Make this old fashioned recipe in the
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❤️ Why you'll love it
- This
slow cooker swiss steak recipe takes a cheap cut of beef and turns it into a fork tender, hearty meal. - It's hands-off. There's very little prep time and then the
slow cooker takes over. - Leftover swiss steak is even better the next day. If there's not enough leftover for a full meal add some beef broth and turn it into soup.
Like salisbury steak, this is comfort food at its best - inexpensive, filling, and deliciously reminiscent of your grandmother's kitchen.
🧾 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
🔪 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Chop the vegetables in large chunks and add to
slow cooker with stewed tomatoes. - Dredge beef in flour mixture.
- Sear the beef in a hot pan on the stove top over medium high heat. You can skip this step if you like but it does add flavor. Add to the crockpot on top of the vegetables.
- Add beef stock to the hot pan and scrape any brown bits of meat that are sticking to the bottom. Add the Worcestershire to the crockpot and cook as directed in recipe card below.
I know this is not very traditional but I like to serve swiss steak with these jalapeno cheese grits. Try it!
🥫 Storage
Store leftovers in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container. They'll be fine for 3 days or so.
You can also put the leftovers in a freezer container and freeze for up to 3 months.
📖 Variations
- Some people like swiss steak to be on the creamy side. If that's you add a can of cream of mushroom soup.
- If you don't like spicy heat use green pepper instead of jalapenos - or just leave peppers out altogether.
- Use tomato soup in place of the stewed tomatoes.
- Use a different cut of meat - any of the budget cuts will work!
- If you use cube steak you don't need to tenderize it with the meat mallet.
- Instead of making potatoes or rice to go with this make toast and serve it over the toast.
- One thing I do a little differently is to add chopped Poblano or jalapeno pepper in place of the bell pepper. It adds just a touch of spice that I love.
💭 Things to know
Expert Tip: Skip dredging the beef in the flour and just toss it in the
- Save time by buying the pre-chopped vegetables.
- When the meat is gone, or there's not enough left for a meal, add some beef stock or water and you'll have a delicious homemade base for vegetable soup.
- The acids in the tomatoes and long, slow cooking time make tough cuts of meat tender but will turn tender cuts to mush. Inexpensive lean meat cuts are best for this recipe.
👩🍳 FAQs
Round steak is most often used for swiss steak but you can also use a chuck shoulder steak or other normally tough cut of beef. The long braising time tenderizes it beautifully.
Swissing is another term for the process of tenderizing the steak before cooking - it has nothing to do with Switzerland or cheese! The original term came from a British term for describing how fabric is stretched between rollers.
You can make it in an oven or
I like cubed steak the best. It's round steak that's been tenderized.
📚 Related recipes
- Slow cooker beef stew is another of our favorite
slow cooker recipes - Honey garlic pork chops are a delicious change from beef or chicken.
🍽️ Serve with...
Add mashed potatoes and some buttered and seasoned green beans or a wedge salad and you're good to go.
Or, if you love egg noodles try these noodles romanoff recipe. It's creamy and cheesy.
Of course homemade rolls are always nice, too!
Here are more great ideas for what to serve with swiss steak.
🥄 Restless Chipotle recommends
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You'll need the following items to make this crock pot swiss steak recipe successfully.
📞 The last word
Probably one of my favorite recipes, next to a good pot roast, crockpot Swiss Steak is cooked slowly in tomatoes, peppers, onions, carrots, and celery.
The acids in the tomatoes and the slow cooking make the cheapest cut of meat butter tender and delicious!
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Crockpot Swiss Steak
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 3 pounds round steak, or cube steak
- ¼ cup flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Creole Seasoning (Tony Chachere’s), optional
- olive oil
- 1 cup onion, sliced
- 1 cup celery, sliced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
- 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
- 25 ounces tomatoes, canned or home canned stewed tomatoes
- 1 cup carrots, sliced
- ½ cup beef stock, or water
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Place the chopped vegetables, tomatoes, and garlic into the bottom of a slow cooker.
- Pound meat until thin with a meat mallet.
- Mix flour, salt, pepper, brown sugar, and Creole Seasoning.
- Dredge the meat in the flour mixture and rub it in.
- Shake off excess flour.
- Cut the meat in serving sized pieces.
- Add about 2 tbs of olive oil to a heavy skillet.
- Heat oil until it shimmers a bit then carefully add steak
- Fry until just golden
- Flip and fry on the other side.
- Repeat with all steaks. You may need to add a little more olive oil
- Place the steaks over the vegetables in the slow cooker.
- Add the beef stock to the hot pan.
- Stir and scrape the bottom with a spatula to get up any brown bits of meat that are stuck.
- Pour the stock over the ingredients in the slow cooker.
- Add Worcestershire sauce and cook on low for 8 hours.
Notes
- You can make this in the oven, too. Just put the ingredients in a baking dish instead of a slow cooker, cover tightly with foil, and bake at 300F for 2 hours.
- This recipe freezes well.
- Save time by buying the prechopped vegetables.
- If you buy "cubed" steak you won't have to pound it with the mallet.
- Skip dredging the beef in the flour and just toss it in the slow cooker - you'll lose some flavor but save about 10 minutes.
- Instead of making potatoes or rice to go with this make toast and serve it over the toast.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
✍🏻 A note from Marye...
I know y'all don't always like the stories bloggers tell so when I have one I try to put it at the very bottom so you can read or skip as you like.
When I was growing up there weren't fast food places and restaurants on every corner - and going out to eat wasn't a weekly thing.
Unless you counted the lunch counters at Woolworths and Grants or the shiny, chrome diners that dotted the landscape.
Inexpensive, comfort food. Nothing fancy, no one used tweezers to place micro-greens just so. It was the same stuff your mom cooked at home only you didn't have to do the dishes.
Swiss steak was a popular diner food then and it's still perfect for everything from weeknights to Sunday dinner now. If you've never tried it you're in for a treat.
This post was updated from the July 2009 version. Last updated March 14, 2023 for better images and improved content.
Susan Johnson says
Can this be cooked on high for 5-6 hours in the slow cooker?
Marye says
Yes but you run the risk of it being tough.
Jennifer says
Good Morning Marye!
We had your 'CrockPot Swiss Steak' dinner last night, (using stewing beef) and it was wonderful over rice. We used cornstarch as a thickener, because of a gluten intolerance. Our grandchildren are learning to enjoy meat, but haven't progressed to potatoes...thus the rice. The stewing beef was cut into smaller cubes, we left out the Creole Seasoning along with the Jalapeño pepper.
Today we will turn the left overs into a soup, as suggested, adding peas and carrots, their favourite. We love our crockpot dinners! Thank you for this recipe!
Becky Crocker says
Thanks Marye, for another quick way to make very delicious dinner. I also love those 20 minute meals. And all the vegetables in the Swiss steak. So next time round steak is on sale, that will be the first thing I create.
Michelle Gosser says
Now, as much as I love Marye and Restless Chipotle, this is a recipe that I know won't be a good fit for my family. But don't listen to my negative, if you or your family likes this kind of meal, please give it a try!
Monica says
Mary’s, thank you again for a tasty recipe.. jalapeño cheese grits! What a great pairing. Making this Monday!
Theresea says
I tried the Swiss steak. But, I used a little cornstarch to thicken up the broth (sauce). Very simple recipe lots of choices with spices. Thanks again.
Penny says
This looks amazing! I'm going to add this to the menu this week. My wife has GERD, so I'll leave out the jalapenos, but I'm pretty sure this will become another "win" 🙂
Melanie C says
I have made this recipe as is to great acclaim, but I did have a few questions.
Firstly-is it ok to dredge the meat beforehand-like the evening before while cooking a meal and leaving in the refrigerator until assembly?
Secondly- can I cook it longer than the recommended time?I tend to put my crockpot recipes in during the early am, so they get left longer than 8-12 hours which is no problem with stews and cheaper cuts of meat?
Total hit with my family, just looking for a few tweaks for us.
Thanks as always for the great recipe!!
Marye says
I wouldn't dredge it ahead - the flour will soak into the meat. You can leave it on low as long as you need to! There's enough sauce that it will be fine.
Jack says
I cannot wait to try this for Sunday dinner. I was indecisive on what to cook for my picky brother and his sweet wife. This will please him and the whole family, especially me (the cook)!!!!!
Thanks for this recuing recipe.
Linda Youngs says
This is one of my go-to recipes when I want to make a meal to take to a friend. It is always yummy and appreciated!!
Pam Anslem says
I LOVE Swiss Steak! It’s been a long time since I’ve made it and seeing your email with the link brought a flood of memories back of my Mother making it! Your recipe is close to hers. She would make mashed potatoes to put it over. This has to go on the menu soon! Thank you the recipe
Judi Schafman says
I can't wait to try this. My Mom made swiss steak when I was a kid and it was delicious. Of course that was before slow cookers - she cooked her's on the stove in a cast iron skillet and cover it and let it simmer forever. Oh the memories this brings backs. thanks hun.
Jane says
This looks yummy but beef is so expensive, how about some chicken breasts and chicken stock instead?
Marye says
That should work.
Maria says
This recipe was used as a birthday request, using his venison. It was really good, not just saying it, REALLY good! (better than my throw-together version!) He took home all remaining leftovers...of course. I make this sort of thing all the time and will forever use your recipe-the crock pot lives on! thank you
Joe Mantooth says
"I love how you incorporated such unique and flavorful ingredients.
Sarah says
This is a brand new way of making Swiss steak to me. I grew up with the creamy, mushroom kind. This slightly spicy and savory recipe does not disappoint.
Marye says
I always thought that was salisbury steak? I have a recipe for that, too!