Delicious ground beef patties cooked to a golden brown and smothered in a savory, rich brown gravy! We will be taking these Salisbury steaks to a sophisticated level with simple ingredients.
There are some dishes that instantly make you feel comfort. With one bite it can invoke a special memory. This is one of those dishes for me. My ma used to make this with creamy garlic mashed potatoes. This is now the only way it makes sense to me. It’s very easy, budget friendly, and can be made into a beautiful meal with just a little effort and quality ingredients.
A little history first
This American comfort dish didn’t start out being a staple in our homes as you would think it did. In fact, the inventor of the Salisbury steak was an American physician during the Civil War. At this time Dr. James H. Salisbury was convinced to cure ailments the troops were suffering they needed to be on a controlled diet. This diet consisted of coffee and lean chopped beefsteak.
In the 1800’s Dr. Salisbury said what we ate was the main determinant of health. He believed that a low-carb diet would be beneficial for weight loss. He taught that beef was an excellent defense against many physical problems. With this he suggested the steak be consumed 3 times a day with hot water to cleanse the digestive tract. That is a lot of beef!
The diet faded out over time but the dish did become popular in homes all over and was eventually made into TV dinners. The recipe was tweaked a bit and ingredients were added to make it the well-known comfort food we now know! Pretty interesting stuff huh? If you would like to know more you can find many resources online. If you enjoy food and history as I do there is a quick read online from the Smithsonian Magazine called, Civil War health food that has more information.
Back to the recipe
As I mentioned above, I feel it is the BEST served on top of garlicky mashed potatoes so you can soak up all the delicious mushroom gravy. You can serve with asparagus, roasted carrots, broccoli, green beans, or with a side salad.
Here is my mashed potato recipe if you would like to give it a try. The BEST Mashed Potatoes Ever!
Let’s get started!
Salisbury Steaks with Rich Brown Gravy
Ingredients
Steaks
- 1 pound grass-fed ground beef
- 1 egg
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 shallot, minced
- 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp dried Italian spice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Brown Gravy
- 1 1/2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 shallot, chopped
- 3/4 cup baby portabello or baby bella mushrooms, roughly chopped If you do not like mushrooms you can simply leave them out. The gravy is still amazing without them.
- 1 tbsp dried Italian spice
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tbsp champagne vinegar optional
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp parsley, chopped garnish
Instructions
Steaks
- Mix all the steak ingredients into a medium sized bowl and form into 4 even sized patties. Just like a hamburger patty.
- Heat 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, Add the patties and cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Remove from the skillet and set aside on a plate. Do not clean the pan, leave on med heat and move to the gravy instructions.
Brown Gravy
- Add 1 tbsp of butter to the pan, add the shallots, and mushrooms. Add the salt, pepper, and Italian spice.
- Scrape up the brown bits and mix all together. Cook for about 5 minutes.
- Now sprinkle on the flour and whisk. Slowly start adding the beef broth while whisking to get the gravy smooth. Get a good boil going so it begins to thicken. Add the mustard, and champagne vinegar. Stir.
- Next step is to move the steaks back to the skillet. Set them in, flip, and cover with a lid.
- Lower the heat to med- low then let simmer until they are cooked through. I like to cut one patty 3/4 a way open (not completely in half but enough to see inside the patty) to check if it has been cooked all the way.
- After they are cooked through, remove from the heat.
- Serve on top of a mound of mashed potatoes and scoop the gravy all over. Garnish with chopped parsley.
- ENJOY!
