Chicken Fried Steak

I have a great fondness for this comfort food.  This is not a meal to count calories, go big or go home.  I never have seen it on menus here in Vancouver and in fact - I don't think I've ever had it at a restaurant here.  I eat it while visiting the States (I know I won't be there any time soon!).  When I first started taking my son to Disneyland when he was six, I would eat it everyday for breakfast before we got to the park.  I could afford the calories back then.  I outgrew eating it for breakfast - it was too much and I stopped enjoying eggs with it, but mashed potatoes are A-okay.  That being said, I have never made it at home.  I decided to try it for dinner this evening. 

Cube steak I have never heard of, so I used Top Sirloin (to me it's the cheapest edible steak I would use) and pounded it with a meat mallet (my fave kitchen tool).  

For the recipe, I decided to use Chef Carla Hall's from "The Chew", with my own edits.

CHICKEN FRIED STEAK:

• 2 (8-ounce) top sirloin steaks and I had one smaller, about 4-ounce  (pounded 1/4 -inch thick - this is very therapeutic!)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rice flour
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1.5 teaspoons onion powder
• 1.5 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 large egg (beaten)
• Grapeseed oil (for frying)
• Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)

SAUSAGE CREAM GRAVY:

• 1/2 lb loose mild Italian sausage
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cups whole milk
• Freshly cracked black pepper and kosher salt, to taste

For the Chicken Fried Steak: Fill a large cast iron skillet with 1 inch of grapeseed oil and preheat to 360ºF (I used my candy thermometer). Line a baking sheet with a baking rack and set aside.

In a medium bowl combine the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Set aside until ready to use.

Prepare your dredging station with 3 dishes. In the first baking dish (I used pie plates) add the cornstarch. In the second baking dish add the buttermilk, and egg and season with salt and pepper to taste. Whisk to combine. In the third baking dish add all-purpose flour, rice flour and half of the spices.  (I used S&P to season all three dish contents).

Season both sides of the pounded steaks with the remaining spice mixture. Dredge the steaks in cornstarch, coating both sides, then dredge in the buttermilk mixture. Dredge in the seasoned flour mixture and gently place in the preheated oil.  My kitchen is small and was a mess!

Fry until golden brown and crispy, about 2-3 minutes per side. 

Remove to baking sheet and repeat until all steaks are fried. (I kept mine on warm in the oven)

For the Sausage Cream Gravy: In a medium saute pan over medium-high heat, add the sausage and break into very small crumbles. Cook until sausage is deeply browned. Sprinkle the flour and cayenne on top of the sausage and stir to coat, allowing flour to toast for 1 minute. 

(I only meant to sprinkle in the cayenne but the lid fell off and I got about a 1/4 cup in there!  I tried to fish it out, but still probably had a good teaspoon left.  A wee bit spicy!  Hence, it had a red color to the gravy).  Slowly add in the milk, continuously whisking until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook until gravy has thickened slightly, about 4-5 minutes.  (I had to add the salt due to the heat content - the gravy was borderline being over-the-top hot).

I served with leftover mashed taters for my son.  For myself I chose the healthy route 😉 of having an Ezekiel English muffin for my side with gravy.  I garnished with fresh Italian parsley.  

Not going to lie - this was sooooo tasty.  I couldn't have asked for a better chicken fried steak at home.  Crispy, crunchy, med-rare cooked and seasoned well.  Very happy campers tonight.  Now to deal with the messy cleanup... P.S.  No, I didn't finish dinner...