Salisbury Steak
It was my first Salisbury steak. I happened to get a recipe of Salisbury Steak for Two by Cook's Country via Cook's Illustrated website. First of all I had never heard of such a dish. It was said "a TV-dinner staple," but the recipe was developed to elevate it by making your own gravy from sautéed mushrooms, onions, tomato paste, beef broth and a splash of sweet ruby port or red wine, ditching the canned cream of mushroom soup. The recipe also used an "unlikely combination" of milk and instant potato flakes to keep beef patties moist. I made this dish because we were going to watch a final episode of a TV show we have been enjoying over dinner. So, making a "TV dinner" was my joke, but the dish wasn't a joke, rather serious. It was rich and flavorful. We liked the result very much. I cooked Spätzle as a side. We also had a small bowl of a cabbage dish as another side. The dinner was a feast! By the way Salilsbury steak was very similar to a Japanese popular dish called "Humburg," like a meatloaf, with a French-style Demi-glace sauce that is also poplar in Japan. So, the dish itself wasn't totally new for me after all. However, a real commercial Salisbury steak, which I understand based on J's description, you find as a frozen food, placed in a compartment tray with some side dishes and cook in the oven (microwave?) could be entirely new for me. I am not sure if I would like to discover it, though...
