Venison Salisbury Steaks with mushroom gravy are a cozy, mouth watering comfort food. Serve with mashed potatoes and a simple steamed vegetable for a tasty dinner the family will love.
While venison backstraps are the prized cut of deer meat for their tenderness and flavor, ground venison is actually my favorite. It is so versatile and can be used for anything you would use ground beef for. We love it in venison burgers, ground venison ragu, and venison meatloaf.
These venison salisbury steaks came out of my desire to expand our use for ground venison. And boy, does this recipe deliver. The salisbury steaks are tender and full of flavor, but come together in just a few minutes of prep time. In fact, you can make the patties in the morning, cover, and refrigerate until dinner time!
The mushroom gravy is really what elevates this dish. It is so savory and rich, and there’s more than enough to coat the meat as well as whatever side dish you choose to serve alongside it.
Ingredients
- Ground venison: Ground venison is very lean. When my father in law processes our deer, he adds a bit of beef or pork fat to the meat.
- Onion: My biggest tip here is to mince the onion finely or grate it. The patties only cook for a couple minutes and the onion will stay crunchy if left too big of pieces.
- Breadcrumbs: I used panko here, but any style of breadcrumbs will work.
- Ketchup: Only a small amount, for a subtle sweetness and tang.
- Egg: Along with the breadcrumbs, egg helps to act as a binder to hold the meat together.
- Garlic: Just like with the onion, make sure to mince your garlic well.
- Worcestershire sauce: This is a classic in salisbury steaks and it is a great compliment to the venison.
- Dijon mustard: Another salisbury steak ingredient, dijon mustard adds just the right amount of zing.
- Cremini Mushrooms: These can also be labeled "baby bellas." Any variety of mushroom works!
- Beef Broth: If you have venison stock that will work great as well.
- Thyme: A bit of fresh thyme balances out the rich sauce.
How to Make Venison Salisbury Steaks
Step 1. In a large mixing bowl, combine ground venison, ½ cup finely diced onion, panko breadcrumbs, ketchup, egg, minced garlic, salt, worcestershire sauce, and dijon mustard.
Use clean hands to combine the ingredients until everything is fully incorporated.
Step 2. Form into 4 equal sized oval patties, about ½ inch thick.
Place on a plate and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Step 3. When ready to cook, heat oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat.
Depending on the size of your skillet, you may have to work in stages to not overcrowd your pan. Place 2-4 patties carefully into the skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes until a nice golden crust has formed. Flip and finish cooking, about 5 more minutes. Remove finished patties to a plate to the side.
Step 4. To the same skillet, melt butter. Add remaining diced onions and minced garlic and cook until translucent, around 2 minutes.
Step 5. Add sliced mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes.
Step 6. Add flour and stir to coat the mushrooms.
Step 7. Slowly add in broth, stirring as you do so. Once the broth is fully added, allow to thicken on low heat for 5 minutes.
Add chopped thyme leaves, stir, and remove from heat.
Step 8. Serve patties with sauce and enjoy.
How to Serve
Serve Salisbury steaks topped with the delicious mushroom gravy alongside mashed potatoes or butter noodles.
We like them with a simple steamed vegetable such as peas, broccoli, or green beans.
Recipe Tips
- Ground venison is very low in fat. This means it can be a little more fragile and prone to falling apart with cooking. The bread crumbs and egg helps to give the patties more stability, but be sure to flip carefully, after allowing a crust to form.
- Refrigerating the venison patties for at least 30 minutes before cooking can also help them stick together during the cooking process.
More venison recipes
- Venison Stroganoff
- Homemade Venison Jerky
- Ground Venison Meatballs
- Crockpot Venison Sandwiches
- Easy Ground Venison Tacos
Did you enjoy this Venison Salisbury Steaks Recipe? I would love for you to let me know by leaving a comment and star rating. I can't wait to hear from you!
Venison Salisbury Steaks
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds ground venison
- 1 small onion finely diced, divided
- ¼ cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp. ketchup
- 1 egg
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tbsp. Dijon mustard
- 10 oz. cremini mushrooms sliced
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 tbsp. flour
- 2 tbsp. butter
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ground venison, ½ cup finely diced onion, panko breadcrumbs, ketchup, egg, minced garlic, salt, worcestershire sauce, and dijon mustard.
- Use clean hands to combine the ingredients until everything is fully incorporated.
- Form into 4 equal sized oval patties, about ½ inch thick.
- Place on a plate and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- When ready to cook, heat oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat.
- Depending on the size of your skillet, you may have to work in stages to not overcrowd your pan. Place 2-4 patties carefully into the skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes until a nice golden crust has formed. Flip and finish cooking, about 5 more minutes. Remove finished patties to a plate to the side.
- To the same skillet, melt butter. Add remaining diced onions and minced garlic and cook until translucent, around 2 minutes.
- Add sliced mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add flour and stir to coat the mushrooms.
- Slowly add in broth, stirring as you do so. Once the broth is fully added, allow to thicken on low heat for 5 minutes.
- Add chopped thyme leaves, stir, and remove from heat.
- Serve patties with sauce and enjoy.
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