Total comfort food! This easy hamburger steak with mushroom gravy (also known as “poor man’s steak”) is a flavorful, affordable dinner that the whole family can enjoy!
Table of Contents
For even more easy ground beef recipes, be sure to try these cast iron skillet burgers, a pot of creamy tomato soup with ground beef and noodles, this Jiffy cornbread taco bake, and this one-skillet ground beef cabbage recipe, too!
We love this recipe! It’s my soon to be graduating son’s favorite. Hopefully it will bring him home to visit often!
– Jessica
Video: How to Make Hamburger Steak
I initially got the idea for this hamburger steak recipe from some of our Amish and Mennonite neighbors, who regularly serve this type of dish for large gatherings. They call it “Poor Man’s Steak,” and they often prepare a big baking sheet full of the ground beef mixture. The chilled beef is then sliced into squares and pan-fried in the same way that I’ve cooked the round patties here. I just find that the smaller quantity of meat in my recipe works best for a single family’s supper!
Hamburger Steak with Mushroom Gravy
Hamburger steak is made with ground beef, seasoning, and a binder such as cracker crumbs or bread crumbs. It’s similar to meatloaf, but the beef mixture is shaped into round patties, chilled, and then fried in a skillet.
While a classic Salisbury steak recipe often includes a brown gravy made with beef broth, hamburger steaks are typically served with a creamy milk-based mushroom gravy. Like a giant hug at the end of the day, this meal is simple, cozy, and warm. It’s classic American “comfort food” at its finest!
Ingredient Notes and Tips for Success
- I recommend 85% lean ground beef, because it keeps the hamburger steak juicy without making the sauce too greasy. Any leaner ground beef may result in dry patties.
- Saltine cracker crumbs are a flavorful binder that keeps the hamburger steak moist. You can use other bread crumbs or cracker crumbs (like Ritz) if you prefer.
- We use both butter and oil for pan-frying the hamburger steaks. By using these two different types of fat, you get the higher smoke point of the oil, paired with the rich flavor of the butter.
- Use fresh, sliced white button mushrooms, cremini mushrooms, or baby Bella mushrooms for the gravy.
- A can of Campbell’s condensed cream of mushroom soup is a great shortcut base for the creamy gravy (no roux or flour necessary). Look for the Heart Healthy variety for an option with less sodium.
Directions for the Best Poor Man’s Steak
You don’t need any fancy ingredients or labor-intensive steps for this easy, comfort food classic. You’ll find detailed directions in the recipe card below, but here’s the overview:
- Combine the ground beef, egg, cracker crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, salt, onion powder, and pepper in a large bowl with a fork or with your hands. Be careful not to over-mix the meat, or it will become dense and mushy.
- Shape the meat into 4 equal patties.
- Chill the ground beef patties in the refrigerator for at least one hour or overnight — this will help them “set up” so that they’re easier to fry without falling apart.
- Fry the patties in a large skillet until browned and crisp on the outside and cooked through on the inside, about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove them to a plate and tent loosely with foil to keep them warm while you make the gravy.
- Sauté the mushrooms and garlic, stir in the soup and milk, and simmer the gravy gently for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chopped fresh parsley. Return the patties to the skillet. Warm them over low heat, spooning the gravy over top.
- Garnish with additional parsley and serve!
Serving Suggestions
Some of our favorite sides that go well with hamburger steak and mushroom gravy include buttermilk mashed potatoes, sour cream mashed potatoes, party potatoes, creamy baked mac and cheese, spoon bread, flaky biscuits, egg noodles or white rice, Jiffy corn casserole, 2-ingredient pumpkin muffins, Southern-style green beans, Arkansas green beans, 3-ingredient sour cream muffins, Southern collard greens, this easy broccoli casserole recipe, brown sugar glazed carrots, creamed peas, and this house salad with candied pecans.
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Make Ahead: Prepare the patties up to 24 hours in advance. Keep them covered in the fridge until ready to cook.
- How to Store: Freeze the patties before or after cooking. Wrap cooked hamburger steaks tightly and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Wrapped properly, leftovers will stay fresh in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 days.
- How to Reheat: Warm the patties and gravy in a skillet, covered, over low heat just until warmed through. You can also reheat individual servings in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, or just until warmed through.
This was absolutely delicious. I served it with buttery white Minute Rice. Of course I don’t keep fresh mushrooms on hand so I substituted with yellow onions, and it came out amazing…
– Emily C.
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Hamburger Steak
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup Saltine cracker crumbs (about 14 crackers)
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, divided
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 8 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms
- 2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons total)
- 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
- ½ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, plus extra for garnish
- Optional, for serving: mashed potatoes, noodles, rice, or crusty bread
Instructions
- Line a tray or baking sheet with wax paper; set aside. In a large bowl, use your hands or a fork to gently combine the ground beef, egg, cracker crumbs, Worcestershire sauce, salt, onion powder, and black pepper. Shape the meat mixture into 4 equal patties. Place the patties on the prepared tray. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the patties until browned and crispy on the outside and cooked through on the inside, about 3-4 minutes per side. Remove the patties to a plate and tent loosely with foil to keep warm while you make the gravy.
- Add 1 more tablespoon of butter to the drippings in the skillet. When the butter melts, add the mushrooms to the skillet and fry until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the condensed soup and the milk; bring the mixture to a gentle simmer. Reduce the heat to low, and simmer the gravy for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the parsley.
- Return the patties to the skillet. Warm over low heat, spooning the gravy over the patties.
- Garnish with additional fresh parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Hamburger Steak Recipe Variations
- Some folks like to include onion in the gravy. Simply sauté thinly-sliced onion in the skillet with the mushrooms until soft.
- Try other herbs in addition to the parsley. Good options include basil, oregano, rosemary, chives, and thyme. Garlic powder would also be a nice addition in lieu of fresh garlic.
- Cooking just for two? Cut the ingredients in half and prepare just two patties. Similarly, you can double all of the ingredients to feed a larger family. Just brown the patties in batches so that you don’t overcrowd the pan.
- Use a combination of ground beef and ground pork, a meatloaf mix of pork, beef, and veal, or even ground turkey.
- Swap out the Saltine cracker crumbs and use other cracker crumbs or breadcrumbs instead.
More Hamburger Recipes to Try
Grandmother’s Hamburger Soup
50 minutes mins
Hamburger Casserole with Noodles
40 minutes mins
Slow Cooker Cabbage Soup with Hamburger
6 hours hrs 15 minutes mins
This recipe was first published in September, 2019. It was updated in January, 2025.
Now this sounds like the type of meat dish which might happen at my house! I need a couple of specifics, though. About how big a skillet do I want for this. 12 inch or 14?. How would I know when the oil and butter is hot enough? How big should the patties be when I pat them out? What would you say would be an optimal maximum of onion without making it have too much liquid? When I take the patties from the refrigerator, should I let them come up to room temperature before cooking them?
I like that this has you refrigerate the patties. Gives me a chance to clean up the kitchen from phase one before entering phase two! My kitchen space is so small!
My mother used to make these, but without gravy, and called them Meatloaf Patties. I liked them better than plain ground chuck.
Thanks!
Hi, Marion! I would use a 12 inch skillet, but 14 inch is fine too, if you’ve got it. Either works great. The oil will shimmer and the butter will melt when the pan is hot enough. The patties should be about 3/4-inch to 1-inch thick, or in that general range. You do not need to let them come to room temperature before cooking. The cold patties will hold together better and be easier to work with in the skillet.
Hope they bring back memories from your childhood! 🙂
Hi Blair, great recipes, I am a divorced single man, who is a terrible cook int the kitchen. ( just a mess maker ), most of the the stuff that I try to make, I throw out. Do you have a cook book out? Instead, just on line? Thanks, Mess Maker Mark.
Hi Mark,
Thank you so much! We don’t have a cookbook at this time, but maybe one day!
This looks amazing, my boyfriend doesn’t eat mushrooms or cream of mushroom soup, what is a good cream of ___ soup to replace it? I am going to add onion also. Thanks! I love your recipes!
Hi Ali!
Unfortunately, it’s hard to replicate the umami flavor of mushrooms with anything else. We haven’t tested it, but you could try a combination of heavy cream, broth, and butter, or make your own cream of mushroom soup and omit the mushrooms. There are great instructions on how to do either in this article. For an easy option, you could also try cream of onion soup. It will just have a slightly more mild flavor.
We love this recipe! It’s my, soon to be graduating, son’s favorite. Hopefully it will bring him home to visit often!
Thank you, Jessica!
I’m a seasoned cook (67 years old) but I always enjoyed looking at recipes to refresh my menu or update a recipe. Tonight I needed a quick and easy gravy for hamburger steaks and this one fit the bill perfectly. It was delicious! I will definitely keep this bookmarked to make again. Thanks!
I’m so glad to hear that, Beth! Thank you for letting us know.
This was absolutely delicious I served it with buttery white minute rice. Of course I dont keep fresh mushrooms on hand so I substituted with yellow onions, and it came out amazing. I did use breadcrumbs bc I didn’t have crackers either lol, then i added a little hotsauce(not enough to taste) and it added a little zing in there. will be making again. Thank you so much!
Your version sounds perfect, Emily. Thank you!