Homestyle Cube Steak and Gravy

Why This Homestyle Cube Steak and Gravy Works

At the start, the cube steak goes into seasoned flour so it gets a dry coat all over. In the hot oil, that flour coating browns and sticks to the meat. It forms a thin crust that keeps the steak from drying out too fast and also leaves browned bits in the pan. Those browned bits and any extra seasoned flour are what later turn into the gravy.

After the steaks come out, the onions go into the same pan. As they soften, they pick up the leftover oil and browned pieces. When the rest of the flour hits the pan, it soaks up the fat and clings to the onions, so it doesn’t clump later. Once the beef broth and milk are added, that flour swells and thickens the liquid into a smooth gravy. While everything simmers together, the steaks sit in that hot gravy, slowly loosening up and becoming tender as the gravy thickens around them.

Mistakes To Avoid

Letting the cube steaks cook on high heat the whole time can make them tough and dry. The outside browns fast, but the inside tightens up and never really softens, even during the simmer. The final dish ends up chewy instead of fork-tender.

Skipping the flour coating or doing a very thin coat leaves the gravy weak and runny. Without enough flour stuck to the meat and left in the pan, the liquid never thickens properly and stays more like broth than gravy. The steaks then sit in a watery sauce instead of a smooth, clingy one.

Adding all the broth at once instead of slowly whisking it in often creates lumps. The flour at the bottom of the pan clumps together and cooks into little balls. The gravy looks grainy and has pasty bits instead of being smooth.

Pouring in the milk too early, before the broth and flour have thickened, can keep the gravy from setting up. The mixture stays thin and needs much longer to reduce, so the steaks may overcook while waiting for the sauce to thicken.