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This easy Instant Pot Meatloaf<\/strong> recipe is a family favorite! With a hint of tangy flavor mixed in, this meatloaf is anything but dull and boring! It is also a great option when stocking up on instant pot freezer meals – not only is it an easy freezer meal to make ahead of time because there is minimal preparation of ingredients, but it is even easier to cook because you can pull it out of the freezer and cook it right from frozen!<\/p>\n We love meatloaf around here, but I honestly never made it very often before I got my Instant Pots. I don’t know why, because it really isn’t hard to make in the oven. But it’s even easier to make in the Instant Pot!<\/p>\n I also love Instant Pot freezer meals – I love their convenience, and I love to be able to put a meal in the pot and then walk away and not babysit it on the stove or in the oven. Bonus points if it is a meal that can straight from the freezer right into my pressure cooker (like my Instant Pot Meatball Soup<\/a>)! Because I don’t always remember to pull my freezer meals out the night before to thaw. Maybe I’m the only one that struggles with that…<\/p>\n So it was only natural that I would need to come up with an easy meatloaf freezer meal for my pressure cooker. Quite frankly, I can’t believe it took me this long. <\/p>\n I wanted to come up with a gluten-free meatloaf recipe with oats instead of breadcrumbs, because making the meatloaf with oats instead of gluten-free breadcrumbs is cheaper and oats are easier to keep on-hand. Plus, I feel like the oats help the meatloaf hold up a bit better when freezing. <\/p>\n But you can absolutely use gluten-free breadcrumbs if you prefer, in which case you’ll want to probably go with 1 1\/2 – 2 cups. We just don’t keep gluten-free bread around here (it is so expensive), so I wanted an alternative using ingredients I already keep in my pantry. <\/p>\n Making meatloaf in the Instant Pot or pressure cooker will require you to use a method known as pot-in-pot cooking. It is basically just cooking your entree or meal inside a smaller “pot” that then goes inside your bigger liner pot. This allows you to cook something in your pressure cooker without adding the required minimum cooking liquid for the pressure cooker (needed to create steam that creates the pressure and higher heat) directly into the food you are cooking. <\/p>\n For my 8 quart Instant Pot, I prefer to use an 8″ round aluminum cake pan<\/a> as my inner “pot”, and have found that they are the perfect size for a 2 pound meatloaf (the 2″ high is perfect for 2lbs of meatloaf). But you can also make a “pot” out of aluminum foil and use that as well. Amazon and other retailers sell double-stacking stainless steel pots meant for pot-in-pot cooking. I have found them to be unreliable though. <\/p>\n The stainless steel takes longer to heat up and increases your overall cooking time. (In contrast, aluminum heats up very quickly.) Plus, the stainless steel versions can be quite expensive and often must be ordered online. Whereas aluminum cake pans are cheap and can easily be found in stores like Walmart and Target. You can even find them in craft stores that have wedding cake sections.<\/p>\n You’ll need to go with a 6 inch or 7 inch round cake pan that is 3 inches high, or make your own pot out of aluminum foil. This Fat Daddio 7 inch round aluminum cake pan<\/a> is a great fit for the 6 quart models. I don’t recommend using a glass dish as none of the manufacturers recommend their products for use in pressure cookers due to the risk of cracking or shattering. <\/p>\n You can also skip the plastic wrap and freeze your meatloaf right in the aluminum pan (which you have sprayed liberally with non-stick cooking spray in advance). I prefer to freeze my meatloaf in the pan, then remove the pan to be used for other things until it is needed to cook the meatloaf. <\/p>\n If you don’t have a cake pan or stainless steel pot for this, no fear. You can shape your meatloaf into a round disk shape that is approximately 8 inches in diameter, wrap, and freeze. When ready to cook, unwrap the plastic wrap from the frozen meatloaf. Place the meatloaf on a large piece of aluminum foil that extends several inches wider than the meatloaf. Then, crimp up the sides of the aluminum foil to create a “dish” or “bowl” around the meatloaf.<\/p>\n And of course, you can certainly skip the freezing all together and just make this great meatloaf recipe straight from scratch! In that case, prepare your pan with a light spray of cooking spray (skip the plastic wrap), and proceed right to the cooking instructions!<\/p>\n This recipe is for the Instant Pot meatloaf only, but you could always cook potatoes or rice in there with it (under the meatloaf) if you wanted to make a super convenient all-in-one meal. Doing so will require you to thaw your meatloaf first, though, as the cooking time for the frozen meatloaf is too long for potatoes or rice. <\/p>\n I do. In fact, this is my preferred method. All of the ingredients are freezer friendly. <\/p>\n I prefer to make the meatloaf and freeze it before cooking, then cook from frozen, but you can also freeze the meatloaf after it is cooked, too. This is especially helpful is you wish to make your own individual frozen dinner meals! <\/p>\n Note that the texture of the meatloaf can tend to be a little crumbly if you freeze after cooking. I have not found any texture changes when freezing before cooking though.<\/p>\n Yes, and it’s especially easy if you use your Instant Pot. You will need to add additional time if cooking from frozen. I have occasionally had my meatloaf come out a little looser when cooked right from frozen versus cooking from thawed. But taste-wise, both methods have always been delicious! <\/p>\n And you can find more great gluten-free freezer meals HERE!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Be sure to FOLLOW ME on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, and Pinterest<\/a>, for more freezer meal recipe ideas, and definitely drop me a line or comment below if you give this recipe a try!<\/p>\nGluten-Free Meatloaf<\/h2>\n
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<\/h2>\nHow to Make Meatloaf in the Instant Pot<\/h2>\n
A Note for Those With 6 Quart Models <\/h4>\n
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<\/p>\nHow to Make Meatloaf as a Make-Ahead Freezer Meal<\/h2>\n
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Alternatives For Freezing Your Meatloaf or Making From Scratch!<\/h2>\n
Make It An All-In-One Meal<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nDo you make the meatloaf and freeze it before cooking?<\/h2>\n
Can you cook the meatloaf right from frozen?<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nConsider Serving Your Meatloaf With:<\/h4>\n
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<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t\tInstant Pot Meatloaf (Gluten-free Freezer Meal)<\/h2>\n\t\t
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