Beef prices are sky-high right now, but, if you're craving red meat, try this inexpensive and incredibly good Pepper Steak. The recipe takes advantage of relatively cheap cube steak as well as plenty of vegetables that braise together. The meat comes out soft and tender, and the vegetables--particularly the sweet bell peppers--give the meat and sauce great flavor. You can use whatever sweet bell peppers you have available. I like to use a combination of red, yellow, and orange peppers if I have them. If you have any leftovers or want to make the dish ahead, the meat and sauce reheat well. Try the braised steak with rice, mashed potatoes, or noodles to catch the sauce. Enjoy!
Easy Pepper Steak -- Serves 4
2 tablespoons of canola oil, divided
16 ounces (or so) of cube steak
1/3 cup of flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt, divided, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon of pepper, divided, plus more to taste
2 large sweet bell peppers, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
14-16-ounce can of diced tomatoes (preferably the Italian-seasoned version)
1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups of water mixed with 2 teaspoons of reduced sodium beef "Better Than
Bullion" or similar
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning or dried minced parsley
Fresh parsley to garnish (optional)
Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium heat in a large non-stick skillet or chef's pan. While the pan is heating, dredge the steak in the flour and 1/4 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper. Once the pan is hot, add the onion and peppers to it and saute them for 5-8 minutes until they soften a bit. Push the veggies to the sides of the pan and add the remaining oil to the middle of the pan. Let the oil heat about 15 seconds, then lay the cube steaks in the middle of the pan, not touching if possible. Let the steaks brown on one side for 5-6 minutes, then turn them and cook them another 5-6 minutes on the other side (you may need to turn the heat down a little if they look to be cooking too fast/burning). Add the diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, water/bullion mixture, garlic powder, Italian seasoning/dried parsley, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper to the pan. Gently stir everything and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir the mixture again, turn down the heat to medium low, cover the pan, and let the beef and vegetable mixture simmer gently for about 45 minutes or until the beef is fork tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened. Turn off the heat, taste the sauce and adjust the salt and pepper if necessary, and sprinkle the meat/vegetables with chopped fresh parsley.
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