# Chicken fried steak with country gravy



## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

I would like to make chicken fried steak with country gravy and was wondering how you folks make this dish?

What cut of steak should be used for this dish? They have something called 'cubed steak' here but I'm not sure if that is correct to use or not?

Thanks


----------



## Rocktown Gal (Feb 19, 2008)

Cube Steak is what I always use for steak and gravy. It's really yummy.


----------



## marinemomtatt (Oct 8, 2006)

Don't overcook that cubed steak or it will be so chewy a dog won't eat it.
My guys had Chicken Fried Steak last night and for once they cooked it just right.
They also use Round Steak cut into strips, with seasoned flour, fried in a bit of bacon grease and oil.
I make the gravy for them, they can't seem to make a good gravy even though I learned how to make gravy from my husband, he seems to have lost the talent. (pan drippings, a little butter, seasoned flour and veggie stock with a splash of milk and a shake or two of Soy Sauce, some rubbed garden sage, fresh ground pepper)


----------



## CJ (May 10, 2002)

Cubed steak is what I use. That's just round steak that's been run through a tenderizer. I dip my meat into a 1/2 corn starch 1/2 flour mixture, then into egg, and back into the flour/cornstarch mixture, pan fry until golden brown, gravy of your choice. I like brown, hubby likes white


----------



## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

I use round steak. Pound it with a meat tenderizer hammer, and then press flour into it.

Set it into a tiny bit of hot oil to brown both sides, and then I put it into the oven with a cover to finish cooking and keep it warm and. It you cover it and don't have the heat too high, it won't dry out and will be moist and tender.

Then the fried bits in the bottom of the pan get made into gravy. I like sautÃ©ed mushrooms and caramelized onion slices on the steak and then the gravy.

Here's how my mother made it:

Take a round steak and coat it liberally with flour. Pound the streak with the edge of a heavy saucer. As the flour gets worked in, add more floor. Brown it crisp in hot oil.


----------



## Dutch 106 (Feb 12, 2008)

Hmm,
I've always done it self rising flour on cubesteak then into a mixed up egg and then dredged in flor a second time in flour, fry in a 1'4 inch of oil then flip when golden and delicious.
Dutch


----------



## mothernature (Aug 22, 2010)

Cube steak for me. I dip it in flour and seasoned bread crumbs, then in egg & milk mixture(2 eggs beat with 1/4 cup of milk), then in the flour and bread crumbs again(3/4 cup flour and 1/4 cup crumbs). Then I pan fry it in enough canola oil to cover the bottom of the pan (maybe a little more) until it is brown on both sides (but not too long or it will get tough). I then remove steaks (keep warm) and add flour and water to the pan dripping a little at a time to make the gravy. You just have to add both slowly and get the consistancy you like. Stir and stir, it will thicken. I then add black pepper about half way through, just enough to give it that peppered look. Nothing lke mashed potatoes and creamed corn to go with it!! Good luck, let us know how it turns out!


----------



## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

Thanks for the replies. My wife likes to get chicken fried steak with country gravy when we go to the little diner in the nearest town. I'm going to try and make it for her on mothers day, could turn out good, or maybe not so good. 

Little concerned about making the gravy. Do you think it wise to put a packet of the country gravy mix in with the pan drippings to make the gravy?

Is it necessary to cover the frying pan during frying? 

Thanks


----------



## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

Here's how I make gravy:

After frying the meat, pour off all but about 2-3 tablespoons of the grease. Scrap up the brown bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. Dump in about 1/3 cup fo flour (it doesn't make any difference whether you use plain or self-rising) and start to mix the flour in with the grease, using a fork to smooth out the roux (flour/grease paste). Let it cook a couple of minutes to brown the flour a bit. Pour in a little (1/4-1/2 cup) of water or stock (your choice) and continue to stir the roux with the fork, using the tines of the fork to mash up any lumps. It will start to thicken. Add more water/stock, a little at a time while stirring. Take your time. Don't panic if it seems to be too thick. Turn up the heat to med-hi and continue to add water until the mixture is the thickness that you like. Let it boil for a few minutes. Add seasoning and taste to see if it suits you. The mixture will thicken when it cools so make it thin enough to account for that. Pour into a serving bowl and serve. If your gravy seem to be too greasy, pour off more grease next time or add more flour.

DH takes a 1/4 cup of seasoned flour and adds water to it in a jar, caps it and shakes till it's blended and then pours it into the pan and heats. The problem I have with this method is that the flour doesn't have a chance to brown so it tastes a little too doughy for me.

I think the packaged gravy mixes work best without any grease left in the pan.

I set the lid on my frying pan with it cocked a little to allow for steam to escape. You can leave the pan off if you like but you'll have a mist of grease all over the stove and floor. Might want to spread some newspaper on the floor in front of the stove to catch grease splatter.

edited to add: When you put the steak into the pan, cover and cook about 5-8 minutes, turn and cover again for about 3 minutes. Then remove the lid. That helps the crust to be crusty. Continue cooking another 5-8 minutes til done. This is for steak that's about 1/2 - 5/8" thick.


----------



## westbrook (May 10, 2002)

when all else fails...

Campbell's Soup makes gravy in a can! great for a backup! put in the pantry for emergencies...like making gravy and it doesn't turn out <wink>

http://www.campbellsoup.com/gravies.asp


----------



## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

westbrook said:


> when all else fails...
> 
> Campbell's Soup makes gravy in a can! great for a backup! put in the pantry for emergencies...like making gravy and it doesn't turn out <wink>
> 
> http://www.campbellsoup.com/gravies.asp


Yes, "when all else fails..." open a can. You never learn to cook when you allow someone else (Campbell's Soup) to dictate your bland, "open a can" recipe.

This forum is called "Cooking", not "Let XXX (fill in the blank) decide your recipes".

sorry...rant over....


----------



## westbrook (May 10, 2002)

Suitcase Sally,


you are right, this is called "cooking" not open a can........however, wanting to make something nice for your beloved tomorrow, there is little time to perfect ones culinary skills. It was a short cut to helping make a nice meal when one messes the real stuff up.

I was responding to this sentence "Little concerned about making the gravy. Do you think it wise to put a packet of the country gravy mix in with the pan drippings to make the gravy?"

I am sorry that what I posted upset you so much you felt the need to tell me off about cooking when I was trying to be helpful to this dear man asking questions.


----------



## Joe123 (Feb 24, 2008)

1 1/2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
8 (4-ounce) tenderized beef round steak (have butcher run them through cubing machine) 
1 teaspoon House Seasoning, recipe follows 
1 teaspoon seasoning salt 
3/4 cup vegetable oil 
1 1/2 teaspoons salt 
4 cups hot water 
1/2 teaspoon monosodium glutamate (recommended: Ac'cent), optional 
1 bunch green onions, or 1 medium yellow onion, sliced

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a small bowl. 
Sprinkle 1 side of the meat with the House Seasoning and the other side with the seasoning salt, and then dredge 
the meat in the flour mixture. Heat 1/2 cup oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 or 4 of the steaks to the hot oil, 
and fry until browned, about 5-6 minutes per side. Remove each steak to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. 
Repeat with the remaining steaks, adding up to 1/4 cup more oil, as needed. 
Make the gravy by adding the 2 tablespoons remaining flour to the pan drippings, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon. 
Stir in the remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and the salt. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, 
until the flour is medium brown and the mixture is bubbly. Slowly add the water and the Ac'cent, if using, stirring constantly.
Return the steaks to the skillet and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, and place the onions 
on top of the steaks. 
Cover the pan, and let simmer for 30 minutes.


House Seasoning: 
1 cup salt 
1/4 cup black pepper 
1/4 cup garlic powder


----------



## mothernature (Aug 22, 2010)

Wayne02, let us hear how your Mother's Day meal went!! That is an excellent thing to do for your wife!!


----------



## cast iron (Oct 4, 2004)

Ok, the country fried steak and gravy was a hit!

I made gravy out of the pan drippings after the steaks were done and it was excellent. There was not enough gravy out of the pan so I also made a packet of the country gravy mix as well so we had enough gravy.

Made mashed potato's and asparagus to go along with it.


Some things I think I'll try next time.

I was worried about getting enough coating on the steaks, but I think they ended up a bit over-coated. Seemed like the coating overwhelmed the steak somewhat.

The gravy from the pan ended up too thick. That probably just comes with experience in making gravy I suspect.

Thanks much for all the help!

Wayne


----------



## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

Timely.

I made chicken fried steak last night.

Round steak was on sale, and I cooked round steak that I had pounded with a meat hammer. The comment was that everyone liked it better than the cubed steak from the market. That it was more like steak and less like hamburger.

I like "smothered" chicken fried steak, so I sautÃ©ed two large onions, sliced into rings until they were caramelized and added a bunch of sliced mushrooms. That gets served on top of the meat and gravy poured over it all. I served this batch with brown rice.


----------

