Country Fried Steak (aka Chicken Fried Steak)
Simple recipe for how to make the best country fried steak with white country gravy. This is some classic down home southern comfort food!!
Living in Canada, there are some classic American dishes that we just do not know about, unless we travel south of the border. During my childhood years, I remember going to restaurants like Shoney’s and Cracker Barrel on the way to vacations in New Orleans, Biloxi, Florida and other places.
One of my favorite dishes that I ordered countless times was country fried steak. Oh man, this is one delicious dish and is total southern comfort food for me.
Country fried steak is also known as chicken fried steak. This is because the crispy outside coating is made using the same technique when making southern fried chicken. The steak used for this dish is cube steak (minute steak).
How to bread the steak
The first step to making the best country fried steak is to ensure that you have the right steak. Typically, I purchase steak that has already be tenderized with an electric meat tenderizer. Depending on your location, it can go by different names: cub steak, minute steak, tenderized steak.
It is also possible to prepare the steak yourself. Use thin fast fry round steak and pound it with a meat tenderizer.
Then, the steak needs to be breaded. I prepare two large bowls. In bowl #1, whisk together the eggs, milk and hot sauce. In bowl #2, mix the flour, baking powder and seasoning.
Take one of the tenderized steaks and dredge it in the flour mixture. Shake off any of the excess flour and then dip in the egg wash. Lift out and let any of the excess liquid drip off. Dredge back into the flour mixture and take back out again. Now, the steak is ready to go into the hot oil.
How to fry the steak
I like to fry the country fried steak in a cast iron skillet because it holds the heat very well. Pour in some oil so that it is about 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. Peanut oil is my favourite for frying food, but vegetable oil works fine as well.
Heat the oil over medium high heat so that the oil is around 350F to 375F.
Gently lower the steak in the hot oil and let fry for about 3-5 minutes. Use tongs to flip the steak and fry on the other side for a few more minutes. Lift the steaks out of the oil with the tongs and let any excess oil drip off. Place on a plate, lined with paper towel, to soak up any extra oil.
This machine tenderized steak cooks up in minutes and is perfect for fast fry cooking. It also produces a ‘fork tender’ steak. Country fried steak is served with white gravy and the recipe for that can be found here: Country Gravy.
Here are some other great southern comfort food dishes that go very well with country fried steak.
Country Fried Steak (aka Chicken Fried Steak)
Ingredients
- 1 pound cube steak / minute steak (tenderized round steak)
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 3 cups flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- Oil for frying.
Instructions
- Set 2 shallow bowls on the counter. In one bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and hot sauce. In the other bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and cayenne.
- Add oil to a cast iron skillet or other frypan so that it is about 1/4-1/2 inch deep. Heat on medium high heat.
- Dredge the cube steak in the flour and shake off any excess flour. Dip in the egg wash and then dredge back into the flour mixture.
- Place cube steak in the hot oil. Let the steak fry for 3-5 minutes and gently flip, making sure the coating on the steak stays intact.
- Fry on the other side for 3-5 minutes. Both sides should be crispy and lightly brown in color.
- Remove the steak from the oil and drain on a paper towel. Cook the remaining steaks.
- Serve with country gravy.
