Hamburger Steak Smothered in Onion Gravy

This is bringing back a meal that you don’t see much anymore. An old Southern dinner or supper with hamburger steak. This one back in the old days, would have been called hamburger steak smothered in onion gravy. In our house, this was served with rice and gravy, two seasonal vegetables, and always sliced tomatoes in summer. Cornbread or rolls would be on a plate in the middle of the table.

Hamburger steak was never served for Sunday dinner but it was served for weekday  dinner which was our mid-day meal, or it was served at evening supper. It was one of our favorites. Today, I would not hesitate to serve it for Sunday dinner, just like I did yesterday.

After reading my comment about our big mid-day meals, I know what you must be thinking. Yes, many households like ours had a big dinner around noon everyday. In the summer when school was out, my sister and I would go to the table and daddy would come in and sit with us and we’d eat together. Another plate was always set in case someone stopped by, and my dad would invite them to “dinner”. It would happen often and a meal at our house was rarely turned down, especially by daddy’s cousin, Sam Lewis. Remember, there were no restaurants in the country, so someone could be caught away from home at “dinnertime” and have no place to eat.

That evening for supper, there might be another meat, and part of the dinner that was served earlier at noon. I remember the days when some people didn’t refrigerate their food. They’d leave the food on the table and cover it with a white tablecloth. At night they’d uncover the food, reset the table and eat.

I’d better stop writing about old memories, otherwise I’ll have a book, and you might be bored to death. The recipe is below, and I hope you’ll give my version of this old Southern recipe a try. I think you’ll like it. Let me know. I hope if you grew up eating hamburger steak, that you will enjoy the food and the memory.  Hugs!

As you can see, I had two large and one small steak. I made the small one because I’m dieting this week. What a heck of a time to diet, right? Just remember that you can add or subtract from this recipe. If you need 6-8 ounce steaks then buy the appropriate pounds of ground sirloin.

Hamburger Steak, Smothered in Onion Gravy

Steak

1 pound ground sirloin

1 cup chopped Vidalia onion

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon Sweet Baby Ray’s Vidalia Onion Barbecue Sauce

Salt and pepper to taste (I added a teaspoon salt and less freshly ground pepper)

2 tablespoons olive oil

Place the first 5 ingredients together in a bowl. Mix well. Divide sirloin into any size and shape you like. Add the oil to a hot iron skillet. Sear steaks until brown on each side. Remove steaks to a plate. Turn the heat to medium.

Gravy

One large Vidalia Onion, thinly sliced

Olive oil as needed

3 tablespoons flour

1 (14.5 ounce) can low-sodium beef broth

Salt and pepper to season, if needed

Add enough oil to the pan drippings to make 2-3 tablespoons fat (you will have some drippings from the meat) and then add 3 tablespoons flour. Keep stirring the flour in the oil until the flour  browns. Add the beef broth. Use a fork or whisk to blend the liquid and flour. Place the steaks back into the liquid and add the onions. Cook until onions are tender, gravy is thickened and steaks are done.