Hamburger Steak

Hamburger steak is not really a steak at all. Steak is an individual portion cut from a larger piece of beef. Giving it the steak name does lift if from the lowly ranks of just cooked ground beef.

With just a little imagination it can be lifted even higher.

Hamburger steak has a lot going for it. First it's quick and easy.

Even a novice cook shouldn't have any trouble making an acceptable dish.

It's also cheap. Ground beef is about the cheapest beef you can buy.

And as you will see it's extremely versatile.

Let's start with just a basic recipe. It has a little onion for flavor, egg and breadcrumbs as an extender and binder and milk to make it a little richer and tenderer.

Basic Hamburger Steak Recipe

1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Pepper
1 Tbsp. grated onion
Dash of seasoned salt
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 c. breadcrumbs
1/4 c. milk

Combine all the ingredients and mix well. Shape into 2 large burgers about 3/4 inches thick. Preheat fry pan to 320 degrees. Add 1 tablespoon fat. Add the steaks and cook to desired doneness.

Steak and Gravy Recipe

Move your steak up the culinary ladder another rung by finishing up with a gravy or pan sauce.

For gravy, be sure you have about 2 tablespoons of fat in the skillet and then add 2 tablespoons of flour. Stir and cook for a few minutes to make a roux.

Now just add a cup or so of liquid (beef stock is good), bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat a bit and simmer until it's at your desired thickness.

For me a pan sauce is simpler and provides the opportunity to add greater flavor.

To make a pan sauce you first remove the fat from the pan and deglaze the fond. (All the little bits stuck to the bottom of the pan.)

Deglazing can be done with wine, brandy, fortified wines, stock, cider, fruit juices or most typically a combination of two.

Next reduce the liquid in the pan by about half and then add several pats of butter to thicken and enhance the flavor of the sauce.

Viola! You have pan sauce.

Moving Even Higher

The Meat Texture: Sometimes I like to give my hamburger a more steak like texture. All you have to do is use a much finer grind than regular hamburger.

You can have the butcher run it through the grinder a few more times or else do it yourself by pulsing in the food processor.

The finer grind allows the meat fibers to pack more closely together, thus giving you a steak with a meatier texture. More like a real steak.

Batter It: I call this a Texas Style hamburger steak because it's similar to chicken fried steak.

Flour the steak and then dip it in egg wash. Back into the flour again and then into hot oil that comes at least halfway up the steak.

Stuff It: Because this steak is ground beef stuffing is very simple. Just make two patties, lay the stuffing on one and then top with the other.

Season It: Seasoning for hamburger can run the gauntlet of anything that's out there.

This list could go on forever. Just suffice it to say that hamburger steak can be more just cooked ground beef. It has infinite variety.