Swiss Steak For Two Or Ten

Swiss Steak is a recipe my mother used to make to feed ten or more people.  She would buy an inexpensive cut of beef and make almost the entire dinner in one large pan. You can adjust the amount of meat and tomato sauce to your dinner plans, but you need to plan in some cooking time. This may be a meal that prepares quickly and simply, but you need about 4 hours of cooking time to get it to taste right.

Beef Bottom Round cut into small portions. The amount of meat is based on how many you are serving. The more steak in the pan, the more meat juices are created for the gravy.

Heavily salt and pepper the red meat.

Dredge the meat in flour and brown in a large pan using olive oil.

I remove the browned meat onto a warm plate while I cooked the onions (one large onion thinly sliced) in some more olive oil and pad of butter. Salt and pepper the onions to taste. When the onions are sautéed (about five minutes on high heat) return the meat and mix the onions and meat together. Cover the pan and let cook for about ten minutes on a medium heat.

Add one small 15-ounce can of tomato sauce to the pan, covering the meat and onions. At this point you can add some other spices to your taste. I added a small amount of red pepper flakes, marjoram and oregano. (If you want to add some crushed garlic to the dish, do that back when sautéing the onions.)

That is it, except for some patience. Cover the pan and let this mixture cook slowly over very low heat for 4 hours.

Serve it with your favorite vegetable and mashed potatoes. The brownish-red sauce is a tangy combination of the beef gravy juices, onions and tomato sauce. Spoon the sauce over your potatoes and have some bread for dipping and cleaning the plates.

Music to cook by:  This supper always reminds me of the 1970s so Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours.

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Tomato Sauce

Every Thursday in the De Rosa household was spaghetti night. Ronzoni #9. There would also be meatballs and a pot of pepperoni. I’ll do a separate post on the pepperoni pot. Most people think of pepperoni as a pizza topping but, oh, it is so much more.

We carry on the Thursday night tradition with slight modifications. We don’t always eat meat. Meatballs are an occasional thing. But pepperoni usually makes an appearance.

In this post, I’ll give you a recipe for a basic tomato sauce. Here is what you’ll need:

* 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
* 1 tablespoon of olive oil
* generous splash of white wine
* 6 oz. can of tomato paste
* 6 oz. can of water
*
1-2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
*
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
*
1 tablespoon dried oregano
*
1/2 tablespoon dried basil
*
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
*
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium sauce pan, heat hot red pepper flakes in olive oil. Add white wine and reduce. Add tomato paste, then fill the paste can with water and stir until blended. Add garlic. Don’t add garlic too soon in the process. It burns very easily. Bring this to a boil over low heat. Add crushed tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients. Stir well. Bring back to a boil, then lower heat to a simmer. Put lid on slightly ajar, let simmer until ready to serve.

That’s as basic as it gets. For variety, try one of more of the following tips. Fry some chopped onion in the first step with the red pepper. Or add mushrooms or leeks. Melt in some cheese. Pour in a dollop of heavy cream. The possibilities are endless.

Music to cook by: Frank Sinatra’s Trilogy

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