Rissoles are great. Smothered Rissoles are AWESOME!!! Especially when it’s mushroom gravy doing the smothering. 🙂
Mushroom Gravy Smothered Rissoles
Anything smothered is a good thing, and today we are smothering rissoles in a mushroom gravy. Tomato sauce, step aside! I know you’re the classic choice for good ole’ Aussie rissoles, but I’m sorry, you can’t complete with a luscious mushroom gravy.
And if that weren’t enough, today’s rissoles will be the softest, juiciest ones you’ve ever had in your life because they’re cooked by simmering them in the gravy. Gently braising makes them way more tender than pan frying, plus there’s the extra benefit of the flavour exchange that takes place: the gravy gets flavoured by the rissole juices and the rissoles absorb the tasty gravy flavour.
It’s just downright tasty, homemade comfort food that everybody loves!
In case you’re wondering what rissoles are, they’re a nostalgic Aussie family favourite. Seasoned beef patties usually made with beef (though I adore chicken ones too) bound with breadcrumbs and egg then pan seared and typically served with Aussie tomato sauce (our version of ketchup).Here’s my recipe for classic rissoles. They will always have a place in my heart (and stomach!), but sometimes it’s nice to change things up!
For American readers out there, they’re like Salisbury Steak, but smaller, plus we hide veg in them.
And here’s a nice close up of the inside of the rissoles – can you tell how soft and tender they are inside??
Ingredients in Smothered Rissoles
Here’s what you need to make these Smothered Rissoles.
FOR THE PLUMP, JUICY RISSOLES
Grated vegetables and panko keeps these extra soft and moist inside, and onion, garlic and a little Worcestershire sauce makes them extra tasty!
Beef mince (ground beef) – Beef is classic though I’ve made rissoles with lamb before and it is so good! You can get lean if you want but fat is where the beefy flavour is. Just saying. 🙂 (PS If you want chicken rissoles, use this recipe – chicken needs a little extra flavour boost).
Onion – Grated, so it’s fine enough so we don’t have to sauté it separately beforehand (like we’d have to for diced onion). I know grating onion might seem like a weird concept but it’s so worth it for the extra tastiness you get in the rissoles – and we’ve got the box grater out anyway for the carrot and zucchini!
Carrot and zucchini – Hidden vegetables of choice. And also, they keep the inside of the rissoles moist.
Garlic – Where there is onion, there is garlic! Crush it using a garlic press or finely grate it.
Panko breadcrumbs – These make rissoles softer and fluffier than using regular breadcrumbs because the pieces are larger. Find them in the Asian aisle of regular grocery stores though cheaper at Asian stores.
Dried herbs – thyme and oregano. Though, not the end of the world if you don’t use them.
Worcestershire sauce – Savoury flavour. Just 2 teaspoons. Anymore and it tastes too Worcestershire-ish (that’s a thing)!
Egg – Keeps the rissoles together so they don’t fall apart when cooking.
MUSHROOM GRAVY
And here’s what you need for the gravy:
Unsalted butter – Makes a tastier gravy than using oil.
Garlic and onion – For flavour, and I also love the texture the slippery onion slices add to the sauce.
Mushrooms – I use regular button mushrooms but any sliceable mushrooms will work fine here.
Beef not chicken stock/broth – For gravy that’s a deep rich brown colour instead of an unimpressive pale brown colour. Also makes the gravy flavour more savoury than using chicken stock. I always use low sodium stock so I can control the amount of salt used.
Worcestershire sauce – For a touch of savoury flavour.
Flour – To thicken the sauce into a lovely gravy consistency that clings to the rissoles!
How to make Smothered Rissoles
The key here is to brown the rissoles without cooking them through as we will finish cooking them in the gravy as it thickens. That way, they are at optimum juicy, tender perfection!
Grate the onion using a box grater so the pieces are fine enough to cook through with the rissoles – avoid big chunks, make the onion as fine as you can. Grating is the trick! It avoids the need to pre-cook like you would with chopped onion.
Mix in the remaining rissole ingredients. I use my hands to mix it well.
Form 12 patties (1/4 cup each), and press an indent into one side. This stops the rissoles from doming as they cook (I know you wouldn’t flatten them with a spatula and squeeze all the juice out!).
Lightly sear the rissoles for 1 1/2 minutes on each side to brown them on the outside but avoid cooking them all the way through, as we will finish cooking them in the gravy for the softest, tastiest rissoles of your life! Cook in 2 batches and remove onto a plate.
PS Use a pan large enough to fit all 12 rissoles in snugly. I use a 30cm/12″ non-stick pan.
Cook mushrooms – Give the pan a quick wipe with a paper towel to remove most of the black stuff (no need to be meticulous here). Then melt the butter, start with the onion then add the mushrooms and cook until softened (about 3 to 4 minutes). Add garlic for the last 30 seconds (if you add them too soon, they will burn).
Cook off flour – Scatter the flour across the pan (don’t dump in one place) and stir for 1 minute to cook out the flouriness. It will seem a little dry rather than pasty, that’s ok, it will dissolve into the liquid fine.
Lump-free gravy – While stirring, slowly pour in half the beef stock then keep stirring until the floury mixture mixes into the stock and thickens it. Then pour in the rest of the stock, Worcestershire, salt and pepper and mix.
Mixing as you pour, and pouring the stock in two parts are my little tricks for lump-free gravy!
Simmer rissoles – Once the sauce comes up to a simmer, gently place the rissoles in a cook for 5 minutes until the sauce thickens into a thin gravy and the rissoles finish cooking through. Stir gently to make sure the base doesn’t catch.
Goal thickness – Aim for the gravy to be thinner than you like, because it will thicken quickly as it cools which will happen as you serve it, get the plate to the table and yell for everyone to hurry up, get to the table, it’s time to eat!
Serve over a starchy vehicle of choice – mashed potato, plain rice or upgrade to Garlic Butter Rice If you’re doing the low carb thing, Cauliflower Mash is actually very nice (I know, you’re dubious, I was dubious too but I’ve been converted).
As for greens, it’s pictured with steamed broccolini tossed in a French dressing, not because I was trying to add a bit of European flair to this good ole’ Aussie fair but because it’s the dressing of the week. Here are the eight I rotate between as my standby dressings, they all last two to three weeks so they’re handy to have in the fridge, ready to grab when needed.
Use for leafy greens, any raw chopped salads and also for cooked vegetables – makes any boring steamed green so much more interesting! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Smothered rissoles
Ingredients
RISSOLES:
- 1/2 large onion , grated using standard box grater (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs (sub regular breadcrumbs, Note 2)
- 500g/ 1lb beef mince (ground beef)
- 1 small zucchini , grated
- 1 small carrot , peeled and grated
- 1 large egg
- 1 large garlic clove , crushed using garlic press or finely grated
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme (optional)
- 1/2 tsp oregano (optional)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt)
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
COOKING:
- 2 tbsp olive oil , for cooking
MUSHROOM GRAVY
- 30g/ 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 onion , sliced 5mm/0.2" thick
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
- 200g/ 7 oz mushrooms , sliced 5mm/0.2″ thick
- 3 1/2 tbsp flour (plain / all-purpose)
- 2 cups beef stock / broth , low sodium
- 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
TO SERVE
- Mashed potato or other starchy vehicle of choice
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE:
- Mix rissole ingredients, form 12 patties, slightly indent one side. Cook in 2 batches until lightly browned but raw inside. Wipe pan clean, melt butter, cook onion, then mushrooms, add garlic towards end. Make roux then gravy. Cook rissoles in gravy as it thickens, 4 – 5 minutes, serve!
FULL RECIPE:
Rissoles:
- Grate the onion into a large bowl, add panko, toss to soak in the onion juices. Add remaining rissole ingredients and mix well with your hands.
- Dented patties – Form 12 patties (1/4 cup each) and make a slight indentation on one side (this prevents doming while cooking).
- Lightly brown – Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large non-stick pan (30cm/12") over medium high heat. Cook half the rissoles for 1 1/2 minutes on each side until lightly browned but still raw inside. Remove onto a plate. Add the remaining oil and repeat with remaining rissoles.
Mushroom gravy:
- Clean pan – Discard excess oil and give the pan a rough clean with paper towels, just to remove most of the black bits.
- Cook mushrooms – Melt the butter in the same pan, cook the onion for 1 minute, then add the mushrooms and cook for 3 – 4 minutes until they release water, soften, then become lightly browned. Add the garlic for the last 30 seconds.
- Cook off flour – Turn the heat down to medium, scatter flour across the surface and stir for 1 minute – it will be like a dry paste.
- Half beef stock – While stirring, pour in half the stock then keep mixing until the flour paste dissolves and thickens the liquid, and is lump free (about 30 seconds).
- Simmer rissoles and thicken gravy – Add remaining stock, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Stir, turn heat up slightly to medium high. When it starts simmering, gently place the rissoles in (including any juices pooled on the plate). Cook rissoles 4 – 5 minutes until the liquid thickens into a thin gravy (aim for thinner than you want, thickens as you serve).
- Serve rissoles over mash with plenty of sauce! Add a sprinkle of parsley if you're feeling fancy.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
More rissoles (and rissole-type things)
Life of Dozer
Got right into recipe filming the day after we moved in! Here we are filming an Instagram reel for Friday’s Peanut Butter Stuffed Brownies. If you’re wondering what on earth I’m doing making food in the hallway when there’s such a fabulous kitchen here – I’m chasing the light. 🙂
Yes, I’m in ugg boots and trackies and I’m thankful I’m far away enough that you can’t see I’m makeup-less and as for the hair, I didn’t find my brush until Monday!!!
What can I substitute for the zucchini as have food allergy to it?
Great taste, easy meal. Family loved it. We had it with mash and broccoli.
My mum always made great rissoles in the 1970s. She is staying with us for a while and i made this tonight. She doesn’t eat mushrooms, so no sauce for her, but she still loves them (I cooked them a bit longer and then kept warm in the oven while I made the rest of the meal). The 13yo son loved the meal with the sauce, even the mashed potatoes (he’s weird, doesn’t like potato) and was asking when we would have the dish next. Luckily i used the sliding portion function and had made double.
Thanks for yet another winner.
These are very tasty, comfort food with the gravy and potatoes.
My zucchini and carrot were what I would call small but I don’t think they were as small as yours. As a result some of the rissoles broke apart during the simmer stage. But that did not detract from the taste.
Do you by chance have weights or measurements for the onions, carrots and Zucchini volumes?
Thank you another satisfying meal.
I made this last night and it was absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Yes, can use mince for rissoles.
My mum always did, I do too,
In my early 80s
could. not afford anything else, really so tasty.
I decided to give this a go yesterday for dinner. I had 1kg of mince and so bravely doubled the recipe – 24 rissoles. I managed to get 3 left over for lunch needless to say, they were a big hit with the family – apparently “better than that other crap you make”.
Thanks again Nagi for making me look good ♥
That’s gold! Love that it was a hit in the family. Thanks for the great feedback Adele 🙂
Merci chef JB. Bonne recette réconfortante. Bravo pour les mesures exactes car j’ai eu exactement 12 boulettes 😋
This is a very good recipe but i am worried about the types of mushroom i can use. We dont get the mushroom used in the recipe. can i replace it with another one? We get the white mushrooms which are usually mushy when they are cooked
Hi Amra! You can use any mushrooms you want that can be sliced 🙂 – N x
Home Sweet Home.Bless your Home.Glad your finally in enjoying all the hard work renovating.Do you ever get any sleep lol. Love ya passion.
Good, but Salisbury Steak recipe more flavourful. Probably won’t make again
Thank you so much for another winning recipe. I believe this is good enough to serve at my next dinner party. Hubs and I loved it, mushroom sauce was awesome. A keeper for sure.
That’s so great to hear Barbara! I’m so pleased it was enjoyed! – N x
Oh man, that mushroom sauce was *the best*. Being only two of us, I’ve taken Nagi’s suggestion and have frozen half the rissoles for ‘later’. The only question now is have I reserved enough mushroom sauce to cook them.
I love hearing that Susan! I hope you do have enough mushroom sauce, I thought I was quite generous with the quantity! 🙂 – N x
lots of flavour and very tender and simple to make.
So great to hear Cheryl! Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback – N x
Hey Nagi – I know you extensively research these recipes – I have made rissoles before and they seem to fall apart – tonight I’m prepping this recipe and the meat mixture just feels so wet – I have followed all instructions and ingredients to the tea but they are so moist I’m just not co didn’t that they won’t fall apart when I cook. Any tips? Should the veg be salted and drained and squeezed?
Yum yum yum . Just like Swedish meatballs without the cream
Yes!! And without the Swedish spices 🙂 – N x
I have a question, in our house we have a severe allergy to eggs, I have tried over the years to perfect the Aussie rissole without it but mine always fall apart, from egg replacer to aquafaba nothing seems to work. Do you have any good tips?
Just leave out the egg entirely. When egg prices were through the roof in the US, I just skipped the egg in meatballs/patties and used panade (milk soaked bread or crumbs). You could also try adding rice – that’s a Mexican way to make meatballs.
Hi Amanda – I wish I could help, unfortunately I don’t have enough experience with mince-meat patties to give advice on this. If we do find a reliable alternative, I’ll update all these recipes with the tip! – N x
Hi there, have you tried arrowroot? I have also used flaxseed to bind food.
Swedes have similar – Swedish meatballs and mushroom gravy!
Yes they do! I LOVE SWEDISH MEATBALLS!!! – N x
Hi from Pennsylvania, US! I’d love to make this recipe but an cooking for extremely fussy eaters. I’ll puree the onion, zucchini and carrots for the rissolies so there’s no veggies in evidence but do you think the gravy would suffer I also using a food processor to puree the onions and mushrooms so no one would know what they were eating? Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes and Dozer with the world!
Hi Sandra! I would skip the mushrooms and as for the onions, could you finely dice them instead?? – N x
What is the brand of the wonderful nonstick pan you are using? Is it available in the U. S.?
Hi Norma! The brand is Pyrolux 30cm/12″ non stick pan but I don’t think it’s available in the US. What are the popular non stick brands over there? – N x
You can purchase this brand on Amazon.
Good timing. I have leftover (rare) NY steak and ONE zucchini in the fridge. Then this email popped up. Wife is gluten free so I gotta thicken with potato flour and use GF bread crumbs but am very much looking forward to this tonight. Thanks Nagi!
Hope you and your wife enjoyed it Dave! – N x
Could you please tell me what pan you are using to make your smothered rissoles?
ps Love your recipes and honest commentary. I’ve been a subscriber for so many years and I’m so happy to see you and your work evolve in such a fantastic way. Here’s to many more years of success!
Oh my days !! I have been cooking with minced beef since a little girl , in the kitchen with my mum . I’m 68 now ! This is just THE best minced beef recipe ever !! Thanks so much for sharing it , trying the chicken.rissoles tomorrow 😋 have a lovely day 😊