Mini meatloaf, corn with mushrooms

This is the second half of the ground chuck mixture prepared yesterday. Also steamed like the first half, but this time shaped as a mini meatloaf. The meat mixture prepared yesterday includes a very light bean and rice that was milled to powder and cooked with water to what amounted to a very gently seasoned hummus or a bean and rice polenta. The mixture also contains a single grated carrot. 

Corn with diced onion and sliced baby portobello mushrooms. 

I like mixing foreign elements into ground beef. I have not been enjoying straight ground beef no matter how fine the selection. I do not care for it fried. I do not care for it dried out. I've added water and I've added olive oil to compensate but nothing beats the original fat. So fat laden beef it must be if the hamburgers are to come out moist whether grilled or fried stovetop in a pan and then served dripping greasy wet.  I do not enjoy that so much, except when I do. 

This steamed mini meatloaf is moist and delicious.  Obviously it does not have the char that frying a burger or roasting a meatloaf would impart, it lacks the apparent caramelization on the surface that roasting imparts, more properly, the browning that results from the chemical reaction between amino acid and reducing sugar, known to us food geek types as Maillard reaction, a series of reactions that build up layers of flavor. So steamed doesn't have that. 

Grated carrot add sweetness and moisture, and in this case the long grated pieces contribute cohesion. 

The ground chuck that was prepared with dry bean powder hummus and carrot that was used 50% yesterday and 50% today, steamed both times, is gone now.  It came from a package of ground chuck that is quite large for a regular bloke. There is still over 2/3 of the ground chuck remaining.

I am thinking of blending in creamed tofu to adjust the texture and moisture. I am also eager to mill black beans and brown and wild rice, and try mixing in that.

Surely, things more interesting than straight up greasy hamburgers can be made of it.  

Come on! I am the product of a Hamburger Helper™ household. That is pretty much the extent of the culinary instruction that Mum, bless 'er, cared to impart.

Oh my God. I just now read the page and now I am sad all over again. I did not know all this product information. The page says that varieties are divided into groups of favorites. That surprises me. I had every one of the varieties grouped under 'discontinued,' and that is sad but not so sad as how much the product line has expanded since the time I was subjected to its influence. Imagine all these things made with your own ground beef. The boxes provide a measured amount of some kind of pasta, usually, and a flavor packet of unspecified ingredients. Well, they specify, but not in any way that is helpful to know exactly which spices are emphasized. The user is usually instruct to blend the ingredients with milk. Instructions usually include options to jazz up the product with one's own ingredients beyond ground beef and milk.


▪ Homestyle Favorites

▪ Beef Pasta (formerly called "Beef Noodle")
▪ Beef Stroganoff
▪ Potato Stroganoff (includes dehydrated potato slices)
▪ Salisbury
▪ Sloppy Joe
▪ Patty Melt

▪ Italian Favorites

▪ Lasagna
▪ Four Cheese Lasagna
▪ Spaghetti
▪ Cheesy Italian Shells
▪ Italian Sausage
▪ Tomato Basil Penne (Formerly called "Zesty Italian")

▪ New Orleans Favorites

▪ Cheesy Jambalaya
▪ Cheesy Favorites
▪ Cheeseburger Macaroni
▪ Double Cheeseburger Macaroni
▪ Three Cheese
▪ Chili Cheese
▪ Cheddar Cheese Melt
▪ Philly Cheesesteak
▪ Cheesy Hashbrowns
▪ Bacon Cheeseburger
▪ Cheesy Baked Potato
▪ Cheesy Ranch Burger

▪ Mexican Favorites (co-branded with Old El Paso brand)

▪ Cheesy Nacho
▪ Chili Macaroni
▪ Cheesy Enchilada
▪ Cheesy Beef Taco
▪ Crunchy Taco
▪ Double Cheesy Quesadilla (originally "Double Cheese Quesadilla")

▪ Discontinued

▪ Beef Romanoff (still available in Canada)
▪ Beef and Garlic Potatoes
▪ Beef Stew
▪ Cheddar & Broccoli
▪ Hash
▪ Macaroni & Cheese
▪ Meatloaf
▪ Pizza Bake
▪ Rice Oriental (Officially discontinued, but occasionally still available in some stores)
▪ Wild Rice & Mushrooms
▪ Wagon Wheels (also called "Barbecue")
▪ Zesty Mexican
▪ SouthWestern Beef

Now, why didn't I see this development in advance? The product list continues beyond that ↑ to Tuna Helper™ and Chicken Helper™, Asian Helper™, Whole Grain Helper™, Fruit Helper™, Pork Helper™, Hamburger Helper Microwave Singles™.

That does it. Tomorrow it will be tofu and ground chuck with milled black bean. Maybe a side-by-side comparison with a regular dripping greasy hamburger.