Ever ponder where the heck Salisbury Steak originated from? I’m always curious about life in general and especially food so with the help of our handy Internet, I gave myself a quick lesson regarding the origin of this timeless dish. Click here if you, like me, would like to know more about this classic diner favorite.
For me Salisbury Steak conjures up memories of what my dad would order at Perko’s; a lifeless hamburger patty with grey “home-style” gravy and lumpy mashed potatoes. I remember thinking even as a little girl that that meal really did have potential, if someone simply gave it some thought and a bit of creative effort. Well, tonight my boys and I went for it and what we created was pretty darn delicious and not at all the Salisbury Steak of my past. I hope you and your family enjoys the Everyday Paleo rendition as much as we did!
Everyday Paleo Salisbury Steak
Steaks
2 pounds of ground beef
1 cup spinach, finely diced
1 egg
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon rubbed sage
¼ teaspoon ground marjoram
¼ teaspoon finely ground black pepper
2 tablespoons grass fed butter, ghee, or coconut oil
Gravy
4 tablespoons butter
1 red onion thinly sliced
½ red bell pepper thinly sliced
2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms
1 cup beef broth
¼ cup coconut milk
Black pepper to taste
In a large mixing bowl place all the ingredients for the steaks and using your hands mix well. In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium high heat. While the butter is melting, form the hamburger mixture into thin oval patties (makes 7-8). Place the patties into the hot melted butter, make sure it sizzles, you want the pan to be nice and hot! Cook for 2 minutes on each side, the meat should be nice and browned on both sides. You’ll have to cook these in batches so add more butter or coconut oil if necessary. Once all the steaks are done, place in the oven to keep warm and now it’s time for the gravy!
In the same pan that you just cooked your steaks in, melt the butter over medium heat. Saute the onions, bell pepper, and mushrooms in the butter until tender, about 7-8 minutes. Add the beef broth and deglaze the pan (scrap all the bits off the bottom of the pan that might still be there from cooking the steaks). Bring to a boil and add the coconut milk and pepper. Mix well, bring back to a boil. At this point you’ll want to turn the heat down until the gravy is just simmering. Now you’ll want to reduce down the gravy by stirring frequently for about 10 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
Serve the steaks with the gravy ladled over the top and garnished with diced flat leaf Italian Parsley.
Serves 5
We ate ours with some pressure cooked sweet potatoes.
Enjoy!
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Christina says
March 29, 2011 at 10:09 pmooooh this looks so good! thanks!
Cain Credicott says
March 29, 2011 at 11:09 pmThat looks awesome! We’ll be trying that in our house very, very soon!
Jenn says
March 30, 2011 at 12:43 amHi Sarah!
Another great podcast episode! =) I am looking forward to trying out this salisbury steak recipe. I don’t think I ever ate it before and it’s very similar to a turkey burger recipe I came up with that you can find on my blog.
I found that it was great to “hide” the spinach (among other things) in the burger and the kids LOVED it! The thing they liked the most was when I put grated yam/sweet potato in the burgers! =)
Keep up the yummy recipes!! =)
Jenn
Emily Erington says
March 30, 2011 at 3:02 amLove your blog, pre-ordered your book, been working on de-sugaring my family for the last 3 weeks. Battle is uphill when the kids think they don’t like nuts. No allergies, they just don’t like them. AND, I cannot believe in a hippy, trippy, fit-city like Austin, Texas we have no Trader Joe’s. They sure seem to sell everything you need to be paleo in the most convenient ways.
Keisha says
March 31, 2011 at 9:57 amI agree Emily!!! I wish we could get a TJ’s here in the ATX!
Tara says
April 4, 2011 at 5:44 pmEmily, I too have started this Paleo diet about 3 weeks ago. I have lost about 5lbs and have never eaten so many wonderful home cooked meals before. Good for you getting your family to “de-sugar.” I have been able to get my family to eat a few of the meals, but they do not seem to want to listen to me when it comes to sugar. Dad being the biggest kid of them all. I also pre-ordered the paleo cook book and can hardly wait for it to get here. Tonight I fixed Kale and Parsnips for the first time in my life. They were so good.
Dave says
March 30, 2011 at 5:16 amwhat’s the side there? sweet potato? how do you guys cook that just steam it or something? i love sweet potato but usually i either just boil it & mash it or put it in the oven
Corina says
March 30, 2011 at 9:01 pmI cut the sweet potatoes in cubes, lay them out on a cookie sheet, drizzle them with olive oil, oregano and some salt, and then bake them until soft. Then I drizzle with balsalmic vinegar and eat them up!
Becky says
March 30, 2011 at 6:17 ammmmm… sounds good. I’m inspired to make something like it, but switch arugula for the spinach (love the taste of arugula with beef, and it’s such a great early spring green!)
Stacy says
March 30, 2011 at 6:34 amI will definitely be trying this one! What a great substitute for regular hamburger patties!
Erika says
March 30, 2011 at 6:57 amI had this very dish on my mind…I was going to make it this week. today is rainy and nasty, may be the perfect dish for dinner!!!! Great minds think a like!!!!! Yours looks amazing!!!
Erika
Sandy says
March 30, 2011 at 7:00 amOnce my Whole30 is up, I’m trying this! mmmm butter…
And Blokus is our favorite game!
Robin S. says
March 30, 2011 at 7:02 amThe hubs has been asking for Salisbury Steak and I haven’t had time to tinker with a recipe. Gonna try this one soon!
MMcCourt says
March 30, 2011 at 9:58 amHey Sarah,
This was a HUGE hit in my house. Thank you!!
I know you’ve posted before, but can you point me to what you eat on a daily basis? I’ve read the post in Nov 2010 but I think I read another one?
Seems like you don’t eat much fruit, even on workout days? Do you eat squashes/yams after a workout or just stick with protein, veggies, fats? Or just go by how you feel?
My gut does not like yams/sweet potatoes so I’m just looking for alternatives.
Enjoy your vacation with your husband and thanks SO much for all you, Dain and Chrissy do!
Young says
June 1, 2012 at 3:25 pmI was majorly lazy today, the fries were froezn (I got them at Whole Foods .there wasn’t very many in there either which I guess is good so we couldn’t pig out on them!).
Pablo says
March 30, 2011 at 10:42 amThis sounds marvelous and I am going to make it tonight.
Stacey says
March 30, 2011 at 11:38 amI can’t wait to make this in the community kitchen in my dorm and make all of the other residents jealous as they catch a wiff of it floating through the halls. :] This looks amazing.
Tracy says
March 30, 2011 at 12:56 pmI just made these today for lunch. So DELISH! Can’t wait to get my book so I can cook like this every day. Only thing is wow, that’s crazy fat. I’ve been 100% Paleo for 12 weeks but never use Ghee or that much oil when I cook. Probably why this is so much tastier than what I normally cook! 😉 What is a typical serving for the Sweet Pot? Today was my first one in 12 weeks. Very good but my portion was probably too small.
Cassie says
March 31, 2011 at 10:38 pmThis was so good we had it tonight!
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 8:18 amThank you Cassie, glad you liked it!
Dave says
April 1, 2011 at 12:49 amThanks Corina, i LOVE sweet potato
Oshrat says
April 2, 2011 at 8:41 amI made it last night, it was great… my boys loved it, we ate on the side some oven baked sweet potatoes (with olive oil and oregano), it was a success.
Thanks
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 8:14 amSo glad you all liked it Oshrat!
David says
April 2, 2011 at 7:50 pmThis meal is a winner! My family says it’s a keeper and they’re picky!
I used Trader Joes coconut milk which is 50% milk and 50% water. The gravy did not thicken until I used Arrow Root powder. Was the coconut milk’s purpose to thicken the gravy besides flavor?
KB says
April 4, 2011 at 9:07 pmI use the same coconut milk and mine thickened a little bit. But it was sooo tasty I didn’t mind! I should get some arrow root though.
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 8:13 amYes, it was for that purpose and for flavor. If you let the sauce reduce down more you might have had a thicker sauce, but the fat in the coconut milk also helps with that. Cooking it down also will give it more flavor. : )
Mel says
June 23, 2011 at 2:08 pmForgive me if this is a really elementary question :0) , but i am new to really cooking (at least, with things that don’t just come in a box). So what do you mean by letting it “reduce down”? Thanks ahead of time for your help! Love your book and blog :0)
Sarah says
June 23, 2011 at 2:14 pmNo worries Mel, this is a great question! When I say reduce down it means to let it simmer long enough that the sauce is no longer watery. : ) I hope that helps and good luck with the sauce!
Tracy says
April 3, 2011 at 6:53 amI made this the other day for myself for lunch since I had all the ingredients. I knew the family would love it so I made it for them last night. It was a huge, huge hit!
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 8:12 amAwesome Tracey, so glad it was a hit!
KevB says
April 4, 2011 at 1:14 amThis recipe and your Chicken Chili Soup are my current fav paleo recipes. Can’t wait for the book!
Debbie S says
April 4, 2011 at 5:45 pmSo I just made this for my family and my 10 yr old said it tasted like something she could only get in a restaurant….I love hearing that
Thank you once again for an amazing meal
Debbie
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 7:31 amSo cool Debbie, thank you!
KB says
April 4, 2011 at 9:08 pmMy family loved this!! Thank you for a fabulous recipe!
Sarah says
April 5, 2011 at 6:58 amSo glad KB, thank you!
Paula Brown says
April 5, 2011 at 11:15 amI was thrilled to see this recipe! I was trying to make something similar and ended up with plain hamburger steaks smothered with mushrooms and onions, then made a little gravy out of pan drippings, water and a little heavy cream and about a half teaspoon of arrowroot powder. But this sounds AWESOME and will be great comfort food paleo style for my hubby. I think I’ll serve it with whipped cauliflower “taters.”
Liz says
April 5, 2011 at 11:26 ammade this the other night- it was pretty good! The hubby and baby ate it up, I wasn’t such a huge fan of the marjoram, etc. in the patties, but the gravy was…inspired. OMG. Amazing. I was eating spoonfulls of it. Thanks for the recipe!
Jen says
April 5, 2011 at 11:04 pmJust made this tonight and it was AMAZING… So stinkin’ YUMMMMMMY! Thank You!
Danielle Z-H says
April 6, 2011 at 9:17 amI love this recipe. However, I am having issues digesting coconut milk. Am I purchasing a low quality coconut milk? Does anyone have any suggestions or insights on this? To avoid TMI: I’ll just say I get bloated and gasy. Also, my gravy wasn’t thickening so I used a smidge of arrowroot powder too & worked perfect.
Sarah says
April 6, 2011 at 1:57 pmYou might just be sensitive to coconut milk! You could always use a little heavy cream to thicken the sauce next time if you like! : ) Some folks feel great with coconut oil but not so great with too much coconut milk so if you don’t feel good eating it, I would use in moderation or not at all and then you can try it again in a few weeks and see if you get the same response. : )
Danielle Z-H says
April 7, 2011 at 4:24 pmOk, thanks… my husband doesnt have the same issue. Darn! I really like the flavor of coconut milk too. Oh well… I havent 100% cut out dairy so I’ll still use this recipe it was great! And perfect for lunch the next day too. Thank you for responding!
Chuck O says
April 6, 2011 at 1:51 pmSarah-
Could i use heavy cream or more butter in place of the coconut milk?
Sarah says
April 6, 2011 at 1:55 pmYes I would use heavy cream!
Chuck O says
April 6, 2011 at 3:38 pmThanks…steak is cooking as i type!
Renee says
April 6, 2011 at 2:40 pmMade this for dinner last night and it was a hit! My husband loved it and everyone had seconds. While I was cooking my 15 year old daughter walked up to me and said, “Mom, I’m so proud of you! You are becoming such a gourmet cook!” All I could think was…just following Sarah’s recipes and I’m a gourmet cook! I do love how everything is easy and turns out and I can substitute ingredients for what I have on hand and it still tastes great! Thank you for helping me become a gourmet cook!!!!
Jessica says
April 7, 2011 at 3:45 pmThis looks goooooood…and Blokus is the best!
Flint says
April 7, 2011 at 8:31 pmMade this tonight with my lady. Excellent recipe! Subbed artichokes for the sweet potato and they paired nicely. Thank you for the recipe. 🙂
Melissa Fritcher says
April 9, 2011 at 1:11 pmThank you to the power of Infinity! My daughter’s favorite dish of all time. I get an earful every time we go shopping about buying that crap in a box. I’ve been putting her off, and we always tend to use the grass-fed ground beef we get for something else, so I haven’t tried it on my own yet. Then you did this recipe, and I ordered a lot of GFGB, and I was feeling brave, so we did it – and she LOVED it! So much better than the stuff in the box. And, I’m having one w/ fried in coconut oil eggs w/ a side of veg for breakfast today – and I LOVE it, too!
Thank you so much for giving me the perfect recipe for my daughter’s favorite dish. Just one more way I can keep her Paleo. 😀
drew grim says
April 10, 2011 at 2:20 pmi made this with venison instead of beef. it was really good!
angela says
April 15, 2011 at 2:27 pmFor sure one of my favorite recipes of ALL TIME! I used boxed, frozen spinach that was thawed overnight in fridge and was super easy. This is def going on my weekly recipe list! Thank you!!!
Donna says
April 30, 2011 at 9:41 amFreaking delicious! I made it the other night…I was nervous. (I’m always nervous when trying something new.) This was SO good that I was patting myself on the back all night!! Couldn’t wait for leftovers the next night!
Marti says
May 11, 2011 at 4:00 pmI just started a paleo-type diet today and was searching for recipes. This looks really good. Where do you get the beef broth that isn’t loaded with sodium?
Marti says
May 12, 2011 at 6:48 pmJust came back to say I made this recipe tonight & it’s a keeper! Thanks!
APRYL says
June 5, 2011 at 5:05 pmThis was so good! I was picking mushroom out of the leftover gravy it was so good 🙂 My first try from your site, and it was wonderful!
Elizabeth says
June 28, 2011 at 7:24 pmThat was delicious! OMG, so good! I realized at the last minute I didn’t have spinach so I shredded up some zucchini and carrots into it. So good.
Sarah says
June 29, 2011 at 8:07 amSo glad you liked it! I love this one myself as well… : )
Jennifer Harrity says
November 11, 2011 at 1:00 pmSarah,
I’m so excited to find this recipe. Salisbury Steak was a staple in my Grandmother’s kitchen. It was also the down fall of anyone dieting in our family, which lead to her Salisbury Steak being responsible for three gallbladder removals in our family. lol
I’m so tempted to make this and bring it to Thanksgiving. Some folks would jump on it while others may flee the room in fear for their gallbladders. Is that evil? >:D
Jennifer
Beth Y says
November 28, 2011 at 5:12 pmI made this tonight – it was GREAT. One tiny issue was that I think I made the patties too thick, so 2 minutes per side meant they were nice and brown outside but uncooked in the middle. I just popped them in the microwave to finish – next time I’ll try to remember to go thinner! The sauce was AMAZING. Thanks for this and all your recipes!
Allyson says
December 27, 2011 at 4:21 pmThis is the best way to get spinach in my family…we are not a fan of it any other way. My 4 year ate it without question.
Danielle says
December 29, 2011 at 3:36 pmSo far we have only tried the gravy and it is the best gravy I have ever made!!! Love your recipes!!!
Marissa Davidson says
January 11, 2012 at 6:37 pmWow! I made this tonight, but instead of the typical meat, I went a little overboard at Whole Foods and mixed 1/2 lb of ground lamb, pork, veal, beef, and bison (total of 2.5 lbs instead of 2 lbs) for the steaks. Absolutely Divine. I might have just died and went to heaven.
Sarah says
January 12, 2012 at 7:56 amYUM, I love the idea of using the different ground meats, sounds delish!
Cecily says
February 9, 2012 at 1:47 pmMade this last night w/ ground venison…so good! The whole fam loved it…served it w/ nom nom paleo’s carrot, cauliflower puree. Thanks Sarah!
Nicola says
February 29, 2012 at 10:58 amI’m wondering how this would freeze. Has anyone tried that?
Kristin W. says
March 20, 2012 at 10:02 amThis was so amazing! I had this on our meal plan but had to leave the house unexpectedly and my husband made it and followed the recipe exactly. So so so good, he raved about it and we pretty much fought (nicely) over the leftovers for lunch. Served ours with roasted sweet potato seasoned with salt, pepper and oregano. Keeper in our house!
Alison says
April 5, 2012 at 5:31 pmI’ve pinned (and tried!) a bunch of your recipes and this is one of my favorites so far! We had it tonight with cauliflower mashed “potatoes.” Delicious!
Danielle says
May 14, 2012 at 4:49 pmThis was amazing! Served with a big BLT salad, big raves from the husband 🙂
Jessi says
June 1, 2012 at 7:28 pmThese were amazing! We still include dairy so we used half&half instead of coconut milk. I cannot get past the flavor coconut milk brings to a dish. We had to use a thickener for the gravy as well, but that could have just been because I didn’t let it reduce long enough, I had hungry kids tugging at my legs. They were a hit. 🙂
Nina says
August 7, 2012 at 5:49 pmTried it last night and it was good, but not the best recipe we tried from your site so far. The 1 tablespoon of thyme is too much for our taste and we didn’t care for the bell pepper in the gravy. Next time I’m just gonna adjust the recipe.
Sarah says
August 8, 2012 at 8:27 amSorry you didn’t like this one. : (
Sia says
January 30, 2013 at 12:11 amIn the gravy what can I used instead of the butter as I am lactose intolerant. Can I use Ghee, olive oil or coconut oil?
Great recipe. Looks delicious.
Sarah says
January 30, 2013 at 7:46 amI would use Ghee!
Liz says
February 3, 2013 at 10:46 amSo yummy! The whole family loved this!
Marie Shanahan says
July 30, 2013 at 9:07 pmThis looks so great! I love that you added diced spinach – what a beautiful idea. 🙂 I’ve been craving salisbury steak lately, so I’m going to make this. 🙂
BridgetDono says
September 17, 2013 at 5:51 pmMade this tonight and it is a KEEPER. I’m a foodie and this is fantastic. Double the sauce. Wait. No. Triple the sauce.
Corey says
January 4, 2014 at 3:50 pmMade this for dinner tonight and it was awesome!
Maggie A says
January 20, 2014 at 4:31 pmI made this for dinner along with a cauliflower-mash…my kids LOVED it and so did I! This is definitely a recipe I can make and sell on my (non-paleo) hubby! Thank you so much!
Laura in Anchorage, Alaska says
October 29, 2014 at 11:42 pmReally nice recipe! Before I made the patties, I cooked a flattened meatball and tested. It was perfect. I didn’t need to adjust your recipe amounts at all. I made eight patties in all (freezing half of them for later). The mushroom gravy is out of this world – I was ready to eat it just as is!! I opted to stir in a slurry of 2 tsp arrowroot and 2 tsp water. Its just beautiful. Thank you!
Kathy says
December 14, 2014 at 12:06 pmI’m fairly new to the paleo community and have tried many new recipes. I’m having a problem with knowing when the recipe calls for coconut milk is it the canned or boxed kind? I tried making blueberry pancakes today. Recipe called for 1/2 cup coconut milk. I always have canned on hand and used that. Disaster!!! I think I was suppose to be boxed as to the batter was more like thick paste!!
Kathy says
December 14, 2014 at 12:46 pmOh sorry!! And this recipe is on my “to try for sure” list!! So is it canned or boxed coconut milk?? Any suggestions for mixing up the canned milk? With separation it’s really hard to get the whole can mixed up without too many large lumps. That’s even after putting it in a mason jar and shaking it forever!
Stephanie says
January 5, 2016 at 5:16 pmLove this recipe. Cooked this tonight and it was perfect. Love your recipes ! They really make it easy to be paleo in a small town where we have no specialty stores. Cant wait to get you book! Doing chicken piccata tomorrow!
Sarah Fragoso says
January 11, 2016 at 12:40 pmAwesome Stephanie, thank you so much!