Jack’d Up Smoked Meatloaf
On January 24, 2023 (Updated November 05, 2024)
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“Jack’d Up” Smoked Meatloaf gets its name from the insane amount of Jack going on inside. This smoked meatloaf is insanely moist from the Jack Daniels in the meat, ridiculously addictive from the pepper jack cheese oozing from the middle, and unbelievably bold from the spicy Jack Daniels sauce smothered on top. Add subtle hints of wood smoke to the mix and you’ve got a meatloaf well worth eating.
Smoked Meatloaf
I love taking these old-school classic recipes and giving them a modern twist. I’m not really a traditionalist when it comes to BBQ (I’m from Utah after all, there isn’t much tradition to cling to!). Despite this, I love using classic BBQ techniques and good old-fashioned wood smoke to create new layers of flavor in exciting and updated ways. Meatloaf is about as old school as it gets, but I think the bold flavors I’ve added into the mix create a smoked meatloaf as you’ve never had it before.
For this recipe, I use my Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub but you can substitute for any beef or steak seasoning of your choice if you don’t have a bottle of my Beef Rub on hand. You can also use equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder if you’re in a pinch.
Ingredients for Smoked Meatloaf
Here’s what you’ll need to assemble to make this jack’d up smoked meatloaf.
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 medium red onion
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 2 eggs
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Jack Daniels whiskey
- 1 Tablespoon Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub
- 1/4 cup milk
- 6 ounces pepper jack cheese
This meatloaf also has a great sauce that cooks on top of the meat while it’s on the smoker. Here’s what you’ll need for the sauce:
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup Jack Daniels whiskey
- 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
How to Smoke a Meatloaf
This meatloaf isn’t too difficult to make, but it does require a bit of time in the smoker (around 4 hours). It can be hard to wait this long for this tasty meatloaf, but I guarantee it will be worth it. Here’s how to smoke a meatloaf.
- Preheat. Fire up your favorite smoker and preheat it to 225 degrees F. Hickory and oak are delicious with this recipe.
- Make the meatloaf. Combine all ingredients for the meatloaf in a bowl. Mix very gently, and take care not to overmix (your meatloaf will end up too tough if it is handled too much).
- Form the loaf. Form half the mixture into a loaf on a grill basket. For smoked meatloaf, you really need a pan that will allow the smoke to penetrate all sides. I smoked mine in a shallow grill basket with holes on the bottom so the smoke could circulate all around the meatloaf. You can also use a cooling or roasting rack. Next, add the cheese on top of the first layer of meat and then add the remaining meatloaf mixture on top of the cheese. Press and reform the loaf to seal the cheese inside (you don’t want the cheese seeping out on the smoker!).
- Sauce. Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a bowl and mix well. Pour it over the top of the meatloaf so the loaf has a nice, even layer of sauce all around the top and sides.
- Smoke. Place the meatloaf in the grill basket on the preheated grill grates. Close the lid, and smoke for 4 hours or until the internal temperature of the meatloaf reaches 165 degrees F.
- Dig in! Remove the meatloaf from the smoker. Rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Watch out for melty cheese oozing out the middle of the loaf!
How Long to Smoke Meatloaf
It takes 4 hours to smoke this jack’d up smoked meatloaf. Other meatloaf varieties will likely take less time to fully cook, but with the added layer of cheese and the double meat stack, 4 hours is optimal for this recipe.
Slightly more important that watching the clock for this meatloaf is ensuring the meat reaches a safe temperature for consumption. This meatloaf can be pulled off the smoker when it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Make sure you have an internal meat thermometer handy so you can track the temperature of the meat while it smokes.
More BBQ Meatloaf Recipes
If you loved this smoked meatloaf, but you’re looking for a few other more traditional recipes, check out these other favorites from the Hey Grill Hey site. Click on the links below to head straight to the recipe posts.
Smoked Meatloaf Recipe
Follow the video below and let’s make something delicious! I’m all about helping you make better BBQ, feed the people you love, and become a BBQ hero. If you want to see more of my recipes, tips, and behind-the-scenes action, follow along on my social channels. You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube!
This post was originally published in April 2017. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.
Jack'd Up Smoked Meatloaf
Video
Ingredients
Meatloaf
- 2 pounds ground beef at least 85/15 fat content
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- ½ medium red onion grated
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 2 Tablespoons Jack Daniels whiskey
- 2 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub or your favorite beef or steak seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup milk
- 6 oz pepper jack cheese cut into strips
Jack Daniels Meatloaf Sauce
- ½ cup ketchup
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup Jack Daniels whiskey
- 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Preheat. Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F. This meatloaf is awesome with hickory or oak wood.
- Make the meat mixture. In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients for the meatloaf. Mix gently with your hands until just combined. Don't overwork the meat or your meatloaf will be tough and chewy.
- Assemble the meatloaf. Spread half of the meatloaf mixture on the bottom of a grill basket. Layer the pepper jack cheese on top of the meatloaf, leaving about an inch of meat on all sides. Top with the remaining meatloaf mixture and press the edges together to seal completely. Any exposed holes and the cheese will leak out while cooking.
- Add the sauce. In a small bowl. combine the ingredients for the sauce and then pour over the top of the meatloaf, letting it run down the sides a little bit.
- Smoke. Place the meatloaf on the smoker, close the lid, and smoke for 4 hours or until the internal temperature reads 165 degrees F.
- Enjoy. Remove the meatloaf from the smoker. Let the smoked meatloaf rest for a few minutes before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Many of my weekend inspirations come from your site! Been wanting to try this one for a couple of months now. I’m a Kentucky bourbon guy so we switched up with some Makers Mark. Also swapped the ground beef for ground pork, which I do in a lot of recipes. Very tender, no fat, perfect balance of heat and sweet for our family. Everyone loved it and asked me to keep this recipe. Keep up the good work and wish I had time to try more of your creations!
Just made the meatloaf for today’s dinner. Sorry to say, but this was nothing more than a two pound hamburger. We smoked on the grill and it took a little more than 4 hours. I’m not a fan of Jack Daniels and the flavor permeated everything. There are way too many red pepper flakes between the sauce and steak seasoning for my taste. This would have been much better with a little more bread and milk in the mix.
Hey Jim- this is definitely a Jack Daniels infused meatloaf, so it makes sense that the flavor was there. There is also a strong pepper presence between the flakes and the pepper jack cheese. You could adapt the recipe with less of those ingredients to suit your tastes. I’m sorry you weren’t a fan!
I still have yet to smoke meatloaf. It looks absolutely amazing though. One day…hopefully soon! I saw another recipe recently that after it had smoked for 4 hours, they sliced it, basted it in more sauce, then hit it on a hot grill. Looked mouthwatering. Theirs didn’t have a cheese filling though….which I think I’d prefer. Thanks for the awesome recipe Susie!
Would it taste as good without the jack in the meatloaf? I can use the jack daniels bbq sauce on the outside but can i get away without using it in the meat?
Absolutely! I would just sub the Jack with milk.
I want to make this tonight !! With the jack in the recipe I’m worried about serving to the kids I’m also baking not sure if that makes a difference
This is great baked as well, I would cook it at 350 for about an hour, you just want the internal temperature to reach 165. I totally understand about cooking for kids with alcohol. You can always substitute for the Jack with milk in the meatloaf and apple juice in the sauce if you want.
Alcohol burns up when cooked so all you get is the flavor
We did just the sauce and heated it up on stove for putting over chicken wings and holy strong Jack sauce!!!! I’m not quite sure the alcohol burned off at all or if it did the taste was very overwhelming. We are going to try half the reccomended amount. Also going to try Jack Daniel’s Honey Wiskey.
I also found that when I made the barbecue sauce I actually combined all the ingredients in the saucepan and constantly stirred it and let it simmer for about 15 minutes to burn off the alcohol. Then let it cool. It actually had a very nice flavor to it and the kids enjoyed it as well.
I subbed the jack with pickle juice. Amazing!!!
Looks great! Can I use a good bourbon in place of the Jack?
Absolutely! It’s a great swap in this recipe.
I used some molasses and cognac in my sauce, applejuice and cognac in a dish while smoking… pellet grill & WOW
If you use an electric smoker would you put apple juice in the drip pan?
Apple juice would work great in the drip pan! You could even throw in a splash of Jack.
Great thank you!!
I made it and wrapped in it in laced bacon. Hint, put the sauce on then the bacon so it is on the meatloaf and not just the bacon.
Awesome Mike! Thanks for the tip on the sauce!
Made this meatloaf and my gosh was it good. Shared the link on the My Masterbuilt Smoker group on Facebook. Lots of oohs and aahs and people cant wait to try it. Thanks.
Hey thanks Tom! I’m so glad you liked it and your recommendations mean the world to me. Have a great week!
Which group is yours on Facebook?
I have two. BBQ and Grilling Recipes, Tips, and Tricks and The Grill Squad.
Cooking this on an electric grill with Jack Daniels chips. Should I put water in the pan or just straight smoke it?
I don’t use a water pan on my smoker, but if you feel like it helps put you can always use one!
Hi, how exactly would we do this, with a charcoal grill with hickory smoke chips.. I’m planning on getting this going within next few minutes! 🙂 we have regular charcoal and I have either a skillet with holes or a roasting rack, it’s smaller and will probably fit better in the grill.. Please advise, thanks!
Hey Michelle- a roasting rack or he skillet would work great! Just plan for two zone heat, the coals on one side with the hickory chips above them and the meat on the other!