Classic Round Steak and Gravy
Tender Beef With A Savory Onion Gravy

Visualize a classic comfort dish: Classic Round Steak and Gravy. It’s tender round steak smothered in rich, savory beef onion gravy.
The steak is cooked to perfection, boasting a melt-in-your-mouth texture that’s oh-so-satisfying. This recipe has three methods for making it so you can choose which one is most convenient for you.
Alongside this delectable main course sits a mound of my creamy mashed potatoes, whipped to perfection with butter and cream. They’re smooth, velvety, and the perfect canvas for soaking up the savory gravy.
To complete the meal, a side of sweet, golden corn adds a touch of sweetness and texture contrast, balancing out the richness of the steak and potatoes. You can also make my Scalloped Corn Casserole to serve with this beef.
Together, this dish is the epitome of comfort food, warming both the body and the soul with its hearty flavors and satisfying textures.
One Recipe, Three Ways To Make It
On the recipe card below, you will see this easy recipe along with three different ways to prepare it. This recipe can be made in your Instant Pot, slow cooker, or in your oven in a covered roaster.
Need Help Finding and Saving The Recipe?
There is a full, printable recipe card at the end of this post. You can also hit the print button for the recipe to come up on one screen where you can screenshot it to save to your phone.
I also have added a Pinterest button that you can use to save this recipe to your Pinterest page. If you would like to follow me on Pinterest, you can find me there as The Tipsy Housewife.

Clearing Up Confusion About Round Steak
A round steak is a beef steak from the “round,” or rear leg of the cow. The round is divided into cuts including the eye round, bottom round, and top round with or without the “round” bone.
It may also include the knuckle, depending on how the round is separated from the loin.
Most of the time you will see the round steak sold as a whole roast. It will be shaped differently depending if it is eye, bottom, or top.
You can ask the meat department to cut the roast up into 1 to 2 inch slices for you or you can cut it yourself. Many times they already have slices cut.
The round steak I use in this recipe is already in slices. I find this easily in packages at Aldi. I get two packages of Aldi Round Steak to make the recipe listed.
They sometimes have it labeled as Eye Of Round Steak.

Yet Another Name
The round steak is also referred to as the rump, and that description is pretty self-explanatory, since it is from the back area of the cow. So if you see a rump roast, this is also the proper meat.
Very Lean, No Fat
This cut of meat can be tough which is why it takes so long to cook it until it is tender. You will not see a lot of marbling when you buy the slices of this meat.
Timing Is Key
My meat slices are about one inch thick. The cook time is based on the thickness of the slices.
You will need to adjust your cook time based on the thickness of your round steak slices.

Gravy Confusion
The main question I get about this recipe after the meat cut, is the gravy I use. I always use this McCormick Onion Gravy for the recipe.
I find it very easily at most major grocery stores. Some people have some trouble finding it so if you need to a find a substitute for this onion gravy DO NOT USE onion soup mix.
This is not the same.
Use another gravy mix of the same brand or the same size. You can use just a brown gravy or a mushroom gravy.
If you want a thicker gravy when the meal is cooked, you can make a slurry using a teaspoon of corn starch and 1/4 cup of cold water. Dissolve it, whisk this into the gravy, and let it cook until the gravy is thickened.
You can also drain the gravy into a sauce pan and add the slurry and simmer it until it is thicker.

Mashed Potatoes Are A Must
This is one of those recipes where mashed potatoes are a must. I have the best recipe for the Creamiest Mashed Potatoes.
These will be the most perfect recipe to go with this beef.
Classic Round Steak & Gravy

Visualize a classic comfort dish: Classic Round Steak and Gravy. Tender round steak smothered in rich, savory beef onion gravy. The steak is cooked to perfection, boasting a melt-in-your-mouth texture that's oh-so-satisfying. This recipe has three methods for making it. You can choose which one is most convenient for you. Alongside this delectable main course sits a mound of creamy mashed potatoes, whipped to perfection with butter and cream. They're smooth, velvety, and the perfect canvas for soaking up the savory gravy. And to complete the meal, a side of sweet, golden corn adds a touch of sweetness and texture contrast, balancing out the richness of the steak and potatoes. Together, this dish is the epitome of comfort food, warming both the body and the soul with its hearty flavors and satisfying textures.
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 slices of Round Steak, approximately 2 lbs
- *a full explanation of round steak and where to buy it can be found in the post before the recipe card
- 2 Pouches of Onion Gravy
- *links and pictures to this product included in post
- 2 C of Hot Water
- 1 Medium Yellow Onion, Sliced
- 2 Cups of Diced Mushrooms
- 3 Cloves of Garlic, Peeled and Smashed
- 2 T of Butter
Instructions
Directions For Instant Pot
- Use a skillet and 1 T of butter to sear off both sides of your round steak. I only cooked these on each side for 2 to 3 minutes.
- In your Instant Pot, sauté the onions and the garlic in 1 T of butter along with the mushrooms. Allow the mushrooms to turn golden brown and tender,
- Add the slices of meat to the pot.
- Add the two pouches of the gravy to 2 C of hot water and dissolve.
- Pour over the meat and onions.
- Set your Instant Pot to the meat setting and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes.
- Release the steam and you are ready to serve.
Directions for The Crock Pot
Follow the same steps for the Instant Pot, except add the ingredients to your slow cooker and cook on low 8 hours,
Directions For The Oven
Follow the same steps for the Instant Pot and then add the ingredients to a covered roaster.
Bake at 350 degrees for 2 to 2.5 hours or until the meat is fork tender.
*if you want a creamier gravy, you can also add a can of cream of mushroom soup to the gravy mixture.
Are you looking to prepare a fancy date night meal? Then you can pair those mashed potatoes with my perfectly cooked filet.
2 Comments
Shannon Paul
March 18, 2025 at 4:29 pm
Made tonight for supper. We purchase a cow so have a-lot of meat. Cut up one of the roasts and cooked it in the oven for 2 1/2 hours and it was perfect! Thanks for another way to use our beef!
thetipsyhousewife
March 20, 2025 at 5:37 pm
Awesome!!!!