This Poor Man’s Salisbury Steak is smothered in onion gravy and is ready in about 30 minutes! Serve with my favorite mashed potatoes and you have a meal that even the pickiest eaters will like! (If you want to get extra fancy, serve this Salisbury steak with my Restaurant Style Mashed Potatoes!)

Poor Man's Salisbury Steak
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What is Salisbury Steak?

Salisbury Steaks are simple to make, relatively inexpensive, and loaded with flavor. It usually consists of a homemade hamburger patty smothered in a rich gravy. The consistency is more like a meatball than a hamburger though thanks to my secret ingredient, potato chips! And, it’s always the best when homemade!

Salisbury Steak Recipe

Ingredients & Substitutions

Ground Beef: We always used 70/30 ground beef growing up because it was the most inexpensive, but these days I like to use a leaner percentage like 90/10. I also like to take my ground beef out of the fridge about 30 minutes before preparing this so that the meat is not cold.

Potato Chips: A traditional Salisbury steak uses breadcrumbs, but we never seemed to have those on hand growing up so my mom would use crushed potato chips. I love the salty and crunchy component that the potato chips add to this recipe. It’s my “secret ingredient” and also where the name “Poor Man’s Salisbury Steak” comes into play. You could also use breadcrumbs if that is what you have on hand.

Gravy: One of my favorite components of this meal is the onion gravy. If you get to a point where the sauce seems TOO thick, you can add more broth to thin it out.

Easy Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy

How to Serve Salisbury Steak

The absolute best way to serve Salisbury steak is over mashed potatoes. I also add a vegetable side like garlic and parmesan roasted asparagus, green beans, or Brown Butter Brussels Sprouts.

Salisbury Steak

Can You Freeze Salisbury Steak?

This recipe freezes well, so you could absolutely make a double batch for later in the week. There are two methods for freezing:

  1. Freeze the uncooked steaks and then thaw and follow the rest of the recipe as listed.
  2. Freeze the cooked steaks in the gravy, and then defrost them in the fridge and simmer them in a pan until they are warmed through.

Dinner Ideas

4.95 from 70 votes

Salisbury Steak

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
This Poor Man's Salisbury Steak is smothered in onion gravy and is ready in about 30 minutes!

Ingredients

Hamburger Patties

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup potato chips, smashed
  • 2 teaspoons dry mustard
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Gravy

  • 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 cups beef broth, more if needed for thinning
  • 4 dashes Worcestershire
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

Hamburger Patties

  • Combine the ground beef, eggs, potato chips, dry mustard, garlic powder, and some salt and pepper.
  • Using your hands, mix all the ingredients until fully combined. Form into four hamburger patties.
  • In a 12-inch skillet with the butter and oil over medium-high heat, fry the patties on both sides until no longer pink in the middle. (about 5 minutes a side)
  • Remove patties from the skillet and pour off any excess grease.

Gravy

  • Reduce the heat to medium and add in the sliced onions. Stir and cook until golden brown and somewhat soft, about 3-5 minutes.
  • In a small bowl, combine the beef broth and the corn starch. Mix well.
  • Add the beef broth mixture and Worcestershire sauce to the onions and stir as the mixture comes to a low boil. The sauce will reduce and thicken.
  • If the sauce appears too thick, you can add more broth for thinning.
  • Return the cooked hamburger patties to the gravy. Spoon the gravy over the top and let them simmer and heat back up for a couple of minutes.

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Reader Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Its a must try! Found this a year or 2 ago and I have been making it ever since, its full of flavor, pretty simple, and everyone will love it.

4.95 from 70 votes (28 ratings without comment)

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