Smothered Steak and Gravy
Spann family favorite. Mom’s go to meal when having a big family gathering. Serve with cornbread and Uncle Ben’s white rice. Mom would slow cook in the oven on low, in a covered cast iron skillet.
Ingredients
  • 3pounds of round steak
  • 1/2cup bacon grease
  • 3T flour
  • Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Cut round steak into serving pieces
  2. Heat bacon grease in cast iron skillet
  3. Season meat with salt and pepper to taste
  4. Brown both sides of round steak until nice and brown
  5. Transfer meat to a platter.
  6. Gravy
  7. Scrape the any of the drippings that are sticking to the bottom of the pan. Heat drippings over medium heat.
  8. Sprinkle flour onto the drippings. Quickly stir with a whisk or slotted spoon so that the flour gets incorporated in the drippings. Let the flour brown a bit, before adding liquid. (you can also start with a mixture of flour and water)
  9. Whisk while slowly adding liquid like stock or water to dissolve the flour into the liquid.
  10. Allow the gravy to simmer and thicken and continue to slowly add liquid until you have enough gravy to cover the browned meat.
  11. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Always taste first before adding more salt! It may not need it.)
  12. Add the browned meat into the gravy, making sure the meat is covered. Cover pan and place in a low oven for several hours. May need to add some liquid to keep the meat covered.
  13. Make a pan of cornbread and a pan of rice. Serve and use gravy over the meat and the rice.
Recipe Notes

Where meat is the main feature of the meal and paired with a few side dishes, plan on about 1/2 pound (eight ounces) per person, up to 3/4 (12 ounces) pound for bigger appetites. Follow this ratio. For each cup of gravy, you want, start with two tablespoons of drippings and fat, and two tablespoons of flour or cornstarch. (This will produce a rich and thick gravy. If you would like a thinner gravy, either start with one tablespoon each of drippings and starch, or add more liquid to thin the gravy.) So, if you want to make 2 cups of gravy, remove all but 4 tablespoons of fat and drippings from the roasting pan (set aside for future use). These instructions will be for the end result of 2 cups of gravy, but you can easily divide or multiply to adjust for how much gravy you want to make.