643801 Tue Aug 11 10:47:45 -0700 2009 18 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 4936763 Or, better yet, is there a difference between meatloaf and Salisbury Steak? Or are they essentially the same thing (with some minor variations)? Is Salisbury Steak just a fancy name for meatloaf to trick grade school kids and Swanson's TV Dinner addicts to feel like they're eating something "haute"? Tue Aug 11 10:47:46 -0700 2009 11583 ipsedixit 1 4936832 I *love* a good "Salisbury Steak." For me, SS has no breadcrumbs in it, whereas some of the meat loaf recipes I use include breadcrumbs. Good Salisbury Steak is made from good ground beef, contains minced onion and occasionally a duxelle of mushrooms -- and the gravy is very, very important. Salisbury Steak, mashed potatoes and buttered peas make me feel good all over! Tue Aug 11 11:03:32 -0700 2009 4936763 270888 shaogo 2 4936896 From one SS lover to another, I'm not quibbling with you, but shaogo, if you Google "salisbury steak recipe" you'll come up with as many iterations that use breadcrumbs (or some other filler) as those that do not. I used to circle the dates on my grade school cafeteria calendar when they served Salisbury Steak (usually with mashed potatoes and overcooked/boiled green beans and carrots) Tue Aug 11 11:14:54 -0700 2009 4936832 11583 ipsedixit 3 4936998 I'm sure there are many variations on Salisbury Steak, just as there are meatloaf. However, meatloaf traditionally includes ketchup or tomato sauce/paste, whereas Salisbury steak does not. And Salisbury steak is always served with a rich, brown gravy. I love me some Salisbury steak too. :) Tue Aug 11 11:37:37 -0700 2009 4936896 71241 lynnlato 3 4937027 Count me in with the school-cafeteria SS lovers. There were two or maybe three dishes that our cafeteria made that I liked a whole lot, and that was one of them. Canned peas was the usual accompaniment for us, or peas & carrots. I had no idea what Salisbury steak was until then; it seems to be one of those things served only in cafeterias. Tue Aug 11 11:46:30 -0700 2009 4936896 11478 Will Owen 4 4937638 Y'know, I think I started eating those nasty Swanson TV dinners way back when because I started getting cafeteria salisbury steak withdrawals. Tue Aug 11 14:45:55 -0700 2009 4937027 11583 ipsedixit 5 4937879 Swanson ain't THAT nasty, except the fried chicken, though any TVD fried chicken tastes like it came out of someone's sock drawer. TVD Salisbury steak is not that bad. I'd much prefer having it as a single frozen entree, though, since the side dishes perennially suck. Tue Aug 11 16:00:26 -0700 2009 4937638 11478 Will Owen 6 4938190 Oh, I am so disappointed with Swanson. I used to enjoy their TV dinners a few years ago, when I was working 12 hour days, and really didn't have the energy to cook when I got home. Their plates were divided into four sections - main course, potato, veg, and dessert. Some were OK (SS, turkey, sliced beef) and others not so good (the chicken as you noted). Then someone got the bright idea of putting the meal into a three section dish. This lumped the potato in with the main, and the result was neither was cooked properly. At the same time, some bright boy came up with the idea of replacing the fruit dessert with a brownie. Previously, you peeled back the plastic from the spuds and the dessert, threw it into the zapper, and kicked back until it was done. Now, with the friggin' brownie, you have to stop part way through cooking to fuss with the brownie, which doesn't taste very good any way. Feh. Luckily, the "No Name" version of TV dinners at our local supermarket continues to have the 4 section plate, with fruit, not a brownie, and at $1.99, they're a bargain. The fried chicken is still awful, though. Tue Aug 11 17:43:27 -0700 2009 4937879 1092461 FrankDrakman 7 4941017 Some things are not meant to be reheated, and fried chicken is I think irrevocably in that category. What they should do is put some nice stuffing in a well-seasoned skinless, boneless thigh (or breast for the hopelessly white-meat addicted) and let it go at that. Or use their pot pie filling and call it À La King... Wed Aug 12 14:49:58 -0700 2009 4938190 11478 Will Owen 8 4941340 Nothing like cold fried chicken in the morning. Mmmmm Wed Aug 12 16:33:01 -0700 2009 4941017 250852 taiwanesesmalleats 9 4941585 Or anytime, if it's the right kind. Lightly-coated but crisp works best cold... although, to be honest, ANY fried chicken is better cold than reheated. The only good way to reheat it is frying! Nuking is next-best, baking the worst. Wed Aug 12 18:06:48 -0700 2009 4941340 11478 Will Owen 1 4936972 for me salisbury steak is more akin to a hamburger patty than a meatloaf. Tue Aug 11 11:30:20 -0700 2009 4936763 57890 KaimukiMan 1 4937041 One is shaped in a form of a loaf and baked in the oven; the other more like a steak cooked on top of the stove. Tue Aug 11 11:49:13 -0700 2009 4936763 10756 PBSF 1 4937074 I think shaogo nailed it. No crumbs or filler; onions and duxelle-yes. More like a burger and less like a meatball/meatloaf. What is anyone's fave brown gravy recipe for SS? Do you use some of the pan drippings and add flour & beef stock or is there a better method? adam Tue Aug 11 11:57:36 -0700 2009 4936763 154787 adamshoe 1 4937110 Shaogo did nail it in terms of popular distinction. If you want the very original recipe from 1888, you will find it at page 97 here: http://books.google.com/books?id=pZ0UAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=%22The+Relation+of+Alimentation+and+Disease%22&source=bl&ots=a7DqklF0ZV&sig=LY4MsEjuYbHLo7Wxuhwwrlmh_LE&hl=en&ei=Y8CBSuX4A42GMZyWsKML&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3#v=onepage&q=lean%20beef%20made&f=false background: http://www.practicallyedible.com/edible.nsf/pages/salisburysteak Tue Aug 11 12:06:54 -0700 2009 4936763 13819 Karl S 2 4941261 Great link to the original, Karl. Isn't it wonderful to be on the planet as we watch the world's digitized library of classic books grow and grow? Dr. Salisbury wanted to get right to the issue of the easiest digested protein for his patients. Note that he advocates removal of all less-easily-digested connective tissue. For an easy way to mimic the original if you don't have a Buffalo Chopper at home, simply buy an eye of round roast, cut to 1/2" cubes, and then slowly pulse in food processor. We're not talking about loosley-grained burger meat here: we're talking a pulverized shredded matrix where the fbers are torn, and which upon cooking will form to a dense, but very chewable, patty. Salisbury recommended it as the first step of alimentative recovery, with later addition of more normal foods only after the urine densities were reduced. Today's popular Swanson's patty is a far cry from the original. And "gravy" (an anomalous mix of "whatever") has entered the required scene as a way to ameliorate the "canner-grade" beef . But if fits the requirements of "tasty". Note the filler/additive allowances now that the FDA has set percentage guidelines. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salisbury_steak The processor-minced eye of round is fun to try. It's right up there with the comfort of chicken soup when you're recovering from an illness. Wed Aug 12 16:11:11 -0700 2009 4937110 17562 FoodFuser 3 4941328 Thanks. How many people have a patty thus formed, one inch thick, and broiled rather than pan-grilled? When he specifies celery as a permitted relish, I bet he is assuming people know to string it before eating it (something that is rarely done in the US anymore, but was once the normal way to prepare it, just like stringing beans). Wed Aug 12 16:30:07 -0700 2009 4941261 13819 Karl S 1 4937867 Meatloaf is one big loaf... preferably with tomato sauce and/or bacon, served with whatever accompaniment you feel like. Salisbury steak is rissoles with mashed potato, and gravy is an absolute must. Tue Aug 11 15:57:26 -0700 2009 4936763 67657 Kajikit 1 4941333 I think that a salisbury steak actually involves a bit of braising while a meatloaf is simply roasted in an oven. Wed Aug 12 16:31:06 -0700 2009 4936763 250852 taiwanesesmalleats