Crock Pot Cube Steak Recipe (with cream of Celery) (2024)

FAQs

How to cook cube steak so it's tender? ›

The best way to cook cube steak for tenderness is slowly and evenly, so a slow cooker can do the trick when you have ample time to spare. However, braising, pan-frying, and sauteing also work. Just be sure to cook with enough liquid to keep the steak moist.

Here's why: A steak that marinates in an acidic or enzymatic liquid too long, such as citrus juice or cola, becomes tough or mushy. But the acid in milk is so mild that you can soak beef in it long enough to tenderize it effectively, without damaging the proteins on the surface.

It comes from the top or bottom round, a tough portion near the rump of the cow usually used as stew meat. But cube steak has been pounded with a textured mallet or tenderized mechanically, a process that breaks down the muscle fibers, making it tender enough to pan-fry on the stove.

No need to rinse it before cooking if you're not adding any batter or breading to the surface. Keep the temperature relatively low and cook the meat slowly, setting aside 1.5 to 2 hours for the entire process. Rushing the cube steak with higher heat will only toughen it.

Cook the cube steak in oil for about 1 or 2 minutes on each side. After you've browned the meat: Move it into the slow cooker. Let it cook on low for 6 to 8 hours to end up with perfectly tender cube steak.

Tenderize Cube Steak By Slicing It Against The Grain

Cutting the cube steak into thin slices against the grain (perpendicular to the muscle fibers) can help to break down the tough fibers and make the meat easier to chew. This is particularly useful when using cube steak in dishes like stir-fries or fajitas.

Simply season milk with nonacidic ingredients, preparing enough marinade to completely submerge the meat. Cover and place the meat and milk marinade in the refrigerator between 4 to 12 hours—whatever you deem as the perfect wait—before rinsing and patting the meat dry.

Because the cola is sugary, it adds some sweetness to the marinade. Acidity. “Cola is acidic, and marinating in acidic ingredients helps make meat, such as our steak, nice and tender," Ken says.

Cube steak can be a part of a healthy diet when consumed in moderation and as part of a balanced meal plan. It contains a good amount of protein and essential nutrients which can be healthy as long as they're not consumed excessively.

What goes well with cube steak? ›

The best side dishes to serve with cube steak are mashed potatoes, green beans, french fries, blooming onion, cornbread, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, roasted vegetables, baked beans, garlic bread, and rice pilaf.

If you're buying meat from a market that mixes beef and pork together in the same display, look for a rich red color because pork Cube steaks will have a light pink color.

There are many spices available for seasoning a steak, with salt and pepper topping the list. However, other spices, like thyme, rosemary, garlic powder, and minced onion, are also good options to enhance your steak's flavor. Or, use a one-and-done approach with Chicago Steak Seasoning.

Place the cube steaks in the milk and turn them to coat them in the mixture. The soaking time depends according to how tough the steaks are and how tender you would like them to be. Like a marinade, however, you will get best results by soaking the steaks for four hours or overnight.

After exposure to the air for 15 minutes or so, the myoglobin receives oxygen and the meat turns bright, cherry red. After beef has been refrigerated for about five days, it may turn brown. This darkening is due to oxidation, the chemical changes in myoglobin due to the oxygen content.

I'd say you either sauté it on a very hot fire (in oil/butter, no watery liquids yet) for a very short time (less than a minute if you have small chunks), or you let it simmer for as long as possible, so that you get a stew-like effect, which makes it tender in a very different way, could be 45 to 180 minutes for a ...

The Aging. Most fine restaurants age their beef to intensify the flavor and improve the tenderness of the cut. Aging is done by letting the meat sit (in very controlled conditions) for several days or weeks.