Pellet Smoker Cooking: Baked Steak, Scalloped Potatoes and Corn

Sept 29 2013

My wife is finally home after three days in the hospital for both knee replacements and two weeks in rehab therapy. She is doing well for being 70! The first day we were both tired from moving her back home so we got carry ins. I asked her what she wanted for our first meal and I said I had baked steak in mind. She said that’s what I had in mind, after 47 years together sometimes we are on the same wave length!

Saturday I had to mow the grass then we had company in the afternoon. I was tired again so we had carry ins. I would fix the steak Sunday. I am finding doing her usual work too; the dishes, the wash and the cleaning keeps me busy all the time!

Baked steak was one of my Mother’s great meals and she had cheesy scalloped potatoes and scalloped corn as sides most of the time. She usually used sirloin, browned it then baked covered with Campbell’s mushroom soup. You can make your own gravy but as a step saver I have been using a jar of Heinz’s savory beef gravy.

I don’t have a set recipe but just eyeball most of the ingredients. I bake all at 350 deg. The potatoes I bake covered for 1 ½ hours and remove the cover the last 20 to 25 minutes. As soon as I get the potatoes in I brown the steak, add the gravy and bake for 1 hour covered and remove the cover the last 20 minutes. The corn goes in for 45 minutes.

For the potatoes I peel about 2 pounds and slice about 3/16 inch thick. In a bowl add 1 can of Campbell’s cheddar cheese soup, 1/3 to ½ cup of half and half cream or milk and a handful of shredded sharp cheddar. Mix well and pour into a greased baking dish, bake covered. Add more shredded cheese after removing the cover.

I like to use sirloin but I had four pieces of round steak frozen I used. When I use round steak I add a little Adolf’s tenderizer, a little salt and pepper. Dredge in flour then pound with a meat mallet a little on each side. I don’t overdo it but I like that it gets some of the flour in the meat. Brown in a skillet with a little olive oil remove the meat, pour off the excess grease and deglaze with a little water. Add the meat back in and cover with the gravy. Bake covered for one hour; remove the cover the last 20 minutes.

My basic scalloped corn recipe is 1 14 oz. can of whole kernel corn and 1 can of creamed corn, a half cup of milk, 1 or 2 eggs, a cup of saltine cracker crumbs and a teaspoon of sugar. Mix all together and pour in a greased baking dish. Cut 2 to 4 butter pats in half and push down in the corn mix. Bake at 350 deg. for 45 minutes. With one egg it will be runnier and with two it will set up more.

For my corn this time I had a pound of frozen fresh sweet corn to use, I added an 8 oz. can of creamed corn, a 1/3 cup of half and half, 2 eggs beaten, 2 tablespoons of sour cream, a cup of saltine cracker crumbs and a teaspoon of sugar.

Start preparing your potatoes 2 hours before you want to eat and this meal will be ready in just 2 hours.

I had baked a loaf of Pillsbury crusty French bread to serve with the meal. My wife enjoyed her first home cooked meal she had in a while. The steak was not fork tender but easily cut with a kitchen knife and all tasted good.

Before I finished I went back and added some bread and gravy to my dish, I love gravy bread!

Potatoes ready to bake