Chicken Fried Steak

[Meat-O-Rama]

Any chicken fried steak masters here? I love me some CFS, but my one attempt at making it was a disaster...

I'd love tips/recipes to try making it again.

[theogt]

I'm an expert at eating chick fried steak. As to making it, haven't a clue.

[Sam I Am]

One of the best meals on the planet. It does not exist in the northeast though... :(

...not that my wife would allow me to eat it. :laugh2:

[Hostile]

Oh I will be watching this thread. I too love it, but my efforts have not been very good.

[SaltwaterServr]

Any chicken fried steak masters here? I love me some CFS, but my one attempt at making it was a disaster...

I'd love tips/recipes to try making it again.

The secret, at least my secret, is buttermilk.

[Yeagermeister]

Never been a fan mainly because I don't care for gravy.

Yeah that's right a fat man that does like gravy. :laugh1:

[Sam I Am]

Yeah that's right a fat man that does like gravy. :laugh1:

Well, obviously you are one ****ed up mother****er.

Even skinny people love gravy!!! :laugh2:

[CowboyMike]

I learned from the best, my dad.

How did you make yours? Maybe I can pinpoint what went wrong?

[Meat-O-Rama]

I learned from the best, my dad.

How did you make yours? Maybe I can pinpoint what went wrong?

I used the following recipe. The batter didn't stick, and it came apart and made the oil all dirty.
Ingredients


Steak
3cups unbleached all-purpose flour (http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tastetests/overview.asp?docid=9804)
1/8teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 large egg
1teaspoon baking powder (http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tastetests/overview.asp?docid=9931)
1/2teaspoon baking soda
1cup buttermilk
6 cube steaks , about 5 ounces each, pounded to 1/3 inch thickness
4 - 5cups peanut oil
Cream Gravy
1 medium onion , minced
1/8teaspoon dried thyme
2medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through a garlic press
3tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour (http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tastetests/overview.asp?docid=9804)
1/2cup low-sodium chicken broth (http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tastetests/overview.asp?docid=9993)
2cups whole milk
3/4teaspoon table salt (http://www.cooksillustrated.com/tastetests/overview.asp?docid=9842)
1/4teaspoon ground black pepper
Cayenne pepper Instructions


1. For the steaks: Measure the flour, 5 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, and cayenne into a large shallow dish. In a second large shallow dish, beat the egg, baking powder, and baking soda; stir in the buttermilk (the mixture will bubble and foam).
2. Set a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet. Pat the steaks dry with paper towels and sprinkle each side with salt and pepper to taste. Drop the steaks into the flour and shake the pan to coat. Shake excess flour from each steak, then, using tongs, dip the steaks into the egg mixture, turning to coat well and allowing the excess to drip off. Coat the steaks with flour again, shake off the excess, and place them on the wire rack.
3. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position, set a second wire rack over a second rimmed baking sheet, and place the sheet on the oven rack; heat the oven to 200 degrees. Line a large plate with a double layer of paper towels. Meanwhile, heat 1 inch of oil in a large (11-inch diameter) Dutch oven over medium-high heat to 375 degrees. Place three steaks in the oil and fry, turning once, until deep golden brown on each side, about 5 minutes (oil temperature will drop to around 335 degrees). Transfer the steaks to the paper towel-lined plate to drain, then transfer them to the wire rack in the oven. Bring the oil back to 375 degrees and repeat the cooking and draining process (use fresh paper towels) with the three remaining steaks.
4. For the gravy: Carefully pour the hot oil through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean pot. Return the browned bits from the strainer along with 2 tablespoons of frying oil back to the Dutch oven. Turn the heat to medium, add the onion and thyme, and cook until the onion has softened and is beginning to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add the flour to the pan and stir until well combined and starting to dissolve, about 1 minute. Whisk in the broth, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Whisk in the milk, salt, pepper, and cayenne; bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook until thickened (gravy should have a loose consistency—it will thicken as it cools), about 5 minutes.
5. Transfer the chicken-fried steaks to individual plates. Spoon a generous amount of gravy over each steak. Serve immediately, placing any remaining gravy in a small bowl.

[CowboyMike]

Hm. The dutch oven thing is new to me. So is the egg/buttermilk mixture. We don't use eggs, baking powder, or baking soda. Just pure buttermilk (or even sometimes regular milk in a pinch.) This is simple, Texas, chuckwagon cooking. Nothing fancy. Just good grub.

Season the flour how you prefer. Salt, black pepper, and cayenne is the usual. Dredge the cube steak in the flour and shake off the excess. You don't want a thick layer of flour, just enough to coat lightly. You should still be able to see the texture of the cube steak and maybe some red. Dredge it in the buttermilk and shake off excess. Finally, back into the flour one last time. You don't want to have too much coating. The star is the meat.

Use a cast iron skillet with about a 1/4 inch of oil. I'm thinking perhaps your oil wasn't hot enough, which made the batter disperse. Make sure it does get up to the 360-375 range. Also, make sure your cube steak is room temperature before you start. A cold steak in hot oil is not a good thing. Drop the steaks into the oil and cook until crispy brown. No need to put it in the oven, in my opinion. The only reason to do that would be to keep them warm. Just put them on a rack or plate with paper towel to suck out the extra grease.

Gravy

That is the weirdest country gravy recipe I have ever seen. All you need is about 5 or 6 tbsp butter and/or oil in a pot on medium heat. Gradually whisk in flour, slowly cooking it until you have a golden brown pasty but smooth rue. The key is to keep whisking constantly as you add so it does not get lumpy. Immediately start slowly adding milk until it is a golden/white color and you have the consistency you desire. The gravy will thicken as it keeps cooking. Add spices as you desire. Salt and pepper (lots of pepper) are the norm. My dad puts something in his gravy that I can't figure out and he won't tell me, but it's fantastic. It's just kind of your thing to play with as far as spices go.

Good luck! Practice practice practice.

[brymatt94]

Hm. The dutch oven thing is new to me. So is the egg/buttermilk mixture. We don't use eggs, baking powder, or baking soda. Just pure buttermilk (or even sometimes regular milk in a pinch.) This is simple, Texas, chuckwagon cooking. Nothing fancy. Just good grub.

Season the flour how you prefer. Salt, black pepper, and cayenne is the usual. Dredge the cube steak in the flour and shake off the excess. You don't want a thick layer of flour, just enough to coat lightly. You should still be able to see the texture of the cube steak and maybe some red. Dredge it in the buttermilk and shake off excess. Finally, back into the flour one last time. You don't want to have too much coating. The star is the meat.

Use a cast iron skillet with about a 1/4 inch of oil. I'm thinking perhaps your oil wasn't hot enough, which made the batter disperse. Make sure it does get up to the 360-375 range. Also, make sure your cube steak is room temperature before you start. A cold steak in hot oil is not a good thing. Drop the steaks into the oil and cook until crispy brown. No need to put it in the oven, in my opinion. The only reason to do that would be to keep them warm. Just put them on a rack or plate with paper towel to suck out the extra grease.

Gravy

That is the weirdest country gravy recipe I have ever seen. All you need is about 5 or 6 tbsp butter and/or oil in a pot on medium heat. Gradually whisk in flour, slowly cooking it until you have a golden brown pasty but smooth rue. The key is to keep whisking constantly as you add so it does not get lumpy. Immediately start slowly adding milk until it is a golden/white color and you have the consistency you desire. The gravy will thicken as it keeps cooking. Add spices as you desire. Salt and pepper (lots of pepper) are the norm. My dad puts something in his gravy that I can't figure out and he won't tell me, but it's fantastic. It's just kind of your thing to play with as far as spices go.

Good luck! Practice practice practice.



This has to be the greatest chicken fried steak I've ever tasted :bow: (He's my dad too):)

[Teren_Kanan]

CFS is awful.

So unbelievably awful. It takes something delicious (a steak) and ruins it.

Yuck, gravy or no.

ah well, Good luck with your recipes =p

[The30YardSlant]

CFS is awful.

Communist

[VietCowboy]

CFS is awful.

So unbelievably awful. It takes something delicious (a steak) and ruins it.

Yuck, gravy or no.

ah well, Good luck with your recipes =p

I've had some good and bad ones, the bad ones are overly oily, drenched in gravy, and too salty. But, if done correctly, is really good.

[pupulehaole]

Communist
:lmao2::lmao2::bow::lmao2::lmao2:

[Wimbo]

one common mistake when frying something (in addition to not having a good oil temperature) is moving the meat around too much. This causes the batter to come off before it sets, resulting in the 'dirty oil' someone mentioned earlier. Ideally, once you put your CFS in the hot oil, you dont want to turn it until the first side is done.

[Yeagermeister]

Well, obviously you are one ****ed up mother****er.

Even skinny people love gravy!!! :laugh2:

Hey at least I'll own up to it :laugh1:

[Doomsday101]

Hate to say it but outside the state of Texas I have yet to find anyone who can make a true chicken fried steak with milk cream gravey. Even serveral resturants here give you nothing but breaded and pounded hamburger meat.

[big dog cowboy]

There is one of those "Country Style" restaurants down the road from my place that serves a killer chicken friend steak or chicken fried chicken. A couple of veggies and dinner rolls and cram down a slice of pie and it's nap time.

[Yeagermeister]

There is one of those "Country Style" restaurants down the road from my place that serves a killer chicken friend steak or chicken fried chicken. A couple of veggies and dinner rolls and cram down a slice of pie and it's nap time.

I have never understood the difference between chicken fried chicken and fried chicken. :confused:

[Sam I Am]

I have never understood the difference between chicken fried chicken and fried chicken. :confused:

Bones and gravy? :D

[notherbob]

Hate to say it but outside the state of Texas I have yet to find anyone who can make a true chicken fried steak with milk cream gravey. Even serveral resturants here give you nothing but breaded and pounded hamburger meat.

If you are ever in Brownwood in central Texas, try the CFS at Underwood's Cafeteria. They use real tenderized steak not formed patties and it can take up a whole plate and you get all the cream gravy, vegetables and parkerhouse rolls you want and if your belly isn't big enough to eat it all they'll give you a take home box.

They are famous for their Barbecue and fried chicken as well as their CFS and they have been around for decades and people from all over Texas come to eat whenever they are in the area. It's a thing worth doing.

No, I don't work there but I occasionally eat there.

[CliffnMesquite]

Soak the meat in a milk and egg mixture overnight in the fridge.

[Doomsday101]

If you are ever in Brownwood in central Texas, try the CFS at Underwood's Cafeteria. They use real tenderized steak not formed patties and it can take up a whole plate and you get all the cream gravy, vegetables and parkerhouse rolls you want and if your belly isn't big enough to eat it all they'll give you a take home box.

They are famous for their Barbecue and fried chicken as well as their CFS and they have been around for decades and people from all over Texas come to eat whenever they are in the area. It's a thing worth doing.

No, I don't work there but I occasionally eat there.

That is how I make my chicken fried steak.

[Meat-O-Rama]

Hm. The dutch oven thing is new to me. So is the egg/buttermilk mixture. We don't use eggs, baking powder, or baking soda. Just pure buttermilk (or even sometimes regular milk in a pinch.) This is simple, Texas, chuckwagon cooking. Nothing fancy. Just good grub.

Season the flour how you prefer. Salt, black pepper, and cayenne is the usual. Dredge the cube steak in the flour and shake off the excess. You don't want a thick layer of flour, just enough to coat lightly. You should still be able to see the texture of the cube steak and maybe some red. Dredge it in the buttermilk and shake off excess. Finally, back into the flour one last time. You don't want to have too much coating. The star is the meat.

Use a cast iron skillet with about a 1/4 inch of oil. I'm thinking perhaps your oil wasn't hot enough, which made the batter disperse. Make sure it does get up to the 360-375 range. Also, make sure your cube steak is room temperature before you start. A cold steak in hot oil is not a good thing. Drop the steaks into the oil and cook until crispy brown. No need to put it in the oven, in my opinion. The only reason to do that would be to keep them warm. Just put them on a rack or plate with paper towel to suck out the extra grease.

Gravy

That is the weirdest country gravy recipe I have ever seen. All you need is about 5 or 6 tbsp butter and/or oil in a pot on medium heat. Gradually whisk in flour, slowly cooking it until you have a golden brown pasty but smooth rue. The key is to keep whisking constantly as you add so it does not get lumpy. Immediately start slowly adding milk until it is a golden/white color and you have the consistency you desire. The gravy will thicken as it keeps cooking. Add spices as you desire. Salt and pepper (lots of pepper) are the norm. My dad puts something in his gravy that I can't figure out and he won't tell me, but it's fantastic. It's just kind of your thing to play with as far as spices go.

Good luck! Practice practice practice.

Thanks, I am going to put this to use and report back ASAP.

[Dallas]

CFS is awful.

So unbelievably awful. It takes something delicious (a steak) and ruins it.

Yuck, gravy or no.

ah well, Good luck with your recipes =p

How else would you really eat your cube steak? You do know its not a grilling cut right? Cube steak is really made for a skillet or flat top.

You just haven't had excellent CFS and you are not welcome in Texas btw.

Please move away.

[Duane]

How else would you really eat your cube steak? You do know its not a grilling cut right? Cube steak is really made for a skillet or flat top.

You just haven't had excellent CFS and you are not welcome in Texas btw.

Please move away.

:laugh2:

[Faerluna]

You just haven't had excellent CFS and you are not welcome in Texas btw.

Please move away.

Luckily for you, he's not in Texas. ;)

[Yeagermeister]

Luckily for you, he's not in Texas. ;)

Neither is he :laugh1:

[Wimbo]

1W3YyZLzPnQ

[Dallas]

Neither is he :laugh1:

A little OT here and I appologize, but I could have SWORN your avatar was a Barry Manilow Christmas album.


I could NOT have been further from the truth. :laugh2: Cousin Eddie from NL Christmas Vacation is HILARIOUS.

Clark: Hey, Kids, I heard on the news that an airline pilot spotted Santa's sleigh on its way in from New York City.

Eddie: [after a pause] You serious, Clark?

[CowboyMike]

1W3YyZLzPnQ

Yeah pretty much it right there. We smother our steak in gravy though.

[Yeagermeister]

A little OT here and I appologize, but I could have SWORN your avatar was a Barry Manilow Christmas album.


I could NOT have been further from the truth. :laugh2: Cousin Eddie from NL Christmas Vacation is HILARIOUS.

Clark: Hey, Kids, I heard on the news that an airline pilot spotted Santa's sleigh on its way in from New York City.

Eddie: [after a pause] You serious, Clark?



:lmao:

[Doomsday101]

People need to understand Chicken Fried Streak is the official state animal of Texas. :laugh2:

[Yeagermeister]

People need to understand Chicken Fried Streak is the official state animal of Texas. :laugh2:

Nah that's the armadillo. I see them laying on the side of the road every where. :laugh1:

[Doomsday101]

Nah that's the armadillo. I see them laying on the side of the road every where. :laugh1:

Have you ever eaten an Armadillo? That is why we changed it to the elusive chicken fried steak. Hard to catch them but man they are tasty unlike those Lone Star drinking armored tanks

[Yeagermeister]

Have you ever eaten an Armadillo? That is why we changed it to the elusive chicken fried steak. Hard to catch them but man they are tasty unlike those Lone Star drinking armored tanks

I'll take your word for it bud :laugh1:

[Doomsday101]

I'll take your word for it bud :laugh1:

Me an Armadillo just don't get along. I hit one of those drunk SOB doing 90 mph on a back road. He messed my transmission up. :laugh2:

[Yeagermeister]

Me an Armadillo just don't get along. I hit one of those drunk SOB doing 90 mph on a back road. He messed my transmission up. :laugh2:

90 on a back road and the armadillo was the one that was drunk......yeah right :laugh1:

[Doomsday101]

90 on a back road and the armadillo was the one that was drunk......yeah right :laugh1:

Every time I see them on a display they are on their back with a Lone Star Beer between their legs. So yeah they are some hard drinking little varmints.

[Yeagermeister]

Every time I see them on a display they are on their back with a Lone Star Beer between their legs. So yeah they are some hard drinking little varmints.

They should switch to Alamo. Hank Hill loves it. Boy I'll Tell You What

[Doomsday101]

They should switch to Alamo. Hank Hill loves it. Boy I'll Tell You What

:laugh2:

Alamo Beer Company was founded by Eugene Simor in 1997 with the hope of bringing locally brewed beer to market. The San Antonio owned and operated company introduced Alamo Golden Ale in 2003 to a very limited number of accounts. Customers demanded more and the distribution continued to grow.

http://greatbrewers.com/brand/alamo-beer

This is where your upscale Armadillos get their beer. Most of them though are Lone Star swilling varmints.

The ones who cross the border they drink Dos Equis but then they are Armadillo of intrigue. Stay thristy my friend :laugh2:

[Yeagermeister]

:laugh2:

Alamo Beer Company was founded by Eugene Simor in 1997 with the hope of bringing locally brewed beer to market. The San Antonio owned and operated company introduced Alamo Golden Ale in 2003 to a very limited number of accounts. Customers demanded more and the distribution continued to grow.

http://greatbrewers.com/brand/alamo-beer

This is where your upscale Armadillos get their beer. Most of them though are Lone Star swilling varmints.

The ones who cross the border they drink Dos Equis but then they are Armadillo of intrigue. Stay thristy my friend :laugh2:

Good thing they don't drink PBR :laugh1:

[Doomsday101]

Good thing they don't drink PBR :laugh1:

Good thing I don't drink at all now days.

But there was a time. The horror, ah well good times. :laugh2:

I use to hang out with this Mexican friend of mine his name was José Cuervo man he got me it so much trouble.

[AmarilloCowboyFan]

1W3YyZLzPnQ

I don't remember where we heard this tip but if you dip your chicken fry in the flour first, then milk, then flour again, it helps the breading stay on. It works. We cook chicken fried steak all the time.

[BlueStar3398]

I LOVE CFS but don't eat it much because of the calories.

For those that use buttermilk, do you soak the steak in the milk? Just asking because I was watching the Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network and she soaked chicken in buttermilk before breading and frying it. She said the acid in buttermilk tenderizes the chicken.

[Sam I Am]

We soaked ours in a scrambled egg / milk mixture.

[chip_gilkey]

Gravy

That is the weirdest country gravy recipe I have ever seen. All you need is about 5 or 6 tbsp butter and/or oil in a pot on medium heat. Gradually whisk in flour, slowly cooking it until you have a golden brown pasty but smooth rue. The key is to keep whisking constantly as you add so it does not get lumpy. Immediately start slowly adding milk until it is a golden/white color and you have the consistency you desire. The gravy will thicken as it keeps cooking. Add spices as you desire. Salt and pepper (lots of pepper) are the norm. My dad puts something in his gravy that I can't figure out and he won't tell me, but it's fantastic. It's just kind of your thing to play with as far as spices go.

Good luck! Practice practice practice.

That gravy recipe he listed is what my mom/grandma called poor person's gravy. Its the ONLY way you make gravy in rural southeastern ohio as far as theyre concerned. Imagine my surprise when I went to culinary school and we made gravy like that too. Turns out its just a simple pan gravy. The key is reusing the bits of stuff and some of the grease from the frying pan.

[Meat-O-Rama]

I LOVE CFS but don't eat it much because of the calories.

For those that use buttermilk, do you soak the steak in the milk? Just asking because I was watching the Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network and she soaked chicken in buttermilk before breading and frying it. She said the acid in buttermilk tenderizes the chicken.

You do know that there is no chicken in chicken fried steak?

[Sam I Am]

You do know that there is no chicken in chicken fried steak?

:lmao2:

[big dog cowboy]

You do know that there is no chicken in chicken fried steak?

:laugh1:

[chip_gilkey]

You do know that there is no chicken in chicken fried steak?

He never said there was lol. He was just comparing another frying method for chicken and wondered if it was the same for steak. He even asked at the beginning if you soaked the steak in milk.

[ABQCOWBOY]

Never been a fan mainly because I don't care for gravy.

Yeah that's right a fat man that does like gravy. :laugh1:

Good Lord Man! Where are you from again?

[Yeagermeister]

Good Lord Man! Where are you from again?

Jupiter

[Doomsday101]

Jupiter

You told me Uranus. :D

[big dog cowboy]

Good Lord Man! Where are you from again?
So many responses to choose from.

[Yeagermeister]

You told me Uranus. :D

No that's where your head is :laugh1:

[Roadtrip635]

Here's a little tip to keep your CFS crunchy from the first bite to the last bite. Instead of pouring gravy over the top of the CFS, spoon a generous portion on the plate and place the CFS on top of the gravy. It keeps your CFS crunchy and still have all the delicious gravy to mop up with your steak. Tip Top Cafe in S.A. would serve it that way and it's great.

When my mom made the gravy, she would use a little bacon grease and butter and flour for the roux, unhealthy but delicious.

[Meat-O-Rama]

unhealthy but delicious.

That pretty much sums up CFS, which is why I loves it so!

[BlueStar3398]

He never said there was lol. He was just comparing another frying method for chicken and wondered if it was the same for steak. He even asked at the beginning if you soaked the steak in milk.

Thank you! Rough crowd here on CZ! :laugh2: I was referring to the acid in buttermilk as a tenderizer on STEAK or CHICKEN!!

[Romo 2 Austin]

Steak un chicken fried is better, and healthier.

[Meat-O-Rama]

Thank you! Rough crowd here on CZ! :laugh2: I was referring to the acid in buttermilk as a tenderizer on STEAK or CHICKEN!!

My bad, I reread it after I posted. Consider this my official apology.:o:

[Meat-O-Rama]

Steak un chicken fried is better, and healthier.

No doubt, but gosh-darnit, sometimes I need a good chicken fried steak.

[lane]

the secret is even though you throw it in to deep oil..

after a few minutes you will notice blood pooling on the surface....when that happens...flip it over.

otherwise it will stick on the batter and burn.

[ologan]

OK, now that the recipes have been cussed and discussed,where can you get the best CFS in Texas? My favorites, in no particular order, are Ma Goodson's in Houston, The Moosehead in Crockett, and of course LuLu's in San Antonio. I'm going to be making my winter pilgrimage to Texas early next year and will evaluate all responses. Of cours I'll also have to load up on Tex-Mex and good BBQ!

[CliffnMesquite]

OK, now that the recipes have been cussed and discussed,where can you get the best CFS in Texas? My favorites, in no particular order, are Ma Goodson's in Houston, The Moosehead in Crockett, and of course LuLu's in San Antonio. I'm going to be making my winter pilgrimage to Texas early next year and will evaluate all responses. Of cours I'll also have to load up on Tex-Mex and good BBQ!

The Rocket cafe in Rocket TX.
Also Twin Peaks has a good CFS...