Our cube steak recipe has been one of our most popular recipes since it was published over ten years ago because it’s simple and foolproof. This classic recipe has long been gracing Southern tables as part of a weekly meal rotation because it helps busy cooks get dinner on the table fast and even the pickiest kids love it. Learn how to cook cubed steak perfectly with this easy recipe and tips. Try it out tonight!
This recipe is so easy to make and my husband loved it!
BOBBIE
I had never heard of country-fried steak or chicken-fried steak until I moved to the city. If you live in the country, you don’t cook things and call them country-fried or chicken-fried. They’re just fried. And cube steak is just, well, cube steak. It’s not even called fried cube steak because the frying part is understood.
But I guess somebody needed to fancy up the name so folks who had never had cube steak would know what they were eating. And so, I bring you country-fried steak, also known as chicken-fried steak — or, where I come from, cube steak. This easy recipe takes just minutes to prepare, which means you can have dinner on the table in a jiffy!
What is cube steak?
Cube steak is an inexpensive cut of beef that comes from the top or bottom round, typically a tough meat cut. The butcher pounds and flattens the meat with a meat mallet to make it tender. You can also do it yourself using a mallet and a bit of meat tenderizer.
Our testing results
We tested making cube steak in the slow cooker, the skillet, and the oven. While the other methods will work, we prefer the old-fashioned skillet method. It’s fast and easy and gives the crust a crispiness that you cannot get with any other method.
I hope you make this recipe. I think you’ll love it!
Serving suggestions for cubed steak
If you’re having cube steak for dinner on a busy weeknight, we’d pair it with simple sides that you can pull together quickly, like our Stovetop Mac and Cheese and Garlic Roasted Green Beans.
For a more involved meal, like a Sunday dinner, we’d make homemade mashed potatoes and butter beans with Southern buttermilk biscuits. Throw in a Southern peach cobbler for dessert and you’d have the perfect Southern supper.
Cube steak ingredient notes
➡️➡️➡️ The full ingredient amounts and instructions are listed below on the printable recipe card. Scroll below the recipe card for frequently asked questions and tips for success.
Southerners tend to make recipes that use mostly pantry ingredients. We don’t want to run to the store every time we turn around and we don’t like to waste what we have. This recipe is no exception, and you probably have everything you need right in your pantry. Here are a few things to be aware of:
Vegetable oil: If you want to go old school, use solid vegetable shortening or lard. Don’t use olive oil for this recipe.
Cube steak: If you can’t find cube steaks in your grocery store, you can buy round steak and ask the butcher to tenderize it.
Flour: All-purpose flour is fine and any brand will work. You’re just making a light coating with the flour.
Tony’s seasoning: This is a personal preference. You could use a little garlic powder or even just salt and black pepper. We like Tony’s and use it on many meat recipes, including our famous Creamy Baked Pork Chops with Mushroom Soup.
Pin this now to save it for laterHow to cook cube steak
Note: An alternate way of cooking cube steak, and how we had it most of the time when I was growing up, is to skip the milk and egg mixture, lightly flour the steak, and fry it. That’s also how we cooked pork chops and pieces of cut round steak that weren’t cubed.
On a super busy weeknight, that’s the way to go! But my family prefers the extra breading that comes with dipping it in the milk and egg, so that’s how I usually do it.
Prepare your assembly line and steaks.
Make an assembly line with a baking sheet, two pie plates, a large skillet, vegetable oil, and a paper-towel-lined plate. I also like to have whatever sides I’m serving with the steak ready to go so we can eat as soon as the steak is done.
Place about two cups of flour in a pie plate and add some Tony’s seasoning or just salt and pepper. In another pie plate, stir an egg and half a tablespoon of hot sauce into about two cups of buttermilk. Place cube steaks on the baking pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little Worcestershire sauce.
Flour the steaks.
Dip the steaks in the flour mixture, then buttermilk, then again in the flour. Place the steaks back on the baking pan. You can also double this and start by dipping the steaks in the buttermilk, then flour, then milk again, then flour again. That’s a little much for me, but whatever floats your boat.
Pro Tip: I like to have my oil heating while I’m dipping the steaks. You can use vegetable oil, canola oil, peanut oil, or even shortening. The oil should be about half an inch in the skillet, just enough to slightly come up the sides of the steak but not to cover it. Heat on medium-high heat until it sizzles if you drop in a sprinkle of flour or water.
Fry the steaks.
Carefully lay each piece of steak in the hot oil in the skillet. Fry until each side is a deep, golden brown, 3-4 minutes per side. You will probably need to turn the heat down a little as you cook. Remove steak to a paper-towel-lined plate and serve immediately.
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Cubed Steak Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 lbs. cubed round steak
- 2 cups flour, plus more if needed
- 2 teaspoons Tony’s seasoning
- 2 cups buttermilk, plus more if needed
- 1 egg
- ½ tablespoon hot sauce
- ½ tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Make an assembly line with a baking sheet, two pie plates, and paper towel lined plate.
- In one pie plate, add the flour and Tony’s seasoning and a little black pepper.
- In the other pie plate, add the buttermilk and gently whisk in the egg and hot sauce.
- Sprinkle steaks with salt, pepper, and Worcestershire.
- Dredge steaks in flour, then dip in buttermilk mixture, then dredge in flour again. Or if you want even more breading, start by dipping in the milk, then flour, then milk again, then flour again. You may need to add more flour and/or more milk to your pans. Lay steaks on baking sheet.
- Heat oil on medium in a large cast-iron skillet. When oil is hot, place two to three pieces of steak in skillet and fry each side until golden brown, 3-4 minutes per side.
- Remove steaks and place on a paper-towel lined plate. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Tips and questions
I don’t suggest freezing the cooked cube steak because it will lose its crispiness. However, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a couple of days and enjoy the leftovers.
Heat the leftovers in the air fryer or the oven for best results.
According to the USDA, cube steaks don’t need to be washed before cooking. In fact, doing so could cause more harm than good, as you’d be spreading bacteria.
Update Notes: This Cube Steak recipe was originally published on May 21, 2014, and was updated on March 4, 2025, with one or more of the following: step-by-step photos, video, updated recipe, or new tips.
Thank you so much. I am taking care of my dad with cancer. He loved it and so did I.
I know it says not to use olive oil, but that’s all I have. I don’t know why one can’t use olive oil.
You *can* use regular olive oil but I don’t recommend it. Olive oil has a strong flavor and I don’t think the taste would be great with this meat. But there’s nothing wrong with it and it would certainly work. Don’t use extra virgin olive oil though because it has a lower smoke point.
I’m a southerner and all you really have to do is coat your cube steak with flavored bread crumbs and fry! Soooo tender!
Then why search for the recipe and make a weird comment?
Can I use milk or half and half. ?
Don’t always have buttermilk.
Yes, either will work fine.
Easy peasy and oh so yummy 🤤
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Do you use all purpose or self rising flour?
Either is fine, but I usually grab all-purpose.
This recipe is so easy to make and my husband loved it!