninja Foodi?
Yes, you can. We even do this in today’s meatloaf recipe. Silver foil (what us Brits call aluminium foil) is fantastic for cooking in the Ninja Foodi.
You can use the foil to keep the food in place, which is ideal for preserving the shape of a meatloaf.
Then you can use it to keep your foodi clean like we show you when we air fry the meatloaf.
Turkey Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
Often, we associate meatloaf with ground minced beef. But you can also make a delicious meatloaf with other meats.
Such as a turkey meatloaf, chicken meatloaf, pork meatloaf, or even a veal meatloaf.
My favourite meat to use is a mix of pork and beef. The pork is fattier so it cooks better and then the lean minced beef gives it flavour.
Ninja Foodi Keto Meatloaf
I have always preferred to make my meatloaf or my meatballs without breadcrumbs. I will often leave out the egg and then it’s easy to keep your meatloaf gluten free and keto.
You can then add the same flavours as you normally would when making meatloaf but know that you don’t have to mess about with keto friendly flours and know that it is still going to come together perfectly.
#1 Tip For Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi
What I do is use the air fryer basket for cooking my meatloaf in. You can of course use a trivet or a steamer basket to rest your meatloaf on. But I am all about making an EASY Ninja meatloaf.
The idea here is that you add the water to your cooking pot and then add in your air fryer basket like this:
Then you pressure cook the meatloaf in the air fryer basket.
It makes it easier because when you remove the water to swap for an air fry, you don’t have to change cooking pots. Or dirty another pot.
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Meatloaf Ninja Foodi Ingredients
Meat – We used our favourite minced beef, or as you might call it in the US ground beef. But what is interesting, is that you can swap the beef for pork, venison or veal mince. Though I don’t recommend chicken or turkey because they make the meatloaf too dry, and I avoid lamb because it makes it too fatty.
Onion – I also recommend an onion in your ninja air fryer meatloaf. It gives it lovely flavour. I always dice the onion and mix it with the meat, but I know many hate the texture of onions. If that is you, you can mix the meat in a blender with the onion.
Seasoning – For flavouring your ninja foodi meatloaf recipe, I recommend paprika, Italian seasoning (or mixed herbs), salt and pepper and some Worcester sauce.
Optional – Then we all like our meatloaf in the ninja foodi a different way. If you are team cheese, then we recommend 30g (just over an ounce) of cheddar cheese on top. Or maybe you just want tomato ketchup? Or you could go with gravy!
Can You Recommend A Ninja Foodi?
I often get asked which kitchen gadgets I recommend and which one I use. For the Ninja Foodi we have this one. It doesn’t have as many bells and whistles compared to some of the newer models, but it does a great job.
We can dehydrate, air fry, pressure cook, sauté, slow cook, make yoghurt and so much more.
Plus, we recommend you head over to our ninja foodi recipes category as we have been using the Ninja Foodi since 2020 and just love it for simplicity, how delicious the recipes are when cooked in it and how much time it saves us in the kitchen. We even take the Ninja Foodi on holiday with us.
How To Make Meatloaf In Ninja Foodi?
- Mixing. To make meatloaf in ninja foodi, start by adding all your main ingredients into a bowl and mixing well with your hands.
- Shape. Next shape your meat into a meatloaf shape and tightly wrap in foil.
- Pressure Cook. Next place two cups of water (480ml) into the cooking pot and add the air fryer basket. Then gently place your foil covered meatloaf into the air fryer basket. Pressure cook meatloaf for 20 minutes.
- Air Fry. Drain the water from the pressure cooker and now open up the top of the foil so that the top of the meatloaf is visible. Now to finish making meatloaf in the ninja, sprinkle the top of the meatloaf with grated cheese and air fry for 5 minutes at 180c/360f.
- Serve. Allow the meatloaf to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
You now have meatloaf in ninja foodi ready to serve for dinner.
How Long Do You Cook Meatloaf In The Ninja Foodi?
The Ninja Foodi meatloaf cook time is JUST 25 minutes with a quick pressure release.
Note, that this is 20 minutes for pressure cooking your meatloaf, then a further 5 minute air frying to melt the cheese and give a crisp to the meatloaf.
How Can I Make My Meatloaf Better?
For me, making my Ninja Foodi meatloaf better is all about the cheese. Its about going from the pressure cooker to the air fryer.
Its about getting that air fryer crisp on the meatloaf, so that it doesn’t have just a pressure cooker texture to it.
You can melt cheese over your meatloaf, (like us) or you can add a tomato ketchup glaze like we have done in our air fryer meatloaf.
Ninja Foodi Meatloaf And Mashed Potatoes
If you want the ultimate experience and would like to make Ninja Foodi meatloaf and mashed potatoes, then it is easy to do.
Instead of using the air fryer basket use a steamer basket. Then load below the steamer basket with cubed potatoes. Then when the Ninja beeps remove the potatoes and you can be mashing them whilst your air fryer is crisping your meatloaf.
What About Meatloaf In Ninja Air Fryer?
If you just have a ninja air fryer, or just want to use the air fryer setting of the Ninja Foodi, then we recommend you follow our air fryer meatloaf recipe instead.
Listen To Ninja Foodi Meatloaf
Want to learn more about our Podcast? Then click here and you can browse through past episodes and subscribe to the Magic With Gadgets Podcast.
Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker And Air Fryer Recipes
If you like the idea of mixing up the ninja foodi pressure cooker button and the air fryer lid, then also check out:
- Ninja Foodi Chicken Pot Pie
- Ninja Foodi Corn On The Cob
- Ninja Foodi Asparagus
- Ninja Foodi Baked Potatoes
- Ninja Foodi Roast Potatoes
- Check out all our Ninja foodi recipes!
Plus, remember you can use the pressure cook button for instant pot recipes, air fryer button for air fryer recipes, and slow cook for slow cooker recipes, making the ninja foodi the best all in one cooking machine.
This meatloaf in ninja foodi recipe is an updated post and was originally shared with you in early 2021.
Your meatloaf recipe in ninja foodi is below, note you can print it out with or without photos, adjust servings, or click between metric and imperial depending on where you are in the world.
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Ninja Foodi Meatloaf
Ingredients
Kitchen Gadgets:
Ninja Foodi Meatloaf Ingredients:
- 800 g Ground Minced Beef
- ½ Small Onion
- 1 Tbsp Paprika
- 1 Tbsp Worcester Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
- Salt & Pepper
- 30 g Cheddar Cheese, optional
- Tomato Ketchup, optional
Instructions
- Peel and dice your onion into small chunks. Load the onion into a mixing bowl with your minced beef and seasonings. Mix well with your hands and form into a shape of a meatloaf.
- Load two cups of water (480ml) into your Ninja cooking pot and add in the air fryer basket. Wrap your meatloaf in foil tightly, load into the air fryer basket and add the pressure cooker lid. Set the valve to sealing and cook for 20 minutes on pressure cook.
- Do a quick pressure release and using kitchen gloves remove the air fryer basket and drain the water. Add the basket back in and adjust the foil so that the top of the meatloaf is foil free.
- Cover the top of the meatloaf with grated cheese and air fry for 5 minutes at 180c/360f. Then slice and serve.
I don’t know what voodoo wizardry Ninja put into this machine. But give the steam crisp function a try!!! I don’t know how it works either, but meats are juicy inside and crispy outside. Put my meatloaf on the lower rack (not the air fryer basket) with no foil. Put a cup or two of water in the bottom of the pot. Did steam crisp at 360F for 20-25min. The outside of the meatloaf was deliciously browned and crispy, inside SUPER moist.
Question it doesn’t say what temperature to air fry for 5 min?
Hi Emily,
So sorry about that, i have changed it and it should read air fry for 5 minutes at 180c/360f 🙂
Is there any reason to use foil other than easy cleanup? Does it make it juicier or anything?
Hi Jackie,
It keeps the juices in which makes it tastier in our experience and also helps to keep its shape, usually a meatloaf is made in a tin and it can be hard to find a tin for these gadgets that fits, so we used foil which seems like a good substitute 🙂
Was looking for a meatloaf recipe and i found this one which turned out really well. I have subscribed to your email as i do not want to miss any recipes as good as this one.
Good recipe and a very tasty meatloaf i doubled the recipe and it turned out really good and the after been scared to use my Ninja this recipe gave me confidence.
I loved this meatloaf and never thought about doing it in the Ninja which i think is a great idea. Everything came together and i have made it for more family members now as well.