I've chosen to submit this recipe because the recipes found on this website for loosemeats, and on other websites, are not the original recipe.
Ingredients:
- 1 lb of real good ground chuck or 1 lb ground beef round or 1 lb ground sirloin
- 1 tablespoon fat like lard (if meat is round or sirloin) or 1 tablespoon Crisco (if meat is round or sirloin)
- 2 teaspoons salt, just enough to lightly cover bottom of your skillet
- 1 onion, chopped fine
- 1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- water, to cover
- salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
- Get out a cast iron skillet-they are the best for loosemeats-or other kind if you have no iron skillet.
- Melt fat over medium heat and lightly salt bottom of skillet.
- Break ground beef up in skillet and start crumbling it with the back of a wooden spoon-this is very important-the meat must end up being cooked up into small crumbles.
- Add chopped onion while browning meat.
- Keep working with the back of spoon to break up meat.
- When meat is browned, drain off any fat and return meat to skillet.
- Add mustard, vinegar, sugar, and just enough water to barely cover meat in the pan.
- Cook, at a simmer, till water is all cooked out-between 15-20 minutes.
- Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
- Heat your hamburger buns-they're traditionally steamed for loosemeats-I like mine toasted lightly-do it the way you like it.
- When buns are warm, put yellow mustard on them and add some dill pickle slices-I put on lots!
- *If you start changing this recipe and using things like olive oil for the fat and Dijon or honey mustard for the yellow mustard, you will not get the traditional yummy taste of a loosemeat sandwich.
- Likewise, don't add any liquid smoke or Worcestershire sauce.
- Make them just like this the first time so you can sample the simplicity of this famous Midwestern treat.
- If you want to start making changes after that by all means do so but I'd like you to taste the original recipe at least once.
- Serve with homemade potato salad and chips or with my Easy Cheesy Potato recipe.