Beef Or Veal Alla Pizzaiola - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 2 lbs beef round steak or 2 lbs veal chops, cut 1 1/2 inches thick
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley, leaves only (the flat kind)
1 -2 teaspoon oregano
1 small onion, sliced (optional)
1/2 - 1 cup fresh small white button mushrooms (optional)
1/2 - 1 green pepper, seeded and cut into chunks (optional)
1 (20 ounce) can Italian plum tomatoes, unseasoned

Preparation

Coat the bottom of a large pan with olive oil.
Using your hands, crush the canned tomatoes and add about half of them to the bottom of the pan.
Add half of the salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, oregano and onions to the pan (only add the mushrooms to the top layer).
Place the meat on top of this mixture.
Cover the meat with remaining crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, garlic, parsley, oregano, mushrooms and onions.
Cover pan tightly and cook over a low flame for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours (until meat is tender).
Add the green peppers to the pan for the last 15 minutes of cooking time.
To prepare this in the oven instead of stove top, use a shallow roasting pan, (follow above directions), cover pan tightly and bake at 325\u00b0-350\u00b0F for 1 1/2 to 2 hours (until meat is tender).
Serve with potatoes or rice and a green salad.