What is Cube Steak? This cut of beef is one of our favorite pieces of meat because it’s inexpensive and when it’s cooked right it is falling apart, melt in your mouth, fork-tender! Let me show you how it works!
We raise our own beef. In fact, we have an appointment to deliver a couple finished steers to the butcher next week. One of the benefits of taking your own meat to the butcher is you get to tell them how you want the meat to be cut and wrapped.
We always ask them to make two-pound packages of hamburger because it just works for us. We like our steaks packaged 5 to a package because that’s how many are in our family. And we always request them to make plenty of cubed steaks!
What is cube steak?
Cube steak is sometimes called cubed steak, or swiss steak. You might have heard of them referred to as “minute steaks” which is actually a Canadian term for cubed steaks.
What cut of meat is cube steak made of? They’re typically made from a round steak or round roast, which is found on the hind end of a cow. Cube steaks can also be made with beef from the chuck, or shoulder, portion of the cow. Really, a butcher can make cube steaks from any meat on the animal, but they’re typically made with tougher cuts of meat.
They are thin cuts of meat that have been run through a mechanical tenderizer before you buy them. The tenderizing process makes them have a rough texture that has little indentions in it.
Most of the time these steaks are made with beef but can be made from pork, deer, or elk too.
Cheap cuts of beef
Cube steaks are an inexpensive cut of beef which makes them a great choice if you’re living on a budget…and who isn’t! They’re less expensive than prime cuts of meat because they don’t have a great ration of marbling and can’t be thrown on the grill like some cuts.
Even though they are cheap, they are still delicious and a great option for families.
How to tenderize cube steak without a mallet
Of course, if you have a meat mallet it will work great for tenderizing cubed steaks. Not to worry though! I don’t own a meat mallet because I don’t want to store one more big bulky kitchen gadget! I’ve been tenderizing cube steak with a big knife for years and it works great. Let me show you step by step how to do it!
STEP 1: Lay meat on a cutting board.
STEP 2: Sprinkle meat with a little bit of all-purpose flour and a dash of salt and pepper. Feel free to experiment with seasonings. Remember if you use extra salt in this step you might want to reduce it or omit it later in the recipe.
STEP 3: Pound each piece of steak with a large knife. You can use a serrated knife, or not. It really doesn’t matter. Just use the cutting edge and pound, pound, pound. You want to whack the meat hard enough to leave indentions about 1/8″ deep. Be careful to not cut it all the way through.
STEP 4: Flip the meat over and repeat steps 1-3 on the other side.
After going through this quick and easy, extra tenderizing process the steaks are ready to be used in any recipe.
Cube Steak Recipes
Want to know how to cook cube steak? My very favorite way is in the slow cooker. After hours of being in the crockpot, it really breaks down and is extra tender! My favorite recipe using cube steak is my Crock Pot Cube Steak in Gravy! It’s so easy and amazingly delicious!
Another great way to cook cube steak is to thaw the meat just until you can cut it with a sharp knife. Cut it into thin strips, let it completely thaw, and use it instead of round steak in my Sweet and Spicy Beef recipe. I also use cube steak in my Slow Cooker Beef Stew!
Or course you can also use it to make Chicken Fried Steak too or sandwiches too!
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