South Texas Pepper Steak is different than the pepper steak you might see at Panda Express or even the South African variety. It’s a super local cuisine started in Hondo, Texas, a rural city in the hill country on the outside of San Antonio. I found this fun little meal when I started my job in Hondo. As the newbie at my job, I have made many trips to pick up lunch. One of the common spots is at Hermann Sons, a local steakhouse in Hondo opened in 1946, and the birthplace of pepper steak. It is their special and what most people from my work order.
Pepper Steak is basically if Salisbury steak and loaded burger had a baby. It’s two patties of ground beef stuffed with basically anything you want but normally revolving around, peppers (obviously), onions, and cheese. Call it whatever you want, but it is delicious! Hermann Sons prepares theirs with serrano peppers and onions with an optional cheese and/or chili if you want.
Because this is a wild game website obviously I had to make this with ground venison! Especially with hunting season in full swing most hunters should have freezers full of ground venison. Again, this is just a simple recipe with a little local and wild game flair. You can substitute the serrano peppers if they are a too hot and play around with what you stuff and top the pepper steaks with. If you like what you see let me know in the comments and ENJOY!!
South Texas Pepper Steak
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground venison 80/20 venison to fat
- 6 jalepenos chopped
- 6 serranos chopped
- 1 large onion sliced
- 4 slices cheddar cheese
- 1 T garlic powder
- 1 T salt
- 1 T pepper
- 1 T onion powder
- 2 T oil
Instructions
- In a sauté pan, heat 2 T of oil over high heat.
- Add the onions and peppers and sauté until browned.
- Preheat grill to medium high heat.
- Mix the meat and the seasonings. Make 8 equal sized patties (thin).
- On one patty place the onion and pepper mixture and a slice of cheese (folded in half twice) in the middle. Put another patty on top and crimp together. Continue until you have all of your pepper steaks formed.
- Grill on a flat top 5 minutes each side or until cooked through.
- ENJOY!
This is such a detailed and insightful post. I really appreciate the effort you put into explaining everything so clearly.