Homemade Bavarian Lebkuchen (Meat Loaf)

Name: Homemade Bavarian Lebkuchen (Meat Loaf)
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 1 serving
Cuisine: Home cooking
Ingredients: Ground pork — 100 g; Ground beef — 90 g; Bacon — 35 g; Onions — 40 g; Milk 2.5% — 40 ml; Breadcrumbs — 25 g; Mustard — 12 g; Nutmeg — 1 g; Salt — 2 g; Ground black pepper — 1 g

A savory meat loaf made with pork and beef ground meat, bacon, mustard, and nutmeg. Serve in thick slices with mustard, bread, or pretzels.

Time: 1 h 15 min
Serving: 780 kcal
Ingredients: ≈ $2.56
Protein: 42 g

High protein Hearty

Ingredients

1 Ground porkpack 500 g ≈ $3.00 100 g
2 Ground beefpack 500 g ≈ $7.45 90 g
3 Baconpack 200 g ≈ $2.95 35 g
4 Onions≈ $1.60 per kg 40 g
5 Milk 2.5%pack 930 ml ≈ $0.88 40 ml
6 Breadcrumbs 25 g
7 Mustard 12 g
8 Nutmeg 1 g
9 Salt 2 g
10 Ground black pepper 1 g

Grey rows are pantry staples: salt, oil, spices. They are not counted in the serving price.

Method

Finely dice the onion⁴ and bacon³.
Mix both ground¹ meats with the bacon³, onion⁴, milk⁵, breadcrumbs, mustard, nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
Knead the mixture for 3–4 minutes until sticky and cohesive.
Transfer to a small loaf pan, smooth the top, and score lightly.
Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 55–60 minutes until firm in the center and golden brown.
Let rest for 10 minutes, then slice into thick portions.

Tips

Why it works: Cut the onion and bacon very finely so they spread evenly through the mince and don't show up as separate pieces when you chew. Don't grind the nutmeg to powder, add it whole and grate it on a fine grater so the aroma doesn't fade when heated.
Substitutions: Replace the bacon with 35 g of smoked sausage (for example, doktorskaya), cut into 0.5 cm cubes. If you have no whole nutmeg, add 0.5 tsp of ground nutmeg from a packet, but the aroma will be weaker.
Common mistakes: If the middle stays raw, the oven was below 180 °C or the mince wasn't mixed firmly enough. Check doneness with a knife: it should come out dry, and the juice should run clear.
Storing and reheating: Keep in the fridge for 4 days, wrapped in cling film. Reheat in the oven at 160 °C for 15 minutes, covered with foil so it doesn't dry out. Don't freeze, the texture will turn crumbly.
Serve with: Serve with warm rye bread and pickled cucumbers or sauerkraut. It also goes well with a light salad of boiled beetroot and sour cream.

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Nutrition

Per serving and share of 2000 kcal

Calories	780 kcal	39%
Protein	42 g	56%
Fat	55 g	79%
Carbs	26 g	10%
Per 100 g	226 kcal

Cost

≈ $2.56per serving

Average supermarket prices, BLS (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics), October 2026. Your store will differ: products come in packs and each chain sets its own prices. The priciest item here is ground beef.

You will need

Oven

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What to cook

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