Salisbury steak meatballs are a cozy, delicious twist on a classic dish.
Ground beef, breadcrumbs, and parmesan cheese are shaped into bite-sized meatballs and simmered with mushrooms and onions in a rich and savory brown gravy.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: These meatballs are savory with a rich mushroom and onion brown gravy.
- Difficulty: The meatballs and the rich sauce are easy and simple to make.
- Prep Note: Meatballs can be shaped and browned ahead of time and added to the recipe in Step 2. Or save time by buying premade meatballs.
- Serving Suggestions: Serve them as a hearty appetizer or serve over mashed potatoes, rice, or egg noodles. Don’t forget some quick dinner rolls for sopping up all that velvety sauce!
Ingredients Tips for Salisbury Steak Meatballs
- Beef: Choose an 80/20 blend for the juiciest meatballs. Add ground chicken, turkey, or pork to the beef to stretch the recipe further.
- Seasonings: Match the meatballs to the menu and go for an Italian-style seasoning blend or a flavorful burger seasoning blend.
- Sauce: Beef broth and some pantry seasonings are all it takes to make the rich and savory sauce. You can use a can of condensed broth or a boxed version (add a bouillon cube to bump up the flavor).
- Variations: Use soy sauce or coconut aminos in place of Worcestershire sauce. Dress up the dish with fresh herbs like thyme and oregano, or simmer the gravy with a bay leaf in Step 4 (discard before serving).
Leftovers & Storage
Store meatballs and gravy together in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Freeze in zippered bags for up to a month and thaw in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave, on the stovetop, or in a crockpot set to low if desired.
Serve Salisbury Meatballs With…
Did you enjoy these Salisbury Steak Meatballs? Leave a comment and rating below.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup diced onion about 1 medium onion
- 2 cups sliced mushrooms about 8 oz mushrooms
Meatballs
- 1 ½ pounds lean ground beef
- ⅓ cup Italian bread crumbs or seasoned bread crumbs
- ⅓ cup milk
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 tablespooons dried parsley, plus additional for garnish
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- ¾ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 ¼ cups beef broth
- ⅔ cup water
Instructions
- In a large nonstick skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, turn the heat up to medium-high, and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- For the meatballs, in a medium bowl, add ground beef, breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Gently mix to combine. Roll the mixture into 24 meatballs (see notes).
- Move the mushrooms and onions to the sides of the skillet and add the meatballs. Cook, turning occasionally, until browned on the outside. If your skillet is smaller than 12-inches, transfer the mushrooms and onions to a bowl and brown the meatballs in batches as needed.
- Meanwhile in a small mixing bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the sauce. Pour sauce over the meatballs.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
- Cover with a lid and simmer for an additional 12 to 20 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through and reach 160°F.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Entree
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Thanks for sharing! Looks good i can’t wait to try this recipe.
just made it for supper, it was delicious, i used dried parsley because it was what i had on hand
supper easy follow recipe
I’ve made this recipe quite a few times and the entire family loves it! I was wondering if it could be frozen and reheated for a quick weeknight meal for busy days? I don’t see anything in the sauce that would really break, but I’m wondering if you or any others have tried it.
Yes, just like a regular salisbury steak recipe, you can freeze these meatballs and the gravy. Defrost in the fridge overnight.
My family loved this recipe! I added a beef bouillon cube to the sauce and used 1/2 concentrated tomato paste and 1/2 ketchup. I also seasoned it with cumin, Italian seasoning, paprika and garlic powder. At the end I made a corn starch slurry to thicken it up and served over mashed potatoes.
Oh my! Thats sounds delicious, Sara. Thanks for sharing.
I made this two days in a row. I made for myself and then again for my son and his girlfriend because it was so good!
I improvised a little with measurements, because I made more than 1.5 lbs of burger. Just added to taste. Definitely recommend!!!
So happy this recipe was a hit with your family, Teresa!
“OH’ my Goodness . This made my morning . I had to read Dwayne’s messege twice to make sure what I actually read . Thanks as well for clarifying Holly :)
Good Morning, Peggy! Glad we could help
Very delicious! Added some course mustard,ketchup,onion powder and 1 egg to the meatball recipe and baked the meatballs in the over at 400 degrees 20 minutes. I also doubled the sauce and onion mushroom mix. Sauteed the onions and mushrooms then added the sauce to pan to cook until thickened. Placed the meatballs in the sauce when the sauce was done and served over mashed potatoes and a side of fresh green beans. Yummy! Everyone loved it.
Made this for Sunday dinner. Entire family enjoyed it. Served it over mashed potatoes with peas on the side. Kids ate 2 servings. Barely enough left for a small lunch portion. Thanks for posting this will be put in to our monthly rotation. It’s definitely a comfort food meal
So happy to hear that, Barbara! Glad everyone enjoyed it!
Never heard of a “half can of water”…never knew water came in cans???
Lovely recipe though, thanks for sharing!
Hi Dwayne, we use the can from the beef broth and add about half a can of water. We have updated the recipe to list the cup measurement to make it a bit clearer! Thank you for pointing that out.
bonjour !!! c est quoi 1/2 bidon d eau ??????
C’est 5 onces d’eau.
How “large” a saucepan ? I don’t see how 24 meatballs would fit. The photo shows about 10. Are they supposed to be browned in more than one batch ? Please clarify. Thank you .
The image shows 12 larger meatballs. You can also do 24 smaller ones (1 pound of meat should fit into the pan in any case). I’d suggest a 12” skillet. Enjoy the recipe!
Excellent! Would definitely make again. I didn’t have beef broth on hand, so used chicken broth instead. Pairs great with mashed potatoes. Yum – perfect comfort food.
Yum
Trying 1st timer. We shall see :)
Good Luck Amber!
Since I already had meatballs in the freezer, I just used the gravy. I loved it.
Will definitely make your meatballs next time.
Awesome! Made for dinner tonight. I used ground sirloin so the meatballs were a little dry. Will use a beef with more fat next time. Gravy was really good. Thanks for the recipe!
What percentage ground beef do you use
I generally use an 80/20 mix.
Can this recipe be canned??
I don’t do canning so can’t say for sure. Maybe another reader will have some ideas for you Sharon.
Greetings Holly
Have you ever sub’d the flour with cornstarch? Have you ever used Potato Starch? I recently watched a travel cooking show, where the chef used Potato Starch for flouring beef. I finally found it & going to check it out. Thanks so much for sharing your recipes! I’m definitely going to make these meatballs.
I haven’t tried it but I know my Grandma used to use potato starch in her cooking! Let me know how it goes and I hope you love the meatballs!
Is the dijon the dijon mustard?
Yes, it is dijon mustard.
Does the onions and mushrooms go into the meatball mix.Not clear.
They are softened and added to the sauce. They don’t got into the meatball mixture.
recipe is very unclear about the meatballs being browned in the saucepan… stirred/browned in with the onions and mushrooms?
please edit to fix the recipe.
Thanks for the recommendation, the recipe has been updated to be a bit clearer!