Thick or thin, made on a grill or stovetop, these patties can be used to make hamburgers. The word "hamburger" comes from Hamburg in Germany, a city known for its high-quality beef. Germans used regional spices to flavour low-grade minced beef. It became a staple meal for people from the poorer sections of society. It came to be known as Hamburg steak in Hamburg. The first recorded mention of Hamburg in print was in the US in 1834, on the menu at New York's Delmonico Restaurant, as the food item "Hamburg steak". Now, the patty is no longer called Hamburg Steak in Germany but names like “Frikadelle”, “Frikandelle” and “Bulette” have appeared instead. Dr. James Henry Salisbury used beef patties to treat diarrhoea in Civil War soldiers in the late 19th century; he recommended eating cooked beef thrice a day to maintain health. "Salisbury steak" was found in print in 1897 and is considered a predecessor of the hamburger as we know it today.
