Ultimate Poor-Man’s Steak (or Stuffed Hamburger)

by Texas Homesteader ~ 

Poor-Man’s Steak (or stuffed hamburger) is a ground meat patty stuffed with grilled onions, peppers & melted cheese. I like to add diced jalapenos for a spicy kick!

We enjoyed this stuffed hamburger patty served on a bed of fried potatoes & topped w/brown gravy. This simple recipe is sure to bring rave reviews.

Poor-Man's Steak - a thick serving of ground meat stuffed with grilled onions & peppers along with melted cheese. It's often served on top of fried potatoes & topped with brown gravy. #TexasHomesteader

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Ingredients For Stuffed Hamburger Patties

For this stuffed hamburger recipe you can use ground beef of course. But in my traditional #UseWhatchaGot mode I often use ground venison or wild pork in place of hamburger.

The simple ingredients for poor man’s steak are:

Ground meat

Chopped grilled onions

Grilled chopped bell pepper

Chopped grilled jalapeno pepper (optional)

Cheese – RancherMan & I love pepper jack cheese, but cheddar or Monterey jack cheese would also be good choices.

Step-by-Step Instructions For Making Stuffed Hamburgers

It’s easy to make these stuffed hamburgers:

Divide 2 pounds of ground meat into 10 equal sections (to make 5 stuffed patties.)

Chop onion, bell pepper and jalapeno and grill in a tablespoon of butter until tender.

Grilling peppers and onions on a two-burner cast iron griddle. #TexasHometeader

Cut 5 cubes of cheese. (cheddar or pepper jack)

Now it’s time to start assembling this poor-man’s steak. Let’s see how it all comes together with my ground meat: 

Poor-Man's Steak - a thick serving of ground meat stuffed with grilled onions & peppers along with melted cheese. It's often served on top of fried potatoes & topped with brown gravy. #TexasHomesteader

UPDATE: A cube of cheese in the center of the hamburger patty instead of shredded cheese takes longer to melt. This makes it less likely to have cheese melting out of the patty before it’s cooked to a safe internal temperature of 160ºF.Poor-Man's Steak - a thick serving of ground meat stuffed with grilled onions & peppers along with melted cheese. It's often served on top of fried potatoes & topped with brown gravy. #TexasHomesteader Poor-Man's Steak - a thick serving of ground meat stuffed with grilled onions & peppers along with melted cheese. It's often served on top of fried potatoes & topped with brown gravy. #TexasHomesteader

Stuffed Hamburger Problem: Cheese Melts Too Quickly

This Poor Man’s Steak was absolutely delicious and RancherMan raved and implored me to not change a thing. So from that standpoint it was a win for sure.

But I was disappointed that in an effort to make sure my ground meat was well done, much of the shredded cheese inside melted away during cooking. 

So now instead of shredded cheese I put a small cube of cheese in the middle. The cube takes longer to melt so it stays inside the burger much better.

In asking on our social media page, one of my oh-so-smart FB followers also suggested:

You have to seal the patties REALLY well. That, and sear them then steam them. The meat cooks quicker and the cheese tends to stay put better.” 

So maybe I’ll try that next time as well… 

Serving Suggestion For Poor Man’s Steak

When we enjoyed Poor Man’s Steak in the restaurant they served it to us on a bed of fried potatoes & topped it all with brown gravy.

Poor-Man's Steak - a thick serving of ground meat stuffed with grilled onions & peppers along with melted cheese. It's often served on top of fried potatoes & topped with brown gravy. #TexasHomesteader

But I’ve also served it covered in cream gravy instead of brown on occasion.

Many readers enjoy it served on top of rice instead of fried potatoes.

Or heck, you can serve it as a stuffed patty without putting it on top of rice or fried potatoes and just include a couple of fun sides instead. Whatever works best for your family!

What Goes With Poor Man’s Steak

If you want to serve the poor man’s steak as a patty there are many fun sides you might choose to go with it.

Instant Pot Macaroni & Cheese

Fried Potato Cakes

Ranch-Style Beans

Buttered Rice With Garlic & Sage

Roasted Vegetables

Roasted fresh vegetables is an easy, healthy dish. #TexasHomesteader

You can see all our fun side dish ideas by clicking the button below:

Anyway, here’s the recipe for Poor Man’s Steak. If you give it a try please leave a comment below with a rating. Thanks!

Did you make this Poor Man’s Steak? Please rate the recipe in your comment below! 

5 from 3 votes
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Poor-Man's Steak (ie: Stuffed Hamburger)

This poor-man's steak is just a hearty stuffed hamburger patty. I've grilled onions and peppers and stuffed them into a hamburger patty with cheese. The result is delightful and delicious. #TexasHomesteader

Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword ground beef, ground meat, hamburger, hamburger patty, stuffed meat
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 5 people
Author www.TexasHomesteader.com

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs ground meat
  • Chopped onions/bell peppers to taste (I used about 1/2 cup total)
  • 3 OPTIONAL Chopped jalapenos,
  • 4 oz Cheese cut into 5 equal cubes, 1 for each patty (I used pepper jack cheese)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Instructions

  1. Grill the chopped onions, bell peppers & jalapenos (if using) on a griddle coated with bacon grease until soft & set aside.

  2. Season ground beef with 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper & 1/2 teaspoon onion powder.

  3. Separate the 2 lbs of ground meat into 10 equal sections of approximately 1/4 lb each (5 burgers).

  4. Flatten each meat section & add the sautéed peppers & onions to the middle of half the patties. Add a small cube of cheese on top of the sautéed veggies. Then top with another section of ground meat and press the edges to seal.

  5. Fry each side of the patty until done - about 5-6 minutes each side.

  6. If desired, serve patties on a bed of fried potatoes and ladle brown gravy on top.

Recipe Notes

These burgers are thicker than normal so it takes a little longer to cook them. I cooked each side about 5-6 minutes so I could make sure it was well done all the way through.

This recipe will make 5 large restaurant-sized servings. So feel free to reduce down to smaller patties for more servings if desired.

15 thoughts on “Ultimate Poor-Man’s Steak (or Stuffed Hamburger)

  1. Aricka LaFramboise

    I am a child of the 70s and grew up on poor man steaks. Cubeing the cheese is key for it to not melt too fast. I like ortega chilis and cheese with bacon. Grilled onions is another favorite. Anything goes in our house.

    Reply
  2. Thelma Briggs

    5 stars
    So good and so easy! I cubed the cheese and placed it in the center of the patty, surrounding it with grilled onions/peppers and it seemed to keep the cheese from melting out of the patty as it cooked. Instead of brown gravy I topped it with homemade white gravy using the pan scrapings and a small amount of the grease. It was delicious!

    Reply
  3. ColleenB.~ Tx.

    If you didn’t want to go the Cream of Mushroom route; a brown gravy is also good, but in oven, covered for about 30 minutes, uncover, top with cheese and put back in oven until cheese begins to melt.

    Reply
  4. ColleenB.~ Tx.

    Oh My Goodness; it has been ages since I have made these; leaving out the jalapenos and replacing with finely diced/sliced mushrooms. I do mix up a can of condensed cream of mushroom soup, whole milk, then stir in freshly chopped parsley which makes up the ‘gravy’.
    After frying- browning / searing up my burgers on both sides I transfer to greased baking dish, then evenly top with gravy and cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes until heated thoroughly.

    Reply
  5. Josie

    5 stars
    This recipe looks ‘do-able’ for me 🙂 .. I do believe my husband would also love it. We too, have plenty of venison in the freezer. I’ll put ours over a bed of rice. Sounds delicious. Thank you. Appreciate you!!!!!!!

    Reply
    1. Texas Homesteader Post author

      First of all Josie, be aware that I always (ALWAYS) make the first patties way too large. Including the ones I made tonight. LOL. Seems I always err in guessing how large both halves will make the patty when combined. The second skillet-full tonight was halved in size and much more manageable. Oh, and they freeze beautifully so I always make waaaaay more than we’ll eat at one sitting. Enjoy ’em though, they’re delicious! ~TxH~

      Reply
  6. Greg Hill

    5 stars
    Hey Howdy there Texas Tammy from ~TxH~

    Now that’s looking mighty scrumptious to me , I’ll be taking notes on this one as I need something like this every once in a while. I like the Hamburgers and stuffed ones would suit me well no Bread rapped around it. Has much as I love bread I have to keep it under control.
    My wife being Japanese and loving rice like I like my potatoes will get hers on top of rice. Gravy would be good for sure But again I must keep that under control as well, so once in a while too.
    Thanks for the share about the Poor Mans Stake.
    Will be doing this sometime next week … : >)
    P.S. Sorry , not able to do the jalapeno…. Dangerous….lol

    Reply
    1. Texas Homesteader Post author

      Well Howdy Greg! This is one of RancherMan’s favorite meals too. Last night I minced the jalapenos but kept them separate from the bell pepper & onion mixture. I asked our guests who wanted them eliminated from their serving, but all wanted them so I tossed it into the mix. But the jalapeno was so mild I daresay no one could even tell it was in there! A little disappointing to me, but probably perfect for our guests. And I’m with ya on the gravy – everything in moderation. I make a lower-fat gravy by taking the broth and thickening it into a gravy consistency, so I don’t feel near as guilty indulging from time to time. 🙂 ~TxH~

      Reply
  7. Ken

    This is on the regular rotation. 5 or 6 times now and again tonight. Thanks!

    Reply
    1. Texas Homesteader Post author

      So ironic that you write this today, Ken. We are expecting out-of-town family for several days so I just picked up the ingredients to make this poor-man’s steak. RancherMan absolutely loves it! ~TxH~

      Reply
  8. Patricia Woodward

    We’ll be trying this one!! Sounds delish!!

    Reply
  9. Ann Covey

    I’m going to try this. Sounds so good!

    Reply
    1. Texas Homesteader Post author

      RancherMan doesn’t have a picky palate so he eats whatever I cook and usually complements it as well. (What a thoughtful hubby!) But when he raves on & on for hours about supper – well that recipe’s a keeper for sure, Ann! ~TxH~

      Reply

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