PW's Chicken Fried Steak

Dieter's - run!!!  What you are about to witness is fattening, flavorful, comfort food to the fullest.  The only downside is, it might clog your arteries.  But other than that, it's totally yummy. 

I recently bought the Pioneer Woman's cookbook.  I highly recommend it, unless you're dieting and then forget I said that.  I want to try every single recipe in the book. Seriously! This does remind me of my grandmothers cooking.  Everything in moderation right?

Begin by getting your assembly line ready, meat, egg/milk, flour/seasonings, empty plate.  You want to take your meat, dredge it in flour, then egg, then back to flour again.  This makes a nice thick coating.

I used about 1/4 to 1/2 C of oil for frying.  I think next time I'll try baking it.

Making gravy! I followed the directions exactly as written and I ended up adding salt, and onion powder - otherwise it tasted to oily for me.  I think next time I'll cut back on the oil and just use butter for the grease portion.

The coating on this was perfect.  Very flavorful, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.  Using cube steak is perfect for this.  The nooks make it hold onto the coating and gravy so you get the perfect bite.

I'm going to list the recipe below just as I made it - not exactly like Pioneer Woman's Cookbook recipe.

1 1/2 lb cube steak
2 large eggs
3/4 C. milk plus 2 C. for the gravy
1 1/2 C. Flour
1 tsp. Seasoned Salt
1/2 tsp Paprika
1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 C. Vegetable Oil for frying
Salt to taste
Onion Powder to taste

Get  your assembly line ready.  Meat, egg/milk, flour mixture, clean plate.  Begin by dredging the meat into the flour, then the egg, then back into the flour before putting it on the clean plate.  Get all your meat breaded before frying.
Next, heat the oil in a large skillet.  When you can drop a few sprinklings of flour into the oil and it fries instantly then it's ready.  Now cook three to four pieces at a time until the edges start to brown up.  When you can see that it's golden brown underneath, flip it over and cook for a couple minutes on the other side.
Place the cooked meat on a dish with a paper towel under it so the grease can drain off. Repeat until all the meat is cooked.  I was able to do it all in one batch since I used less meat than the original recipe.
After frying, drain off all the grease into a heat proof bowl.  Do not clean your pan.  Add about 1/4 cup of the oil back into the pan and allow to heat back up. Sprinkle 1/2 Cup of flour over the grease and use a whisk to mix together. Cook until the color turns golden brown. Now pour in the milk slowly, whisking as you add it. Generously season with Salt, Pepper and Onion Powder to taste and cook until it's the consistency you're looking for.  Now, pour over the fried steak and mashed potatoes. Enjoy!  Thank you Pioneer Woman!

I see that she's got this on her website now, find it here: PW's Chicken Fried Steak