Ok, so many of you are thinking, cube steak? Really? Yes, really! Cube steak is an inexpensive meat that is easy and fast to make! Pair it up with sautéed onions or even mushrooms, or better yet both and you have a winner! Any side dish goes great with this: smashed cauliflower (shown below), green beans, potatoes, broccoli, to name a few. My mom used to make this all the time when we were growing up and just recently I’ve been making it quite a bit. So give it a try today and you may be pleasantly surprised. Using a bottled dressing for the marinade saves time in the kitchen but feel free to make your own or use whatever type you want. This recipe serves 4 but if you need more or less just figure on one steak per person, unless you’re really hungry!

INGREDIENTS:

4 cube steaks

4 small-medium onions (I prefer sweet onions), sliced roughly. They should be long strips.

4 cloves garlic, chopped finely

1 bottle of Italian dressing (this is for the marinade so you can use your own favorite also)

4 TBS olive oil (You can adjust this as needed)

DIRECTIONS:

1: Place steaks in a container with a good seal or a large plastic Ziploc bag and marinate at least 1 hour or longer. The longer the better as this cut of beef can be a little tough if not marinated long enough.

2: In a large pan cover the bottom of the pan with the olive oil, enough to cover the bottom. Place the sliced onions in the pan and saute on low-medium heat, stirring often until the onions are soft and browned, almost carmelized. This takes about 20-30 minutes so don’t rush it. There is about 1 onion per steak so don’t worry that it looks like a ton of them. They will shrink big time! When they are soft and browned remove from pan onto a paper plate or bowl and set aside.

3: Leave the oil in the pan from the onions and place the marinated cube steaks in pan. Saute  on low-medium heat for about 2 minutes on each side. Less is better with this dish so be careful not to over-cook. They will be very tough if you do. No more than 4-5 minutes total cooking time. Once the steaks are flipped put the onions all over the top of the steaks and cook the remaining time. Serve immediately.

Serves 4