I’m exhausted.  Yes, as a mommy of a newborn (just 9 days old) and a 4 1/2 year old my energy and time on hand is very limited!  Dinner these next few weeks must be simple and not complicated.  I’m also trying not to break the bank by ordering out every night – you know that is what I really want!

Monday was the 1st day of really being a stay at home mom of 2.  My husband was off at work.  I had the girls, with one at least in school for half the day.  I picked up the house, I napped and enjoyed my girls!  Again, with limited time I needed to cook up the London Broil that we bought over the weekend at Target.  I needed an easy recipe, one with limited ingredients and steps.  I searched and came across some great ones but I finally landed on what sounded the tastiest and had very limited steps and ingredients!  Cha-Ching!  It seemed to be just was a Smart, very busy, Mama needed!

Mom’s Pan-fried London Broil from SimplyRecipes.com with Smarty Pants Mama tips:

  • 2 lb top round cut of steak
  • Dry mustard
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Butter, softened to room temperature

1.  Remove steak from refrigerator 2 hours before cooking to bring to room temperature (only do this with whole cuts of meat, never with ground meat.) Cut away any tough connective tissue on the surface of the steak. Use a meat pounder to even out the thickness of the steak if necessary.

Smarty Pants Mama tip: I didn’t pound or cut away any tissue.

2.  Heat a large, cast iron skillet to medium high heat. Rub dry mustard into both sides of the steak. Add salt and freshly ground pepper. Rub soft butter over both sides of the steak. Place the steak in the hot pan. Let cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, check before flipping to make sure it has nicely browned.

Smarty Pants Mama tip: I don’t have a cast iron skillet so I just used an ordinary large skillet.

3.  If you have a steak thicker than an inch-thick, you can finish it off in the oven, at 325°F for 15 minutes or so. Use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature of the steak. Pull it out of the oven at 130°F for medium rare (the steak will continue to rise in temperature for a few minutes after you pull it out). If you are using the oven method, when done, remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting into it. You want to cook the steak only to medium rare, as cooking it further will make it more tough.

Smarty Pants Mama tip: I did the remaining baking in a 9×13 dish.  Our inch & a half or so steak needed about 25 minutes in the oven.

4.  Slice the steak thinly, against the grain.

Yield: Serves 4.

The recipe comments and additional photos can be found at: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/moms_pan-fried_london_broil_steak/