Behind.. And Chicken Fried Steak!

Well, I had a one week trip to Albuquerque and I had my father in law staying with us for about two weeks, so I'm sorely behind on my blogging. I apologize! The one nice thing about my father in law's visit was that it motivated me to try new recipes. I've made some new things that I haven't tried before. And one thing that was a big success was the Chicken Fried Steak recipe that I got from the Food Network by Alton Brown. Here is some visual aids, to show how I did it.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef bottom round, trimmed of excess fat
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt I used regular salt
  
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 whole eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup whole milk
  
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

Cut the meat with the grain into 1/2-inch thick slices. Season each piece on both sides with the salt and pepper. I was able to find pretenderized beef bottom round steaks at Kroger, however, I was not a fan. If you do get it, ask the butcher to cube it. It looks like toothpick holes basically. This recipe calls for seasoning with salt and pepper, and then tenderizing. I obviously did not do that. But I don't think it jeopardized the flavor.

Place the flour into a pie pan. Place the eggs into a separate pie pan. Dredge the meat on both sides in the flour. Tenderize the meat, using a needling device, until each slice is 1/4-inch thick. Once tenderized, dredge the meat again in the flour, followed by the egg and finally in the flour again. Repeat with all the pieces of meat. Place the meat onto a plate and allow it to sit for 10 to 15 minutes before cooking. This was the messiest part of the cooking. The coating of flour. Since I was doing 5 steaks, my fingers got super coated.

Place enough of the vegetable oil to cover the bottom of a 12-inch slope-sided skillet and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the meat in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Cook each piece on both sides until golden brown, approximately 4 minutes per side. This is one of the reasons why I want a cast iron skillet. You can fry things so much better and it adds a bit of extra zing to your food.

Remove the steaks to a wire rack set in a half sheet pan and place into the oven. Repeat until all of the meat is browned. These are before and after shots, compliments of my husband James.

Add the remaining vegetable oil, or at least 1 tablespoon, to the pan. Whisk in 3 tablespoons of the flour left over from the dredging. Add the chicken broth and deglaze the pan. Whisk until the gravy comes to a boil and begins to thicken. Add the milk and thyme and whisk until the gravy coats the back of a spoon, approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Season to taste, with more salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the gravy over the steaks.

Looks delicious? Actually, it's quite yummy! I'm adding thyme in the first picture. I always feel fancy when I add fresh herbs to my dishes. The second picture is testing the gravy. It's a great test to make sure it's ready to serve.

This is the final product! Ha ha, I didn't mention that I also made mashed potatoes and green beans as well. One tip about green tips when serving it with Chicken Fried Steak, use chicken broth to soften it up. Adds a ton of flavor and compliments to the dish.