Chicken Fried Steak and Gravy

This Chicken Fried Steak and Gravy recipe is a delicious option for your family! Serve with your favorite tasty side dish.

Texans love chicken fried steak! It’s a meal that is enjoyed often when folks go out to eat, but I like to see if I can make restaurant favorites better in my own home. 

When I was in college, I worked as a short order cook, and one of the dishes I liked making most was chicken fried steak. It was relatively easy to make, and it is the quintessential Texas dish. 

There is lots to like about chicken fried steak! Obviously you eat it like a steak with a fork and knife, but you also get the crispy breading of fried foods.  The meat is also tender, and the simple seasoning makes you feel like a cattle baron sitting down for a gourmet, home-made meal! 

Try my Country Fried Chicken, too!

Making steaks this week? Try my Steak Seasoning.

My family also likes to eat quick-fix chicken fried steaks, so I wanted to see if they would like my home made take on a family favorite as well.  Turns out my wife and kids loved the dish just as much as I did. 

Finally, I wanted to make this recipe unique so I substituted some different ingredients from what I traditionally used as a short order cook in college. 

For the “drink” part of the batter, restaurants and cooks usually use buttermilk or a milk and egg mixture before putting the steak into a dry mix or “dredge.” I went with something non-traditional, which I call the kegs and eggs mix. 

What Does Dredge Mean When Cooking?

For this recipe, when I talk about “dredge,” it means to coat in flour.

I know that beer batter is a typical seafood staple, and I know that the beer batter is usually light and crispy.  Additionally, I gave my chicken fried steak a double dredge, which means that I did a dry-wet-dry batter before pan frying in a shallow layer of oil.  This is not typical for restaurant made chicken fried steaks, which are usually deep fried. 

This was a fun and quick experience too, and at the end we were left with a unique chicken fried steak that tasted great and was easy to make.

Side Dishes for Chicken Fried Steak

Side dishes that go well with chicken fried steak include mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, fried okra, and more! Check out recipes below:

Side Dishes for Chicken Fried Steak

Chicken Fried Steak and Gravy

Ingredients:

• 6 cube steaks
• 1 tsp. of each salt and pepper
• 1.5 cups all purpose flour
• 1 can of beer
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• vegetable oil

Ingredients for Gravy:

• vegetable oil
• all purpose flour
• ground cayenne red pepper
• 1 cup milk

Directions:

Pre-heat a thin layer of oil in a large frying pan.

In a small mixing bowl, pour 6 oz. (half a can) of beer and add 2 eggs.  Stir or whisk together.

In a flat bottom plate or dish add 1.5 cups of flour and add paprika, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Mix well.

Salt and pepper the cube steaks.

Dredge the cube steaks in the flour mixture first.

Next dip the dredged cube steak into the beer and eggs mixture.

Finally, give the steak a final dredge before placing it into the hot oil.

Cook 5 minutes each side until golden brown and crispy.

Once all of the steaks are done, add enough flour to turn the remaining oil and flour mixture into a peanut butter like paste consistency. 

Next add 1 cup of milk.  Add additional milk or water as necessary until gravy consistency is to your liking. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with your favorite side dish like mashed potatoes!