Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak Burgers & Cauliflower Mash

The following recipe and photography is courtesy of Lauren Schulte. To see more of her bites and meals, visit her Instagram @TheBiteSizePantry.

These steaks are gravy baby, YEAH! If you’re not already salivating over these Salisbury Steak Burgers, you will be once you see just how easy they are to prepare. Good steak cooks great low and slow, in your slow cooker that is. While you get busy getting the rest of your day done, these babies will do most of the cook work for you. It’s like having an extra helping hand, and who doesn’t love one of those!

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak Burgers with Cauliflower Mash

You’ll need a little bit of prep-time ahead of time for these steak burgers, but it all comes together very quickly. Then all you do is plop it all in your slow cooker and wait until dinner time! If you can’t wait until then, you can finish cooking your steaks in the same pan you’ll make the gravy in and have your meal sooner than later. If you’re one of those, like me, who likes their dinner hot and ready when they get home from a long day, then you can prep it early and let it cook low and slow all day.

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak Burgers with Cauliflower Mash Ingredients

These steaks and gravy pair really nicely with a whipped plate of my cauliflower mash, which is ½ the carbs but 10 times the taste of regular mashed potatoes! To ensure you get your greens as well, just grab a bag of Steam Fresh green beans from your local Heinen’s Produce Department and waste no time at all. Simply warm them up in their bag and then drizzle with lemon juice and zest and sliced almonds. It will be like you created a gourmet meal on purpose. Who says cooking gourmet isn’t e-zay!

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak Burgers with Cauliflower Mash

Ingredients

For the Salisbury Steak Burgers

1.5 lbs. 90% Heinen's Lean Ground Beef
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
2 Tbsp. Mina Harrisa Red Pepper Sauce or 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. yellow mustard
1 Tbsp. onion powder
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 egg
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Chopped fresh parsley and onion straws (for topping)

For the Gravy

½ of a large Vidalia onion, sliced long ways into strips
2 cups sliced baby bella mushrooms
½ Tbsp. thyme
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. flour or cornstarch
3 cups mushroom or beef stock
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. butter

For the Cauliflower Mash

5 large cauliflower florets and stems, roughly chopped
1 medium celery root peeled and chopped (If you don’t have this, you can use 2 more cauliflower florets and stems.)
2 Tbsp. butter
½ cup 0% Greek yogurt
1 clove of garlic, minced
¼ cup fontina cheese, shredded
1 Tbsp. onion powder
1 Tbsp. garlic salt
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

For the Salisbury Steak Burgers and Gravy

In a large mixing bowl, blend together the beef, bread crumbs, Mina red pepper sauce or tomato paste, 2 Tbsp. of Worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, 1 Tbsp. onion powder, garlic, egg and the salt and pepper until well combined. Divide the beef mixture into eight equal size portions and form into patties about ½” thick.
Heat 2 Tbsp. of olive oil over a medium flame in a large, deep skillet as you will use the same skillet for the gravy after the steaks have cooked halfway through. Add the patties to the pan (Do not overcrowd the pan. I suggest cooking 4 patties at a time.) and cook until browned, approximately 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a platter and keep warm.
Leave the juices and bits in the pan. Add the onions and butter and cook until translucent. Add the mushrooms and cook until softened. Stir in the thyme, garlic powder and corn starch or flour. Cook for 1 minute until the mixture looks chunky and sticky. Slowly add the mushroom or beef stock scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen the steak bits. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and bring the mixture to a boil. When the gravy begins to thicken, turn the heat down and let it simmer for another 5 minutes until it really thickens up. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Place a cup of gravy in the bottom of your slow cooker. Make sure it is enough to coat the bottom so your steak patties don’t stick. Add the steak burgers to your slow cooker and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours or on low for 5 to 7 hours or until they are no longer pink in the middle.
Sprinkle with parsley and crispy onion straws, if desired and serve over cauliflower mash.

Note: If you don’t want to use your slow cooker or don’t have one, you can simply add your steak burgers back to the pan with the gravy, cover and cook for another 10-15 minutes on low heat. Adding them to the slow cooker just helps all of the flavors bind together.

For the Cauliflower Mash

Heat 6 cups of water in a larger saucepan. Bring the water to a boil and add your chopped vegetables. Boil for about 12 minutes or until the chunks are fork-tender.
Drain the water and add the boiled vegetables to a food processor or high-speed blender. Puree until smooth and then add the rest of your ingredients (reserving the 2 Tbsp. of butter to melt on top) while the mash is still warm. Pulse until everything is combined.
Scoop your cheesy mash into a serving dish, add the butter to the top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. The butter will begin to melt on top of the hot mash and it will look glorious.

For the Lemony Almond Green Beans: Simply purchase a bag of Steam Fresh green beans and microwave them according to the instructions on the bag. Sprinkle the juice and zest from one lemon over them along with a pinch of salt. Add ½ cup of sliced almonds and enjoy!