--St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), May 27, 1894
Like a number of others who were children in the 1960s and 1970s, I enjoyed Salisbury Steak, covered in gravy, in TV dinners. And like many of those same people, I haven't eaten Salisbury Steak in many years since. However, Salisbury steak remains popular. It's still available in TV dinners, can be found at some restaurants, and some people even prepare it at home. And Salisbury Steak is very different now that when it first was created.
As I researched my recent articles on the Origin of the Hamburger (Part 1 and Part 2), I came across multiple references to Salisbury Steak, and I've since pursued that line, seeking out its origin as well. When was Salisbury Steak invented? How is it different from Hamburg Steak? It's a fascinating tale, and its origin isn't mired in the same type of controversy and ambiguity as the Hamburger.
In short, the Salisbury Steak was named after Doctor James Henry Salisbury (January 12, 1823 – September 23, 1905), who was born in New York. He began his career as a chemist, but eventually went to medical school, graduating in 1850. Over the years, Dr. Salisbury conducted numerous experiments, trying to determine what were the healthiest foods to eat. He worked as a doctor during the Civil War, and allegedly the seeds of the Salisbury Steak originated with his experiments during the war, using chopped steak to prevent diarrhea in soldiers.
Dr. Salisbury was first famous though for another matter, his "Hot Water Cure." The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), August 7, 1883, in an article titled, The Hot Water Cure. Its Origin and the Rules Prescribed for Its Use, detailed Dr. Salisbuy's theory and its origins. “The practice of administering hot water for the cure of diseases originated with Dr. James H. Salisbury of New York, in 1858, who claimed that his assertions in regard to the drinking of hot water were founded on physiological experiments at the outset, verified in the treatment of diseases, and based on the experience derived from the treatment of thousands of cases since 1858.”
At the time of this article, Dr. Salisbury said, “It I were confined to one means of medication, I would take hot water. I have drunk it for twenty-five years.” He also claimed that the hot water cure was “.. a foundation for the treatment of all chronic diseases.” Also at this time, a number of other leading physicians gave their support to the hot water cure, especially as it seemed better than the use of "nauseous drugs."
How did you partake of the hot water cure? First, Dr. Salisbury stated, “The water must be hot; not cold or lukewarm. This is to excite downward peristalsis of the alimentary canal. Cold water depresses, as it uses animal heat to bring it up to the temperature of the body and there is a loss of nerve force in this proceeding. Lukewarm water excites upward peristalsis or vomiting, as is well known. By hot water is meant a temperature of 100 degrees to 150 degrees F., such as is commonly liked in the use of tea or coffee.”
How much should you drink? “Dr. Salisbury first used half a pint of hot water at a draught, but he found that quantity insufficient to wash out the stomach. He accordingly directs the patient to drink from one half pint to one pint or one and a half pints at one drinking.” The timing of the drinking is very important as well. “Hot water should be drunk one to two hours before each meal, and half an hour before retiring to bed. If taken immediately before meals it is apt to be followed by vomiting. One to two hours allows the hot water time enough to get out of the stomach before the food enters, and thus avoids vomiting.”
Continuing, Dr. Salisbury also stated,“In drinking the hot water, it should be sipped, and not drunk so fast as to distend the stomach and make it feel uncomfortable. From fifteen to twenty minutes mat be consumed during the drinking of hot water.” You didn't have to drink the hot water plain. Dr. Salisbury noted, "To make hot water palatable it is sometimes desirable to medicate it with aromatic spirits of ammonia, ginger, lemon juice, sage, or salt.”
This is the famed hot water and meat diet. A description of the preparation of the meat was also provided. “Dr. Salisbury recommends that the meat be prepared by the American Meat and Vegetable Chopper, by which the meat is finely minced, and after twenty or thirty minutes’ chopping, there is found on the surface of the meat in the tin cylinder connected with the machine, a red pulp, reduced almost to a powder, and beneath this is a layer of reddish-gray fibre which is almost entirely indigestible. In preparing the ‘Salisbury steak,’ this red pulp is formed into pats, put into a wite broiler and broiled for four or five minutes before a hot fire. Prepared in this way, the meat requires very little mastication; …”
As we can see, Salisbury Steak was simply minced beef, formed into a patty, and broiled. It was intended to be easily digestible. Where are the seasonings? Where is the gravy? This certainly doesn't resemble the Salisbury Steak with which we are now familiar. At this point, it resembled a Hamburg Steak, but without the seasoning and onions. It was just beef.
The first newspaper to reference Salisbury Steak was The Sun (NY), January 17, 1885, and the article was reprinted in numerous other newspapers. This is probably the first time the general public had heard this term, which previously was restricted mainly to other physicians. The article reported, “Salisbury steak appears to be giving remarkably good results as a diet for people troubled with weak or disordered digestion, but who require the supporting power of animal food."
The article continued, "The manner of preparing it is described by Dr. Hepburn in the Philadelphia Medical and Surgical Reporter. The surface of a round steak is chopped with a dull knife, the object being not to cut but to pound the meat. As the meat pulp comes to the top it is scrapped off, while the tough and fibrous portion gradually reaches the bottom of the trough. The pulp is then made into cakes and lightly and quickly broiled as to leave it almost raw inside.” Again, we see that this patty was prepared without seasonings or other ingredients. However, that would soon change.
In The Sentinel (PA), March 2, 1886, from an article previously in the New York Medical Times, it was noted that, “The Salisbury steak is made by taking the best slices of the ‘round’ on the beef, and chopping it with dull knives. The object is not to cut, but rather pound the meat. By thus treating it, the pulp comes to the top, and the tough, fibrous portion remains below. The pulp is scraped off and made into cakes, like sausage-cakes, or into the shape like a good-sized steak and gently broiled on a gridiron. It has been found that meat gently cooked os more digestible than raw. The fire must be good, so that the meat may be rapidly broiled—that is, be cooked on the outside and almost raw inside.” The main idea is to ensure the meat is easily digestible.
The article continued, “A little salt and pepper and a small amount of butter added make a not at all unpalatable dish, and one which contains all the strength of the beef, with the tough, indigestible portion entirely separated.” So, we finally see a few items added to the chopped steak, salt, pepper, and butter. That still doesn't resemble the Salisbury Steak of today. Finally, the article mentioned, "This diet is used exclusively in chronic cases by physicians professing to treat according to the Salisbury method."
In 1888, The Relation of Alimentation and Disease by Dr. Salisbury was published, which presented "... some of the results of over thirty years research into the true Causes of Disease,…” For some biographical information, the book stated that Dr. Salisbury began the study of germ disease in 1849, and entered into the practice of medicine in 1850. He then stated, “In 1854 the idea came to me,…to try the effects of living exclusively upon one food at a time. This experiment I began upon myself alone at first.” He first started on baked beans, and continued his food experiments on himself until September 1856.
That month, he hired six men to live with him and become the subject of his food experiments, starting with baked beans. In 1857, he hired four more men, feeding them only oatmeal porridge, and the next year, he tested out various foods on 200 hogs. In addition, he began studying smallpox germs in 1850 and continued to work on it for 15 years. And in 1862, he started working on measles germs.
Dr. Salisbury noted that the publication of this book had been delayed for over 20 years, “..., in order that sufficient cures of so-called ‘incurable’ maladies might place both discovery and method of treatment beyond all reasonable doubt.”
Like a number of others who were children in the 1960s and 1970s, I enjoyed Salisbury Steak, covered in gravy, in TV dinners. And like many of those same people, I haven't eaten Salisbury Steak in many years since. However, Salisbury steak remains popular. It's still available in TV dinners, can be found at some restaurants, and some people even prepare it at home. And Salisbury Steak is very different now that when it first was created.
As I researched my recent articles on the Origin of the Hamburger (Part 1 and Part 2), I came across multiple references to Salisbury Steak, and I've since pursued that line, seeking out its origin as well. When was Salisbury Steak invented? How is it different from Hamburg Steak? It's a fascinating tale, and its origin isn't mired in the same type of controversy and ambiguity as the Hamburger.
In short, the Salisbury Steak was named after Doctor James Henry Salisbury (January 12, 1823 – September 23, 1905), who was born in New York. He began his career as a chemist, but eventually went to medical school, graduating in 1850. Over the years, Dr. Salisbury conducted numerous experiments, trying to determine what were the healthiest foods to eat. He worked as a doctor during the Civil War, and allegedly the seeds of the Salisbury Steak originated with his experiments during the war, using chopped steak to prevent diarrhea in soldiers.
Dr. Salisbury was first famous though for another matter, his "Hot Water Cure." The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), August 7, 1883, in an article titled, The Hot Water Cure. Its Origin and the Rules Prescribed for Its Use, detailed Dr. Salisbuy's theory and its origins. “The practice of administering hot water for the cure of diseases originated with Dr. James H. Salisbury of New York, in 1858, who claimed that his assertions in regard to the drinking of hot water were founded on physiological experiments at the outset, verified in the treatment of diseases, and based on the experience derived from the treatment of thousands of cases since 1858.”
At the time of this article, Dr. Salisbury said, “It I were confined to one means of medication, I would take hot water. I have drunk it for twenty-five years.” He also claimed that the hot water cure was “.. a foundation for the treatment of all chronic diseases.” Also at this time, a number of other leading physicians gave their support to the hot water cure, especially as it seemed better than the use of "nauseous drugs."
How did you partake of the hot water cure? First, Dr. Salisbury stated, “The water must be hot; not cold or lukewarm. This is to excite downward peristalsis of the alimentary canal. Cold water depresses, as it uses animal heat to bring it up to the temperature of the body and there is a loss of nerve force in this proceeding. Lukewarm water excites upward peristalsis or vomiting, as is well known. By hot water is meant a temperature of 100 degrees to 150 degrees F., such as is commonly liked in the use of tea or coffee.”
How much should you drink? “Dr. Salisbury first used half a pint of hot water at a draught, but he found that quantity insufficient to wash out the stomach. He accordingly directs the patient to drink from one half pint to one pint or one and a half pints at one drinking.” The timing of the drinking is very important as well. “Hot water should be drunk one to two hours before each meal, and half an hour before retiring to bed. If taken immediately before meals it is apt to be followed by vomiting. One to two hours allows the hot water time enough to get out of the stomach before the food enters, and thus avoids vomiting.”
Continuing, Dr. Salisbury also stated,“In drinking the hot water, it should be sipped, and not drunk so fast as to distend the stomach and make it feel uncomfortable. From fifteen to twenty minutes mat be consumed during the drinking of hot water.” You didn't have to drink the hot water plain. Dr. Salisbury noted, "To make hot water palatable it is sometimes desirable to medicate it with aromatic spirits of ammonia, ginger, lemon juice, sage, or salt.”
The hot water cure became a fad for a time, and is an important precursor to the Salisbury Steak. My articles on the Origins of the Hamburger already mentioned how during the 1880s, drinking hot water and eating Hamburg steak were considered to medically benefit dyspeptics. And the roots of this belief are attributable to Dr. Salisbury.
As an aside, other cultures have pointed to the health benefits of hot beverages, such as China. It was a China physician, who promoted hot beverages, which led to the Japanese drinking hot Sake year round, and not just during the winter.
In an article in the Plain Speaker (PA), March 5, 1892 (which was reprinted in numerous other newspapers), more details about the life of Dr. Salisbury were reported, as well as additional details about the hot water cure. The beginnings of his interest in the medical field began in the late 1840s. “In 1849, when he was principal of the chemical laboratory of the New York state geological survey, this doctor (who was a graduate of the Albany Medical college) commenced the study of germ diseases, a field in which he ranks among the chief microscopists of the world.”
In 1854, “.., he entered upon the field of personal experiment, testing upon himself the effects of exclusive feeding upon a variety of foods,…” He was his own guinea pig, but within a couple years he was ready to test his theories on other people. So, in 1856, he “..got to hiring healthy, ablebodied men to submit themselves to similar experiments,” and it cost him about $40,000 to conduct his experiments (which would be equivalent to about a million dollars today)! That's an amazing amount of money to dedicate to these experiments, indicative of Dr. Salisbury's sincerity in his endeavors.
In an article in the Plain Speaker (PA), March 5, 1892 (which was reprinted in numerous other newspapers), more details about the life of Dr. Salisbury were reported, as well as additional details about the hot water cure. The beginnings of his interest in the medical field began in the late 1840s. “In 1849, when he was principal of the chemical laboratory of the New York state geological survey, this doctor (who was a graduate of the Albany Medical college) commenced the study of germ diseases, a field in which he ranks among the chief microscopists of the world.”
In 1854, “.., he entered upon the field of personal experiment, testing upon himself the effects of exclusive feeding upon a variety of foods,…” He was his own guinea pig, but within a couple years he was ready to test his theories on other people. So, in 1856, he “..got to hiring healthy, ablebodied men to submit themselves to similar experiments,” and it cost him about $40,000 to conduct his experiments (which would be equivalent to about a million dollars today)! That's an amazing amount of money to dedicate to these experiments, indicative of Dr. Salisbury's sincerity in his endeavors.
For his first experiment, he placed six men on a diet of baked beans and coffee for a few weeks, and they all suffered on this diet, sustaining paralysis, chronic diarrhea, heart palpitation, and oppressed breathing. He also placed four men on a diet of oatmeal porridge and coffee, and those men sustained flatulence, constipation, headache and dizziness.
Dr. Salisbury concluded that "Improper alimentation is the predisposing cause of disease." By improper alimentation, he meant " the feeding upon food which the digestive organs cannot readily and perfectly digest, notably—for our race-an excess of starchy and saccharine materials, which are highly fermentable.” Dr. Salisbury had a solution, which also included his hot water cure, although the article noted, “The curative use of hot water was a popular fad seven or eight years ago, and doubtless did them much more harm than good—a result naturally to be expected from the ignorant employment of any force or remedy."
The solution was explicated in Dr. Salisbury's book, The Relation of Alimentation and Disease (1888), although it was alleged the book was ready for publication in 1867. The delay in publication was due to Dr. Salisbury seeking further evidence to support his theories. The article noted, “That book is, of course, better understood and appreciated by educated physicians than by the general public,…” And the solution involved a "hot water and meat diet treatment" which was claimed to have "cured it in a great number of cases,…”
What did the treatment include? “The new treatment restricts the patient to purely animal, and consequently nonfermenting, food—good lean beef or mutton, with poultry allowed, say once a week. No vegetables, bread, cereals, fruits, pastry or sweets are permitted. From a pint to a pint and a half of water as hot as it can be drunk must be taken two hours after and one and a half hours before each meal and one hour before retiring." It is this "meat diet" which led to the Salisbury Steak.
The first documented reference to "Salisbury Steak" I was able to discover was from 1884. The concept obviously began with Dr. Salisbury even earlier, but it may not have received this name until around 1884. It's also worth noting that it appears Dr. Salisbury didn't use the term himself, even in his 1888 book. It was others, including physicians and journalists, who apparently coined the term, using Salisbury's name to refer to the ground beef item that Dr. Salisbury promoted.
The Medical and Surgical Reporter: A Weekly Journal, February 16, 1884, presented a "Clinical Lecture Delivered at the Philadelphia Hospital by Dr. William Pepper." The lecture was on the treatment of epilepsy, including information on diets. Dr. Pepper stated, “…there is no successful treatment of epilepsy without careful attention to the diet,..” In his lecture, Dr. Pepper said, “.., let me refer to one of these methods, which has attracted considerable attention by the success which has followed its use in the hands of its introducer, Dr. Salisbury. I refer to the diet of raw meat, or meat almost raw, and hot water, with an exclusion of all the oleaginous and starchy ingredients of the food.”
Dr. Salisbury concluded that "Improper alimentation is the predisposing cause of disease." By improper alimentation, he meant " the feeding upon food which the digestive organs cannot readily and perfectly digest, notably—for our race-an excess of starchy and saccharine materials, which are highly fermentable.” Dr. Salisbury had a solution, which also included his hot water cure, although the article noted, “The curative use of hot water was a popular fad seven or eight years ago, and doubtless did them much more harm than good—a result naturally to be expected from the ignorant employment of any force or remedy."
The solution was explicated in Dr. Salisbury's book, The Relation of Alimentation and Disease (1888), although it was alleged the book was ready for publication in 1867. The delay in publication was due to Dr. Salisbury seeking further evidence to support his theories. The article noted, “That book is, of course, better understood and appreciated by educated physicians than by the general public,…” And the solution involved a "hot water and meat diet treatment" which was claimed to have "cured it in a great number of cases,…”
What did the treatment include? “The new treatment restricts the patient to purely animal, and consequently nonfermenting, food—good lean beef or mutton, with poultry allowed, say once a week. No vegetables, bread, cereals, fruits, pastry or sweets are permitted. From a pint to a pint and a half of water as hot as it can be drunk must be taken two hours after and one and a half hours before each meal and one hour before retiring." It is this "meat diet" which led to the Salisbury Steak.
The first documented reference to "Salisbury Steak" I was able to discover was from 1884. The concept obviously began with Dr. Salisbury even earlier, but it may not have received this name until around 1884. It's also worth noting that it appears Dr. Salisbury didn't use the term himself, even in his 1888 book. It was others, including physicians and journalists, who apparently coined the term, using Salisbury's name to refer to the ground beef item that Dr. Salisbury promoted.
The Medical and Surgical Reporter: A Weekly Journal, February 16, 1884, presented a "Clinical Lecture Delivered at the Philadelphia Hospital by Dr. William Pepper." The lecture was on the treatment of epilepsy, including information on diets. Dr. Pepper stated, “…there is no successful treatment of epilepsy without careful attention to the diet,..” In his lecture, Dr. Pepper said, “.., let me refer to one of these methods, which has attracted considerable attention by the success which has followed its use in the hands of its introducer, Dr. Salisbury. I refer to the diet of raw meat, or meat almost raw, and hot water, with an exclusion of all the oleaginous and starchy ingredients of the food.”
This is the famed hot water and meat diet. A description of the preparation of the meat was also provided. “Dr. Salisbury recommends that the meat be prepared by the American Meat and Vegetable Chopper, by which the meat is finely minced, and after twenty or thirty minutes’ chopping, there is found on the surface of the meat in the tin cylinder connected with the machine, a red pulp, reduced almost to a powder, and beneath this is a layer of reddish-gray fibre which is almost entirely indigestible. In preparing the ‘Salisbury steak,’ this red pulp is formed into pats, put into a wite broiler and broiled for four or five minutes before a hot fire. Prepared in this way, the meat requires very little mastication; …”
As we can see, Salisbury Steak was simply minced beef, formed into a patty, and broiled. It was intended to be easily digestible. Where are the seasonings? Where is the gravy? This certainly doesn't resemble the Salisbury Steak with which we are now familiar. At this point, it resembled a Hamburg Steak, but without the seasoning and onions. It was just beef.
The first newspaper to reference Salisbury Steak was The Sun (NY), January 17, 1885, and the article was reprinted in numerous other newspapers. This is probably the first time the general public had heard this term, which previously was restricted mainly to other physicians. The article reported, “Salisbury steak appears to be giving remarkably good results as a diet for people troubled with weak or disordered digestion, but who require the supporting power of animal food."
The article continued, "The manner of preparing it is described by Dr. Hepburn in the Philadelphia Medical and Surgical Reporter. The surface of a round steak is chopped with a dull knife, the object being not to cut but to pound the meat. As the meat pulp comes to the top it is scrapped off, while the tough and fibrous portion gradually reaches the bottom of the trough. The pulp is then made into cakes and lightly and quickly broiled as to leave it almost raw inside.” Again, we see that this patty was prepared without seasonings or other ingredients. However, that would soon change.
In The Sentinel (PA), March 2, 1886, from an article previously in the New York Medical Times, it was noted that, “The Salisbury steak is made by taking the best slices of the ‘round’ on the beef, and chopping it with dull knives. The object is not to cut, but rather pound the meat. By thus treating it, the pulp comes to the top, and the tough, fibrous portion remains below. The pulp is scraped off and made into cakes, like sausage-cakes, or into the shape like a good-sized steak and gently broiled on a gridiron. It has been found that meat gently cooked os more digestible than raw. The fire must be good, so that the meat may be rapidly broiled—that is, be cooked on the outside and almost raw inside.” The main idea is to ensure the meat is easily digestible.
The article continued, “A little salt and pepper and a small amount of butter added make a not at all unpalatable dish, and one which contains all the strength of the beef, with the tough, indigestible portion entirely separated.” So, we finally see a few items added to the chopped steak, salt, pepper, and butter. That still doesn't resemble the Salisbury Steak of today. Finally, the article mentioned, "This diet is used exclusively in chronic cases by physicians professing to treat according to the Salisbury method."
In 1888, The Relation of Alimentation and Disease by Dr. Salisbury was published, which presented "... some of the results of over thirty years research into the true Causes of Disease,…” For some biographical information, the book stated that Dr. Salisbury began the study of germ disease in 1849, and entered into the practice of medicine in 1850. He then stated, “In 1854 the idea came to me,…to try the effects of living exclusively upon one food at a time. This experiment I began upon myself alone at first.” He first started on baked beans, and continued his food experiments on himself until September 1856.
That month, he hired six men to live with him and become the subject of his food experiments, starting with baked beans. In 1857, he hired four more men, feeding them only oatmeal porridge, and the next year, he tested out various foods on 200 hogs. In addition, he began studying smallpox germs in 1850 and continued to work on it for 15 years. And in 1862, he started working on measles germs.
Dr. Salisbury noted that the publication of this book had been delayed for over 20 years, “..., in order that sufficient cures of so-called ‘incurable’ maladies might place both discovery and method of treatment beyond all reasonable doubt.”
The book helped to promote his hot water cure and meat diet. As support for the meat diet, he claimed that, “As a general rule, we have twenty meat teeth, and only twelve vegetable teeth; while four o£ these latter, the 'wisdom teeth,' are poor apologies as grinders. The stomach, in man, is a purely carnivorous organ, and is designed, both in structure and function, for the digestion of lean meats. The small bowels, with their glandular appendages (liver, pancreas, and glands of Lieberkuhn and Brunner), are herbivorous mamly, and are designed to digest vegetables, fats and fruits. The pancreatic secretions are used to emulsify fats, and to change starch into glucose. The biliary secretions, and those of the glands of Lieberkuhn and Brunner, are for digesting farinaceous and vegetable products generally." The thrust of these claims is that man should primarily consume meat.
Dr. Salisbury continued, "Healthy Alimentation would consist in a diet of about one part of vegetables, fats and fruits, to about two parts of lean meat. Sweets and fruits should be used in moderate quantity, and as relishes only. Fruits should only be taken after breakfast and dinner, on a full stomach, and then only in moderate quantity; never at or after supper. The supper should be more of a lean meat meal than either of the others, and the best meat for supper is broiled lean beef. This digests easily and quickly, and is less able to produce flatulence than any other food.
It's interesting that Dr. Salisbury never used the term "Salisbury Steak" in his book. Instead, the section referring to that item stated, “Food Meats. — Eat the muscle pulp of lean beef made into cakes and broiled. This pulp should be as free as possible from connective or glue tissue, fat and cartilage. The 'American Chopper ' answers very well for separating the connective tissue, this being driven down in front of the knife to the bottom of the board. In chopping, the beef should not be stirred up in the chopper, but the muscle pulp should be scraped off with a spoon at intervals during the chopping. At the end of the chopping, the fibrous tissue of the meat (the portion which makes up fibrous growths) all lies on the bottom board of the chopper. This may be utilized as soup meat for well people."
The book continued, “Previous to chopping, the fat, bones, tendons and fasciae should all be cut away, and the lean muscle cut up in pieces an inch or two square. Steaks cut through the centre of the round are the richest and best for this purpose. Beef should be procured from well fatted animals that are from four to six vears old."
How did Dr. Salisbury want you to prepare this dish? “The pulp should not be pressed too firmly together before broiling, or it will taste livery. Simply press it sufficiently to hold it together. Make the cakes from half an inch to an inch thick. Broil slowly and moderately well over a fire free from blaze and smoke. When cooked, put it on a hot plate and season to taste with butter, pepper and salt; also use either Worcestershire or Halford sauce, mustard, horseradish or lemon juice on the meat if desired. Celery may be moderately used as a relish.”
This is different from how Salisbury Steak was first presented, when it was simply unseasoned chopped/ground beef. Not only is salt, pepper and butter recommended, but there are also suggestions to add Worcestershire, Halford sauce, mustard, horseradish or lemon juice. Plus, it was unique that celery could be used as a relish.
How curative was this meat diet? Dr. Salisbury also wrote, “The experiments upon meat feeding showed that meats, and especially beef and mutton, can be subsisted upon without resulting in diseased states, for a much longer time than can the best vegetable products under the same conditions. The reason of this is that the first organ of the digestive apparatus — the stomach — is a meat-digesting organ. I have had patients afflicted with grave diseases, thrive and become perfectly well upon beef. Many of them have continued this as an exclusive diet from three to four years, before bringing breads and vegetables into their diet list. Good, fresh beef and mutton stand at the head of all aliments as foods promotive of human health."
Meat choppers were starting to become popular during the 1880s, and were perfect for the preparation of Salisbury Steak. The Meriden Daily Republican (CT), January 12, 1889, noted, “The meat chopper, for use in making the dyspeptic’s delight, Salisbury steak, fastens on the end of a table and grinds after the fashion of a coffee mill. A plain steak is cut up in inch pieces, all fibers, sinews and fat removed, and the meat, ground somewhat coarser than for sausage, is seasoned slightly, broiled and eaten with butter. Delicious it is and necessarily easy to digest. A trifle dry for one who enjoys his sirloin steak extra thick, but inestimable to weak stomachs and hurried eaters, and a nice change as well.” Again, there is little added to the steak besides some light seasoning and butter.
The Centralia Enterprise and Tribune (WI), June 7, 1890, briefly mentioned, “Yet there was once a treatment for disease, a way of keeping healthy, that had for its basis the eating of meat alone, and eschewing vegetables. It was called the Salisbury treatment, and the name Salisbury steak was named after its founder.”
Changes to the Salisbury Steak begin to arrive. The Montgomery Advertiser (AL), June 11, 1893, provided a brief recipe for Salisbury Steak. "Chop surface of a round steak with dull knife. Scrape off pulp, make into cakes, and broil. Season with onion juice, if liked. Serve with sauce piquante.” First, we see the suggestion that it be seasoned with onion juice, likely because Hamburg Steak, which was already very popular, was flavored with onions. Second, we see the first reference to a sauce for the Salisbury Steak, a hot sauce, not a gravy.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), January 28, 1894, printed a menu that listed “Salisbury Steak with mushrooms.” The dish was starting to go beyond Dr. Salisbury's initial concept, to add more ingredients that would provide additional flavor to the dish.
The author of the article, a woman, met Dr. Salisbury twice, claiming to be a potential patient. As she sat in the waiting room, she observed the other patients, nearly all women, who were also waiting, noting, “All appeared to be in advanced stages of individualism—hollow-eyed and sunken-cheeked, pale, ghastly and wan.” She also claimed,“Others, so I was creditably informed, had died.”
As for Dr. Salisbury, she stated, “Some persons would proclaim Dr. Salisbury the herald of grand medical principles. Others would call him a crank, the price of quacks. He is not a member of the usual medical societies. Physicians in regular practice do not recognize him as among their number.” She continued, “Years ago Dr. Salisbury was a fad….The fad, as a fad, died out.” However, Dr. Salisbury still had a large practice, mostly with women.
The writer also noted that in the waiting room there was a curtained doorway into a small room where patients could have a mug of hot water. They were said to be, “A sad-looking lot they were—eyes heavy, skin brown, dry and wrinkled and all of them reduced to a degree of emaciation that proved their perfect faith in the Salisbury system.” During her meetings with Dr. Salisbury, he indicated that his hot water and meat diet could make her beautiful, and cure her various ailments. However, the writer didn't find much beauty in the patients she saw in the waiting room.
To treat her, Dr. Salisbury had a contract for her to sign, which made many promises. She stated, "What woman wouldn't submit to almost any privation in the way of diet and exercise if tempted by such an alluring prospect as that? To be made so beautiful that all the world would bow down in admiration; to have eyes that would rival the stars, and a skin as fair as a baby's."
Dr. Salisbury had been in business since 1863, and the writer, who didn’t know the ingredients of “beef-steak a la Salisbury”, received a printed circular about Salisbury steak;. It stated, “The steak is a meat-cake broiled before eaten. The muscle pulp of lean beef, free from fat, glue or ‘connective tissue’ and cartilage, is chopped up as fine as meal. It is then pressed together in cakes from half an inch to an inch thick."
As an aside, Dr. Salisbury wasn't a fan of vegetables, believing they often could be harmful. The Alton Evening Telegraph (IL), November 15, 1895, quoted Dr. Salisbury, “The most unhealthful vegetable in the world is asparagus. No man or woman can exist to exceed seven days on this insidious vegetable. Why it is that people have got the idea that it is healthful I cannot understand, unless it is from the peculiar odor it gives to the fluids that pass from the body. Some people believe it is healthful for the kidneys, but there is nothing which I know of that is more injurious.”
Dr. Salisbury believed that beef was very healthy, and the key to avoiding disease. “As for beef, it is sustaining and strengthening and invalids should take as much as possible and avoid such vegetables as they know to be unhealthful.”
What's the difference between Salisbury Steak and Hamburg Steak? The Daily Times (NC), April 10, 1896, offered an opinion by providing recipes for both dishes. First, “To Serve Salisbury Steak. Chop or grind lean round steak very fine, form into cakes like sausage, dust well with flour, and brown on both sides in clarified butter on a griddle, or in a spider; lift to a warm platter, and season with salt, pepper and butter.” A very simple recipe, without any gravy or sauce.
Second, “To Serve Hamburg Steak. To a pint of meat chopped or ground as for Salisbury steak add tablespoonful of finely minced onion, or a teaspoonful of sage, thyme, or summer savory; form into cakes, and cook the same as Salisbury steak. Either Salisbury or Hamburg steak may be cooked by covering the bottom of a greased spider about half an inch thick with the chopped meat, and when nicely browned, folding like an omelet and turning upon a warm platter.” Although both are chopped/ground beef patties, the addition of onion is a primary difference, as well as the suggestion of adding sage, thyme or summer savory.
However, confusing the issue, there were times that onions were added to Salisbury Steak. The Boston Globe (MA), May 8, 1898, noted, “If one is fond of onions and high seasoning, they can have the ordinary salisbury steak.”
As the 20th century began, Salisbury Steak started taking on a life of its own, separate from Dr. Salisbury and his meat diet. It became a versatile dish, with various restaurants putting their own spin on this item. The Buffalo Times (NY), June 28, 1903, presented a menu with Salisbury steak a la Creole while the El Paso Herald (TX), September 21, 1905, presented a menu with Salisbury steak, Oxford Style. The Oakland Tribune (CA), September 18, 1906, mentioned Salisbury steak, Spanish Style while the Jewish Outlook (CO), January 25, 1907, noted Salisbury steak with Tomato Sauce.
And the Reading Times (PA), May 30, 1906, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Onion sauce.
We return to the question of the difference between Salisbury Steak and Hamburg Steak. The Boston Globe, June 28, 1907, stated “some housewives imagine a Salisbury steak and a hamburger steak are synonymous terms. In reality the dishes are prepared according to different methods and have an entirely different flavor.”
Dr. Salisbury had been in business since 1863, and the writer, who didn’t know the ingredients of “beef-steak a la Salisbury”, received a printed circular about Salisbury steak;. It stated, “The steak is a meat-cake broiled before eaten. The muscle pulp of lean beef, free from fat, glue or ‘connective tissue’ and cartilage, is chopped up as fine as meal. It is then pressed together in cakes from half an inch to an inch thick."
As an aside, Dr. Salisbury wasn't a fan of vegetables, believing they often could be harmful. The Alton Evening Telegraph (IL), November 15, 1895, quoted Dr. Salisbury, “The most unhealthful vegetable in the world is asparagus. No man or woman can exist to exceed seven days on this insidious vegetable. Why it is that people have got the idea that it is healthful I cannot understand, unless it is from the peculiar odor it gives to the fluids that pass from the body. Some people believe it is healthful for the kidneys, but there is nothing which I know of that is more injurious.”
Dr. Salisbury believed that beef was very healthy, and the key to avoiding disease. “As for beef, it is sustaining and strengthening and invalids should take as much as possible and avoid such vegetables as they know to be unhealthful.”
What's the difference between Salisbury Steak and Hamburg Steak? The Daily Times (NC), April 10, 1896, offered an opinion by providing recipes for both dishes. First, “To Serve Salisbury Steak. Chop or grind lean round steak very fine, form into cakes like sausage, dust well with flour, and brown on both sides in clarified butter on a griddle, or in a spider; lift to a warm platter, and season with salt, pepper and butter.” A very simple recipe, without any gravy or sauce.
Second, “To Serve Hamburg Steak. To a pint of meat chopped or ground as for Salisbury steak add tablespoonful of finely minced onion, or a teaspoonful of sage, thyme, or summer savory; form into cakes, and cook the same as Salisbury steak. Either Salisbury or Hamburg steak may be cooked by covering the bottom of a greased spider about half an inch thick with the chopped meat, and when nicely browned, folding like an omelet and turning upon a warm platter.” Although both are chopped/ground beef patties, the addition of onion is a primary difference, as well as the suggestion of adding sage, thyme or summer savory.
However, confusing the issue, there were times that onions were added to Salisbury Steak. The Boston Globe (MA), May 8, 1898, noted, “If one is fond of onions and high seasoning, they can have the ordinary salisbury steak.”
As the 20th century began, Salisbury Steak started taking on a life of its own, separate from Dr. Salisbury and his meat diet. It became a versatile dish, with various restaurants putting their own spin on this item. The Buffalo Times (NY), June 28, 1903, presented a menu with Salisbury steak a la Creole while the El Paso Herald (TX), September 21, 1905, presented a menu with Salisbury steak, Oxford Style. The Oakland Tribune (CA), September 18, 1906, mentioned Salisbury steak, Spanish Style while the Jewish Outlook (CO), January 25, 1907, noted Salisbury steak with Tomato Sauce.
And the Reading Times (PA), May 30, 1906, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Onion sauce.
We return to the question of the difference between Salisbury Steak and Hamburg Steak. The Boston Globe, June 28, 1907, stated “some housewives imagine a Salisbury steak and a hamburger steak are synonymous terms. In reality the dishes are prepared according to different methods and have an entirely different flavor.”
The article continued, “Salisbury steak is prepared as follows: Mince very finely two pounds raw rump beef. Season with one and one-half teaspoons salt and a half teaspoon pepper. Break in one whole raw egg, mix well with the hand for five minutes. Divide the hash into six equal parts; give them a nice egg form, arrange in a double broiler, lightly glaze with sweet oil and broil for eight minutes on each side. Dress on a hot dish with parsley and serve.” The addition of an egg is something new, and we see that the seasonings are still simple, salt and pepper.
Then, it was noted, “Hamburger steak with fried onions, prepared for the following method, is very tasty: Pass through a chopping machine two pounds lean, raw rump of beef, lay it on a plate, add one good-sized finely chopped sound onion, first fried, in teaspoonful of butter for three minutes. Season with one teaspoonful of salt, half teaspoonful white pepper, a saltspoonful grated nutmeg, one teaspoonful finely chopped parsley and one whole raw egg. Mix all well together, then divide into six equal parts. Roll them in flour and give them a fish-cake form. Heat three-quarters of an ounce of butter in a frying pan. Slide in the steaks and fry them for six minutes on each side. Remove, drain well, dress on a hot dish, pour over their own gravy. Arrange the fried onions around the steak and serve very hot.”
The addition of onions is once again a primary difference between these two dishes, though the recipe for Hamburg also included additional seasonings, like nutmeg. An egg was also used for the Hamburg, although that dish originally didn't start out using an egg as an ingredient.
More Salisbury Steak menu items appeared across the country. The Morning Call (NJ), October 15, 1907, noted Salisbury steak with onion sauce and potatoes, while the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), December 13, 1907, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Sauce Claremont. The Statesman Journal (OR), December 29, 1907, referenced Salisbury steak with cream sauce while the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), April 23, 1909, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Sauce Piquante. The Pittsburgh Press (PA), November 13, 1910, noted Salisbury steak with tomato sauce and the Franklin’s Paper The Statesman (CO), June 3, 1911, referred to Salisbury steak with brown gravy. Salisbury Steak was becoming a versatile dish.
Then, it was noted, “Hamburger steak with fried onions, prepared for the following method, is very tasty: Pass through a chopping machine two pounds lean, raw rump of beef, lay it on a plate, add one good-sized finely chopped sound onion, first fried, in teaspoonful of butter for three minutes. Season with one teaspoonful of salt, half teaspoonful white pepper, a saltspoonful grated nutmeg, one teaspoonful finely chopped parsley and one whole raw egg. Mix all well together, then divide into six equal parts. Roll them in flour and give them a fish-cake form. Heat three-quarters of an ounce of butter in a frying pan. Slide in the steaks and fry them for six minutes on each side. Remove, drain well, dress on a hot dish, pour over their own gravy. Arrange the fried onions around the steak and serve very hot.”
The addition of onions is once again a primary difference between these two dishes, though the recipe for Hamburg also included additional seasonings, like nutmeg. An egg was also used for the Hamburg, although that dish originally didn't start out using an egg as an ingredient.
More Salisbury Steak menu items appeared across the country. The Morning Call (NJ), October 15, 1907, noted Salisbury steak with onion sauce and potatoes, while the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), December 13, 1907, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Sauce Claremont. The Statesman Journal (OR), December 29, 1907, referenced Salisbury steak with cream sauce while the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), April 23, 1909, mentioned Salisbury Steak with Sauce Piquante. The Pittsburgh Press (PA), November 13, 1910, noted Salisbury steak with tomato sauce and the Franklin’s Paper The Statesman (CO), June 3, 1911, referred to Salisbury steak with brown gravy. Salisbury Steak was becoming a versatile dish.
The Union Advocate-Review (OK), November 4, 1909, provided a brief recipe, “One pound chopped steak, one teaspoon salt, one tablespoon lemon juice, two tablespoons minced parsley. Cook as above, and serve rare.”
Those differences again! The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY), September 28, 1912, briefly noted, “Hamburger steak is Salisbury steak with chopped onions mixed in.”
The origins of Salisbury Steak and Hamburg Steak likely occurred around the same time, probably during the 1870s, although they were somewhat different in their presentation. Salisbury Steak was more plain, while Hamburg Steak was enhanced by onions. Over time, both dishes would become more complex, eventually morphing into the dishes we enjoy today. Both dishes were also presented as providing health benefits to dyspeptics, although Salisbury Steak was said to be beneficial for numerous medical ailments. Thanks to Dr. James Salisbury for his creation.
Do you still eat Salisbury Steak? Do you make it at home? Do you still eat it in a TV dinner? Or do you enjoy it at a specific restaurant?
3 comments:
I found this article to be very fascinating. Thank you for your time in writing it.
That's very interesting. I don't see any mention of the status of milk or cheese according to Dr. Salisbury. And I agree, the main difference is the omission of onion. It could be that he hit upon the FODMAP concept, but was unable to understand why it worked. Unfortunately he didn't suspect wheat enough, since it's a major FODMAP. He lived in a time when people routinely thought cereal was a good thing. Pretty sure he was contemporary to Mr. Kellogg. And a lot of what he says sounds like Natural Hygiene, which eventually led to veganism, but originally wasn't vegan at all, but focused on fasting. He even mentions fasting as a cure for "meat fermentation."
Just as a side note, of course his patients seemed sick. Why would a healthy person seek him out? I guess, to smear his reputation.
Fascinating article. Thank you.
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