Chicken Fried Steak and Country Gravy
Anyone feel like a good ol howm cooked countra stall supper (I was going for a southern accent here but I probably just made you think I can’t spell.)
So I’m going to pretend for the duration of this post that I planned for these pictures to be grainy and basically just awful and that I was going for the hipster look. Yeah, totally on purpose. It’s not like I did one of my longest photoshoots ever trying 4 different spots to find some amount of lighting that would work and messing with just about every setting on my camera. And I definitely didn’t end up taking the best and only usable photos on the wrong settings (extremely hi ISO for those who speak photographer babble) Oops.
I much prefer the hipster story. Let’s go with that.
I should have just scratched the whole thing but I put so much time into making the actual food in the first place. When I make something that requires individual frying/cooking it takes a lot longer than it would for your average size family. I had to make enough for my entire family (a lot) and then some for pictures, plus all of the sides that I made for actually serving it (I did make an attempt to get someone to eat some veggies with it.). Of course, then I wrestled with lighting issues and set-ups and I just felt that after all that, I should at least share it with you.
Okay, shutting up about pictures and moving on to the recipe here because that’s what really matter here, right?
I have been dying to make this recipe for the longest time. It just screams comfort to me.
Despite the fact that it took me forever to do, it is actually a fairly simple recipe if you aren’t a food blogger. Very basic ingredients and it can be served with whatever sides you prefer….as long as it’s mashed potatoes! Just kidding, you can even eat it by itself if you want.
You really just need to try it. I can’t even describe how amazing it is. Just know that you’ll feel like a true pioneer when you sit down to this good, old-fashioned, home cooked meal with your family and dig in.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds cube steak
- 3 eggs
- 3 - 3 1/2 cups flour
- sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- peanut or vegetable oil for frying
- 3 tablespoons grease, lard, or oil (I used bacon grease) or 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 1/2 - 3 cups whole milk
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- On a cleared work surface, lay a large piece of plastic wrap and place a steak on top. Cover with second piece of plastic and use a meat tenderizer to pound the dickens out of that thing. Try to get it as flat as possible then repeat for all steaks.
- Beat eggs in a wide-mouthed bowl or pie pan and pour flour into separate bowl. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of steaks then dip them one at a time in flour, then egg, then flour again and place on a clean plate or tray.
- Heat about 1/2 inch of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat (if you want to get technical 350 degrees is a good place to be.).
- When the oil is ready cook steaks in small batches for 2-3 minutes per side until crisp and cooked through.
- For the gravy: Stir grease and flour together in a medium saucepan until smooth. While stirring, slowly pour in milk then place over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until it begins to thicken (I always think I can get away with stepping away for a sec but then you end up with lumpy gravy, don't leave it!) then remove from heat. Season to taste with salt and lots of pepper.
- Serve steaks hot with mashed potatoes(because you just have to) and you should probably throw some veggies on your plate before smothering it with gravy. Just for good measure.
Notes
You can use just about any form of fat for the gravy. I made this in a large batch so I made the gravy ahead of time. However, if you are only making a small amout and will not be frying (for over an hour), the leftover frying grease can be used for the gravy when the steaks are cooked. If your gravy gets too thick you can add more milk or water and thin it out. Super easy.
Categories: Homemade & DIY, Main Course, Sugar-Free
