country fried steak

Yum. Last night for dinner I made this. My parents have a cow butchered every year and we reap the benefits of having their freezer stocked full of hormone-free meat all year long. Lucky us – I know! The last time I went ‘shopping’ in Mom’s freezer I grabbed a package of cube steak. I had no idea what this is or what to do with it. I’m much more comfortable with ground meat or hamburger patties. So, I looked online. Thank you Sandra Lee. It was really, really good and actually pretty easy. I do love some good southern comfort food. It felt like were at Cracker Barrel – minus the rusty signs and farm implements hanging from the ceilings. I did feel a little guilty about breading and frying grass-fed, organic meat! I felt more ashamed that we had nothing green on the plate. Carrots and potatoes are veggies, but not green ones. Whoops. The sawmill gravy was delicious, too. Here are the recipes that I used.

Chicken Fried Steak:

1/4 cup milk and 1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and freshly cracked black pepper
4 cube steaks, about 1 to 1 1/4-pounds
1/2 cup canola oil
Sawmill Gravy, recipe follows

In a pie pan, whisk together the egg and milk. In a second pie pan, combine the flour, cornmeal, paprika, cayenne, salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste.

Season the beef with salt and pepper and dredge the steaks in the flour mixture. Shake off any excess, then submerge them in the milk and egg. Dredge them again in the flour mixture. Make sure both sides are well coated with the egg mixture before dredging them for the second time. Dust off the excess flour and set aside.

Heat the oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the steaks and fry until their coatings become golden brown and crisp, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove them to a plate lined with a brown paper bag or paper towels to drain. Arrange them on serving plates and serve with the Sawmill Gravy.

Sawmill Gravy:

12 ounces breakfast sausage, small diced
3 tablespoons canola oil or butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Brown the sausage in a cast iron or heavy-bottomed skillet, over medium heat. When fully cooked, remove the sausage from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan, over low heat, add the canola oil. Whisk in the flour and cook, constantly stirring, until the flour turns a pale golden color, about 5 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and thyme and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the gravy has thickened, about 5 to 10 minutes. Return the reserved sausage to the skillet and season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper. Serve alongside the Chicken Fried Steak.