Easy and Budget-Friendly Family Dinner

Mock Swiss steak is packed with flavor and is one of my family’s favorite dinners. Add a veggie and rice or these honey mustard roasted potatoes, and you’ll have a delicious square meal. I love how quick and easy this recipe is, making it perfect for a weeknight dinner!

Key points for putting a quick meal on the table:

• Have a weekly meal plan.
• Make a shopping list.
• Have plenty of easy-to-assemble foods on hand.
• Use canned soups and salad dressings to enhance your dishes.

Ingredients

You only need a couple of ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need

• Any kind of steak
• Either Catalina or Russian salad dressing

*Helpful hint: If you purchase a tougher cut of meat, this recipe can be cooked all day in a slow cooker, which helps tenderize the meat. The only problem you might face is that it’s too tender and falls apart when you lift it out of the pot.

I’ve actually used zesty French dressing when that was all I had, and it turned out pretty good.

I also like to add Worcestershire sauce, although it’s not necessary. But try it because it’s really good.

For exact measurements of each ingredient and full directions, go to the recipe card at the bottom of the page. You can even print out the card by using the “print” button.

Super Easy Directions

Spray a large skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Or you can use your favorite cooking oil. The main thing is that your skillet is oiled so the steak doesn’t stick.

After you brown one side of the steaks, flip them over and brown the other side. Dump the entire bottle of Catalina, Russian or French salad dressing over the steak. 

Pour 1 cup of water and a dash (or two) of Worcestershire sauce over the dressing and stir until the liquids are blended. One of the reasons these salad dressings work for this recipe is that they’re tomato based. You can add some diced tomatoes or leave the recipe as-is.

Turn down the heat and simmer until the steak is done according to your taste. I generally cook thinner cuts of meat about 15 minutes and thicker cuts up to 30 minutes.

Serve with rice and steamed green beans or your favorite vegetable. We also like it with broccoli.

Cook enough rice for each person in the family to have 1/2 to 3/4 cups. I like to cook a little more for leftovers.

Put green beans into the pot and add water. If you want some extra flavor, use half water and half beef bone broth.

Broccoli Cheese Bake Side

Green beans are always good with mock Swiss steak, but you might prefer something a little different. Here’s a good one from Back to My Southern Roots: Broccoli Cheese Bake.

Add a Salad

If you’re someone who loves having a salad before a meal, why not pack it with a hefty amount of nutrition? A couple of favorites include this Shrimp Cocktail Salad and Mediterranean Salad.

Quick and Easy Mock Swiss Steak

Do you ever wish you could throw a quick meal on the table? Are you concerned about how much fast food your family is eating? Do you want to up your nutrition game without having to spend hours in front of the stove?

This is possible, and it’s not hard at all. I’ve put together a bunch of meals that I know are healthier options than fast food, and they taste great.

The mock Swiss steak is one of the easiest main dishes you’ll ever make. Another of our family favorites is this ground beef stroganoff and this hamburger Tater Tot casserole.

Additionally, this is a budget friendly family dinner you can serve often without anyone getting tired of it. In fact, I’ve been using this Swiss steak recipe for more than 30 years, and we like it just as much now as we did then.

Update: I made this recently with cubed steak. It basically tasted the same, except it had a slightly different texture. Although we like it more with steak that hasn’t been cubed, it was still good. I like knowing that I can use whatever meat is on sale.

I cooked this on the stovetop, but you can cook Swiss steak in a Crock Pot or Instant Pot. It’s delicious, regardless of how you cook it.

More Great Recipes

You might also like this slow cooker pork tenderloin that is a delicious, stick-to-your-ribs main dish. It’s great for a family dinner or when you have guests.

If you enjoy trying new dishes, check out some of the recipes at Meal Plan Monday and Foodie Friday.

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