Smothered Steak

Smothered Steak

Beef
Main Dish

Serves 4

My mom used to make this all the time. It’s a comforting and filling meal that uses inexpensive cuts of beef to produce tender meat and a rich gravy.

The key is giving it plenty of time to break down in the oven. If you rush it, the steaks will be tough and chewy. Other than that, this is pretty much fool-proof.

You can use tenderized (or ‘cubed’) steaks for this. I find their texture odd.

Ingredients #

  • 3 slices bacon, sliced into match-sticks
  • Peanut oil
  • Bolner’s Fiesta Fajita Seasoning (OR black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder)
  • 2 lbs bottom round, chuck eye, or blade steaks. They should be 1/2" thick
  • Flour
  • 2-3 yellow onions, sliced
  • 2-3 cups beef stock, chicken stock or water

Instructions #

Preheat oven to 325.

Place the steaks between sheets of wax paper (one at a time) and pound them out a bit, to get them closer to 1/4" thick.

Season them liberally with salt, pepper, and Fajita Seasoning. Flour them very liberally, pressing flour into the meat.

Place the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat and cook until rendered and crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add a tablespoon or so of oil to the bacon fat, and increase the heat to medium-high.

When the fat is shimmering, add the floured steaks and brown them very thoroughly. As they are finished, remove them to a baking dish.

When they are all browned, pour all but 2 tbsp of fat out of the pan and return to medium heat. Add the sliced onions, season with salt and pepper, and cook until they are softened. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup flour and cook for a couple more minutes, stirring. Add the stock or water and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly and scraping up any browned bits from the pan. Pour this mixture over the steaks. The liquid need not completely cover the solids, but it should come up about half-way.

Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and bake for a couple of hours. The steaks should be fork-tender, and the gravy thickened. Remove the foil and bake for 15-20 minutes more to glaze the top a bit.