Yeah, the brown gravy/hamburger patty combo is Salisbury Steak (a staple of my high school cafeteria – ashamed to say I actually kinda liked it). Swiss steak, which my mom made a lot, was a cheap cut of meat in a Dutch oven with a tomatoey sauce. It wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t all that tasty either. I still don’t care much for beef/tomato as a combo other than in Italian dishes.
Mom made it with cheap sirloin steaks, pounded and floured, and cooked in some oil in an electric skillet. It had large pieces of onion, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and a can of diced tomatoes. I don’t remember if it had mushrooms in it.
D’oh. You folks are absolutely right and I’m absolutely wrong. Old age and treachery is seemingly giving way to old age and senility. 
I’ve had an actual, not mistaken, Swiss steak or two; the airline used to feed them to customers and sometimes to us. “Not gross, not great” is how I’d describe their interpretation. I can’t vouch for @Johnny_L.A’s Mom’s version. 
It was probably perfectly good. But I didn’t like tomatoes, for one thing. Now I do. I think the vegetables would be good for poaching fish on top of.
This is similar to my mother’s version , which I loved as a kid but I am not sure if I loved the beef/tomato mix or the tomato sauce/butter/rice mix which is a flavor profile I do really enjoy (other childhood food related to this are english muffin pizzas with plain tomato sauce & butter as the pizza sauce, yum!) I have not had it since I was 10 or so and when I asked my mom if she remembered the recipe, she said, sounds awful and I don’t believe I would have made that. 
I’ve considered trying recipes but so many people don’t seem to like it I wonder if it would be the same for me now anyways…
I liked the Salisbury Steak TV Dinners. This was back in the days when TV Dinners came in aluminum trays. I knew it was a ground beef patty with mushroom gravy, but I still liked it.
But speaking of school (in my case, elementary school), I didn’t like the hot dogs. They were in a tray of water, and they had a green tinge to them. I ate them. At least they didn’t have a ‘certain’ flavour like Farmer John’s hot dogs did. (Loved their breakfast sausages; didn’t like their hot dogs.)
I like Farmer John hot dogs. They’re one of the least objectionable of the major brands to me. Now, there was a brand when I was a kid called Grand Taste, and their hot dogs made me nauseated. I hated them. Their bologna was awful, too.
Maybe I should try them again. Oh, wait. Can’t get them up here.
I was an extremely picky eater, only liked hamburger and beans, nothing else. Now, I pretty much am pangastric. Except for ham, it’s Satan’s toe jam.
Have you tried Hebrew National? Much better.
Love those. We have regular-sized and quarter-pounders in the freezer. I have to admit my politically incorrect secret name for them – which I’ve never shared with anybody – is Jew Dogs. I don’t mean any harm. They’re my go-to hot dogs. (And I liked their commercials in the '70s. ‘We answer to an even Higher Source.’)
This juxtaposition made me laugh:
Post # 69:
Post #70:
I love the Hebrew National brand! And my very jewish college roommates introduced me to that term you used for them. They made me an honorary member of the tribe, and decades later when 23andMe revealed I was 2.1% ashkenazi jew, they offered to host a bris for me. I kept my hot dog as is, though.
That was
We have to answer to an even Higher Authority
I always loved that tagline even though Mom would never buy their brand. Oscar Mayer was good enough for the likes of us motley munchkins.
I love them too. But I am not Jewish, so I don’t share my personal name for them – not even to my wife. I’d like to have a blessing to use it, but I don’t want to offend.
We have to answer to an even Higher Authority…
You are correct. I mis-remembered.
We’ve finished ott the Oscar Mayer. I do not prefer them. Hebrew National for me!
Awww…that’s my best winter dish. I used to pound thin sirloin or round steak (NEVER ‘cube steak’) , dip in seasoned flour, and saute in oil. Put in a crockpot layered with green pepper, onions, garlic, a good pinch of rosemary, a dash of ground cloves or allspice and a big can of tomato sauce or some kind of canned tomatoes… Let it simmer all day till tender. Remove the meat (and I always whizzed the sauce and vegetables in a blender). Smells divine! I cooked mushrooms separately to serve on the side. Served over noodles or mashed potatoes.
I had Hebrew National decades and decades ago, and I didn’t care for them. It was so long ago that I don’t remember why. And now? I don’t eat hot dogs any more.
Lima beans. As a kid, I’d pick them out of the frozen mixed vegetables my mom would make. Lima beans = vomitocious.
But as an adult, lima beans are great! Hell, I’ll eat them cold right out of the can. But with butter and pepper–scumptious!
Sound lovely, except I can’t stand green peppers. (Not a fan of any other kind, really, but greens are the worst.)
Anyway, I wonder if there would be some substitute to provide alternative bulk? Hmm, maybe potatoes. Obviously, the flavor profile would be quite different.
… sorry, bit of a hijack.
The green peppers are just for flavor. You can certainly leave them out (or use red or yellow bell peppers if you like those better). You can add sauteed mushrooms if you choose not to emulsify the cooking sauce in a blender .