Beef and Mushroom Patties With Broccoli

Nutrition Snapshot

  • About 36 grams of protein and 3 micrograms of vitamin B12 in one plate, from beef, more than a full day’s worth of B12 in a form that absorbs.
  • Beef also brings about 5 milligrams of iron and a large dose of zinc, and the broccoli and mushrooms bring about 5 grams of fiber.
  • The trade-off: even lean beef carries saturated fat, about 7 grams a plate here. The card shows the figures, and the notes show how to lower it.

A pound and a quarter of lean ground beef is mixed with eight ounces of mushrooms chopped very fine, rolled oats, an egg, grated onion, and Dijon. The mix is shaped into eight small patties and cooked in a skillet until browned and cooked through. A bag of frozen broccoli steams alongside.

Two patties and a pile of broccoli is a plate, and the patties are soft enough to cut with a fork, because the mushrooms keep them moist.

Why These Patties Are Great for B12 After 65

Vitamin B12 is absorbed with the help of stomach acid, which frees it from the protein it arrives in, and stomach acid falls with age. It falls further with the acid-reducing medications that a large share of people past 65 take every day for heartburn.

So B12 from food is absorbed less well exactly when it is needed most. Low B12 shows up as tiredness, numb or tingling feet, unsteadiness, and a memory that has slipped.

Food still matters. The richer the meal is in B12, the more gets through even when absorption is poor, and beef is one of the richest common sources.

A Day’s B12 in Two Patties

Two of these patties carry about 3 micrograms of vitamin B12, more than the 2.4 micrograms a day an adult needs. They also carry about 36 grams of protein and a good dose of iron and zinc, two other nutrients that get short after 65.

A blood test decides whether a supplement is needed on top, and the evidence on that is on the supplement side of this site. Which other foods carry the nutrients older adults run short on is in Protein Density: Eating Enough When Appetite Is Small.

Why the Antacid Matters

Proton pump inhibitors and the older acid blockers are among the most widely used medications after 65, and most people take them for years. They do their job by cutting stomach acid, and less acid means less B12 freed from food. Studies of long-term users find low B12 in a meaningful share of them, and the risk rises with the dose and the years.

Nobody should stop a prescribed medication over this. The practical response is a B12-rich food most days, a blood test at the next checkup, and a supplement if the number says so. The supplement form does not need stomach acid to absorb.

Mushrooms Make the Patty Soft

Chopped mushrooms mixed into ground meat hold moisture through cooking, so the patties stay soft and juicy instead of drying into pucks, and they stretch a pound of beef into eight patties. For teeth that struggle, the mushrooms also mean a patty that cuts with a fork and needs little chewing.

Cooked patties keep four days and freeze for two months, and one reheated with a spoon of the broccoli is a small dinner for one.

Two beef and mushroom patties with steamed broccoli on a plate in a dinner plate.

Beef and Mushroom Patties With Broccoli

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Lean ground beef mixed with very finely chopped mushrooms, rolled oats, an egg, grated onion, and Dijon, shaped into eight small patties and pan-cooked until done through, served with steamed frozen broccoli. Four plates of two patties, about 36 grams of protein and a full day’s B12 each; soft enough to cut with a fork.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 4 plate (2 patties with broccoli)
Course: dinner, lunch
Cuisine: American
Calories: 384
Ingredients Equipment Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients
  

Patties
  • 8 ounces white or cremini mushrooms chopped very fine (a food processor does it in seconds)
  • 1 1/4 pounds 90 percent lean ground beef
  • 1/3 cup rolled oats
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 small onion grated
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil for the pan
Broccoli
  • 1 bag (16 ounces) frozen broccoli florets
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • a squeeze of lemon

Equipment

  • Large skillet
  • Food processor or sharp knife for the mushrooms
  • Pot with a steamer basket or microwave for the broccoli

Method
 

  1. Mix the mushrooms, beef, oats, egg, onion, mustard, thyme, salt, and pepper in a bowl until just combined. Let it sit 5 minutes so the oats soften. Shape into 8 patties about 3 inches across and 3/4 inch thick.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the patties until browned underneath, about 5 minutes, then turn and cook until browned and cooked through with no pink in the center, 5 to 6 minutes more (160 degrees F on a thermometer).
  3. Meanwhile, steam the broccoli until hot and tender, about 5 minutes, or microwave it in a covered dish. Toss with the oil and lemon.
  4. Serve 2 patties with a quarter of the broccoli. Cooked patties keep 4 days in the refrigerator or 2 months frozen.

Nutrition

Calories: 384kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 36gFat: 21gSaturated Fat: 6.8gSodium: 475mgPotassium: 950mgFiber: 5.2gSugar: 3.4gCalcium: 104mgIron: 5.3mgMagnesium: 69mgPhosphorus: 428mgCholine: 162mg

Notes

Lower-fat version: 93 percent lean beef cuts the saturated fat by about a third with the same B12. The mushrooms are the reason the patties stay soft and moist; chop them fine enough that they disappear into the meat. For a softer plate still, steam the broccoli 3 minutes longer and chop it. Lower-sodium version: skip the salt and use a little more Dijon and thyme. For someone eating alone, freeze the patties in pairs and reheat one pair with a cup of frozen broccoli in the microwave, about 3 minutes.

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Gluten Free

Beef, mushrooms, egg, onion, and broccoli are naturally free of gluten. Rolled oats are naturally free of gluten but often milled alongside wheat, so for people with celiac disease the oats need a gluten-free label. The Dijon mustard should list no malt vinegar or wheat. People who avoid gluten by preference can use any oats.

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