How to Cook Cube Steak in Cast Iron Skillet

7/13/17

Learn how to cook cube steak in a cast iron skillet to make delicious Worcestershire Sauce Cube Steaks. An easy gluten free recipe for dinner tonight, or any weeknight! There are only two main ingredients and the steaks take less than ten minutes to make. Get your skillet screaming hot, and you are minutes away from a dinner the family will devour.

Disclaimer: I am a paid social media ambassador for Certified Angus Beef® brand through Sunday Supper Movement, and this trip was sponsored by the brand. As always, all opinions are my own.

Have you ever been to Kansas? I’ll be honest, it was not necessarily a state on the top of my Must Visit list. But as a brand ambassador for Certified Angus Beef® brand, I had the opportunity to visit Kansas as part of a special, eye-opening, educational, and fun trip to see what life is like in cattle ranch country.

We first enjoyed lunch on the deck of the the home of Debbie Lyons-Blythe, situation in the middle of Blythe Family Farms, her cattle ranch. Debbie is equal parts strong and sensitive, sharing her passion and love for raising Kids, Cows, and Grass (her aptly named blog).

I had such a wonderful time listening to her speak about her life as a rancher and as a mom. Though she apologized every time she got choked up telling us about those two aspects of her life, her tears were that of a woman who spends her life doing doing what she loves. Not only does this life bring joy to her, but sharing that life with others also brings her joy.

On the ranch where she has raised her children, they breed and raise Angus cattle, which is highly dependent on “raising” grass. Not to get all Lion King on you, but there is a true understanding of the circle of life, and the delicate balance between the land, the cattle, and the people who will later consume the beef from these animals.

From the outside it might be hard to understand how a rancher can care for animals while knowing that they are raising them to eventually be slaughtered, but ranchers truly want the best for these animals during their life. They ensure the prairies are maintained to ensure the grasses the cattle need to grow and develop are thriving. Their job includes giving cattle the space they need, ensuring that they are cared for and stay healthy during the time on their ranch.

Cattle Farming – Pride and Responsibility

And the cowboys the ranchers hire take pride in their work, making sure they have the best horses and equipment to spend hours braving the elements to keep watch over the herds. Ranchers know that they have a responsibility to bring safe and nutritious food to the people of our country and beyond, and they take their duty to feed people very seriously.

Something I did not know is that the cattle don’t spend their lives on the ranch. Towards the later part of their life, they are often transferred to a feedyard. That’s where Shawn Tiffany comes in. He an his brother Shane operate the Tiffany Cattle Co., which is essentially, as he says, a bed and breakfast for cattle.

The brothers don’t own any of the animals themselves, but the cattle come to their feedyard for “finishing”. This is where the cattle are given a carefully balanced and maintained diet. The feed consists of a blend of corn and other grains that are balanced for the optimal growth and development of healthy animals. Additionally, the feed gives the animals desired qualities for high quality beef for consumption.

Every component of the feed is carefully weighed so that the variance in the quantity of feed the cows consume in a daily basis is but a small fraction of their daily intake. Other than Olympic athletes, there are no humans who have their diet monitored as carefully as these cattle. This ensures optimal growth and health, and like Debbie, Shawn knows how important this is for producing beef that people around the country will eat.

As a husband and father who puts family above everything, safe and nutritious food is his top priority in his business. Even the water troughs are emptied and scrubbed regularly. I’m not sure I even wash my own water bottle that often.

Dinner at a Cattle Farm

After a day that touched my heart, we got to enjoy a meal that filled my belly while warming my soul. We had the honor of having Cowboy Kent Rollins prepare a chuckwagon dinner for us. Who is Kent Rollins? Well, you might have seen him on Cutthroat Kitchen or Throwdown! with Bobby Flay or Chopped Grillmasters.

But above and beyond his celebrity status, he is a chuckwagon chef and to this day cooks for cowboys on ranches in addition to appearing and cooking at other events around the country. Kent told us some of this ranch stories, taught us about cooking in cast iron, and, before dinner, thanked God for “another day above the grass.”

Of course he serves the best, Certified Angus Beef, and, after a biscuit-making lesson from Kent’s sweet wife Shannon, we feasted on cowboy ribeyes, baked beans, hominy, grilled corn, and bread pudding in the middle of the Kansas prairie at sunset with cattle milling around.

Of course food was a central theme throughout the weekend. We enjoyed a lovely salad bar lunch on Debbie’s deck, where we had an assortment of veggies, my Avocado Buttermilk Ranch Dressing (I was so honored Chef Michael chose my recipe to serve with our salads), and grilled tri tip.

The next day, after serving us steak and eggs breakfast tacos, Chef Michael and Chef Gavin gave us guidance on selecting steaks tips for grilling. Then we got to enjoy several different cuts of beef they had grilled, along with Chef Gavin’s Turmeric Potato Salad, which was also amazing.

We spent the afternoon sipping wine, painting, and noshing on beef charcuterie. And then we had an amazing treat, paella made with smoked beef fat as the oil, beef stock, and short ribs added to the traditional seafood and rice dish. Every bite was just over-the-top amazing!

And for the Pioneer Woman fans, on Sunday we took a two-hour bus ride to Pawhuska, Oklahoma, home of the now-famous Drummond Ranch. As a complete surprise, we got to visit the house on her ranch where she films her Food Network show. We were able to peek in the pantry, stand at her stove, and walk out onto the deck overlooking the Oklahoma countryside. Then we visited the Mercantile, where we shopped till we dropped and enjoyed a hearty family-style dinner. What a treat!

I can’t thank Margaret, Danielle, Jennifer, Chef Michael, Chef Gavin, and the entire Certified Angus Beef® brand team enough for this opportunity to meet some incredible people and have an absolutely amazing experience.

I have a new appreciation for the hard work of everyone involved in the ranching industry, and my heart is still full. Yes, I told you all about what we did and learned and ate, but what I really want to share is how touched I was by Debbie and Shawn and Kent and everyone else we met.

The two words that were ingrained in my mind the entire time were “good people” because these were all “good people”. It was Debbie tearing up not only as she shared her love of prairie life, but told us about her son’s illness and subsequent liver transplant, leading to her mission to increase awareness for organ donation.

Shawn telling us that he puts God and family first. As a result, he hires more than the average number of workers for the size of his operation because he wants everyone to be able to go to church, kids’ school activities, and have time to serve their church and family.

It was Kent’s blessing before dinner, asking for God’s blessing not only on the food and the people there, but also our country. And it was all of my fellow bloggers with whom I now have this shared experience that not everyone will get to see firsthand.

Cast iron cube steaks

After such a busy weekend, it was time to break out one of my favorite quick and easy dinner recipes, these Worcestershire Sauce Cast Iron Cube Steaks.

This is one of those recipes that’s not even really a recipe. Just a little idea and a quick technique, but it’s something I’ve been making for years.

After learning how to cook cube steak in cast iron, I think it’s time to share the technique with you.

What is cubed steak?

Cube steak or cubed steak is usually a cut of top round or top sirloin that has been tenderized by your butcher. This is the cut that is typically used for chicken fried steak, and the breading and frying helps keep this lean cut moist and tender. I opt for a quick sear in a super hot cast iron pan, then I pour over some Worcestershire and let it reduce just a minute or two more. The cuts in the meat from the tenderizing allows the flavor of the Worcestershire to really infuse the meat. A simple baked potato and some broccoli rounds out this healthy meal perfect for the busiest of days.

On the day I took these photos, I cooked the cube steaks earlier in the day, reheating them for dinner. Reheating cooked steak usually leads to dry, tough meat given that it is a thin, lean cut of beef. But as a testament to the quality of Certified Angus Beef® brand, this was one of the most tender cube steaks I have ever made, even though it was reheated by the time we ate it.

I definitely encourage you to seek out Certified Angus Beef® brand in your local stores and restaurants. I picked up mine at my local Weis in Damascus, MD, but you can use the product finder to see where to get it near you. It truly is the highest quality beef, but through supporting this brand, you are also supporting the Blythes, the Tiffanys, and all of the other ranching families that are so important to the fabric of our nation.

If you’re going to learn how to cook cube steak in a cast iron skillet, you should use the best beef possible.

Some side dishes to serve with Worcestershire Sauce Cube Steaks

• Campfire Potatoes
• Semi-Homemade Baked Beans
• Chili Lime Corn

You can also try this Creamy Hominy Casserole from Barefeet in the Kitchen, inspired by Cowboy Kent Rollins and based on a recipe from his book A Taste of Cowboy: Ranch Recipes and Tails from the Trail. There’s also a spectacular Barbecue Bean Bake from Grumpy’s Honey Bunch, also based on Kent’s recipe. And if you just need some Beef Grilling Tips, Confessions of an Overworked Mom has them for you.

For more yumminess from me and my foodie friends, keep up with me on…

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How to cook cube steak in a cast iron skillet

Get your cast iron pan searing hot to make this quick and easy, 10-minute cube steak dinner! Learning how to cook cube steak isn’t difficult and the pan’s heat will create juicy cube steak!

I hope you’ll leave a comment and give the recipe a FIVE STAR rating. And share a photo of it on this pin, over on Pinterest!

Print Recipe

Worcestershire Sauce Cube Steaks

Learn how to cook cube steak in a cast iron skillet to make delicious Worcestershire Sauce Cube Steaks. An easy gluten free recipe for dinner tonight, or any weeknight!

Prep Time2 mins

Cook Time8 mins

Total Time10 mins

Course: Dinner, Main Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cast iron cooking, cube steak, gluten free dinners, steak

Servings: 4

Calories: 309kcal

Author: Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 20 oz cube steak (4 steaks about 5 oz each)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

• Heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet over high heat.
• While it is heating, season both sides of the steaks with salt and pepper.
• Carefully place steaks in the pan. Depending on the size of your pan and steak, you may beed to do this in two batches. Sear for about 3-4 minutes, or until browned, then flip over and sear the other side for another 3-4 minutes.
• If you seared the steaks in batches, return all steaks to the pan and pour the Worcestershire sauce over the steaks. Reduce for a minute or two, turning the steaks to coat them completely in the sauce.
• Remove from the pan and serve immediately.

Nutrition

Serving: 5oz | Calories: 309kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 253mg | Potassium: 612mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 0.3% | Vitamin C: 2.7% | Calcium: 5.1% | Iron: 17.9%

Enjoy!