Chicken Fried Steak

I've eaten and cooked CFS from 1 coast to the other and back again for 40 some years and this is what I've learned.
1) You use round steak that you tenderize or use cube steak, in a real butcher shop they run a round steak thru the tenderizer if ya ask them too.
2) You whip up some eggs with a pinch of salt and a lil cold water. You use any old flour and spice it up with S&P for sure and I always put in some garlic powder.
3) You dredge, dip & dredge again. I use a ziploc bag for the dredging part. Cuts down on the mess.
4) You fry the meat in a pan with a couple big spoons full of Crisco. I switched over to butter flavor a couple years ago.
5) Once all the meat is fried and sitting on a plate in a warm oven you add some of the leftover flour to the fry pan, stir up a roux, brown it some and then start adding milk tell ya get a nice gravy.
6) Serve with mashed taters and some greens.
One of the best things to every come out of Texas, excepting maybe both of my parents.

MikeS.

It is impossible to find a good CFS this far north (Northern Illinois). Lived in Grand Prarie (between Dallas and Ft Worth) for a few years, and got used to the real thing. Every so often, me or one of my relatives will forget that it isn't very good up here, and will order it at like a Cracker Barrel type place. After about 2-3 bites, we remember why we never order it. Heck, my grade school made better CFS than places around here.

If I want it, I have to make it myself nowadays. Gotta make gravy with it. And mashed taters..... mmmmm.... and it isn't even lunch time yet.

There are lots of good places to get CFS in Louisiana and Texas.

Among the best has to be this place:
http://www.hillcountrycupboard.com

in Johnson City, TX.

Great place in an authentic Texas town.

....so I'm watching Bobby Flay's Food Nation the other night and 'lil Bobby goes to some place in Ft. Worth for CFS. They threw the
pounded, floured steak into the DEEP FRYER, then served it with a BAKED POTATO! and put the GRAVY on the steak! I thought,
" these guys have been reading this thread, and they're just screwing with us". This was pretty deep into the heart of Texas so I didn't know what to think. I guess we're all correct, it's a lifestyle, not a ritual, and anything that involves grease, flour, and Meat can mean "chicken-fried"....http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_bf/episode/0,1976,FOOD_9950_32741,00.html

Bill

Hey archinIL,
Do you have a place in Grand Prairie you'd recommend for CFS? I go to GP every so often to do business with a vendor there. They are located at I 30 and Beltline.

BTW Bushie, I went to the Koffee Kup diner a couple of weeks ago on a wild hair. I gotta say I was a bit disappointed with their CFS. It was just so...bland. I couldn't dump enough S&P on it to get any flavor. Maybe I caught them at a bad time (4:30 pm). Maybe my expectations were too high after driving ~100 miles to try it out, I don't know.

The Strawberry pie was good though. I did soothe my fevered brow with a couple of six packs of Dublin DP to take back.

The best CFS I've had lately is at the Shady Grove in Austin. It's spicier with the Hatch green chili on top and a bit untraditional, but oh so good.

quote:

Originally posted by bill voss

....so I'm watching Bobby Flay's Food Nation the other night and 'lil Bobby goes to some place in Ft. Worth for CFS. They threw the
pounded, floured steak into the DEEP FRYER, then served it with a BAKED POTATO! and put the gravy on the steak! I thought,
" these guys have been reading this thread, and they're just screwing with us". This was pretty deep into the heart of Texas so I didn't know what to think. I guess we're all correct, it's a lifestyle, not a ritual, and anything that involves grease, flour, and Meat can mean "chicken-fried"....
Bill

Eat at Flay's restaurant and you'll understand: the man doesn't know a damn thing about the southwestern cuisine he's supposedly such a big proponent of.

Non-traditional is fine. Boring and bland, which is what I find his food, isn't.

Bland isn't just a matter of heat. Heat alone can't make a dish interesting. The spices have to work together to create a multi-layered taste. The meals I've had at Mesa Grill are a bizarre combination of flavorless, over-salted and covered with a one-dimensional heat that might as well have come out of a bottle of Frank's Red Hot. Ain't impressed, end of story.

Hey a little off the topic but i'm going to ask anyway...In New York City everyone knows how hard it is to find a good CFS...actually it's hard to find any...This restaurant called Blue Smoke(a BBQ place) serves CFS as a special only on Sundays I tried begging and bribing them to see if they would make it for me on a wednesday but they said "Not a chance!"...anyway has anyone on this forum tried it and if so how was it?


JD

JUst tried the Texaz Grill in SCottsdale, AZ. Mashed potatoes with skins & service was great. Chicken Fried was OK.

OK I give up where is a good chicken fried steal in South Louisiana?

AS far as Bobby Fray, he couldn't find his *&&^^%$ once he's 2 feet outside of New York!

quote:

Originally posted by Maynerd

Hey archinIL,
Do you have a place in Grand Prairie you'd recommend for CFS? I go to GP every so often to do business with a vendor there. They are located at I 30 and Beltline.

Sorry.... can't help. We moved from Grand Prairie back in '84, and haven't been back. I was only 9 at the time. Too young to remember anywhere that had any that stood out from the other. I remember my grade school cafeteria, of all places, made decent ones. This was back in the day when they actually cooked things in school cafeterias, rather than just reheating crap.

No problem arch, just curious, thanks for responding.

Just to add my 2 cents worth; Bobby Flay not only ...............

I don't think I can say what I really want to on this family friendly board, sorry.

MikeS.

quote:

Originally posted by Ballpark Roadtripper

THIS is the last one I had, the one in Texas I was talking about:




Yowza! So, can ANYONE tell me where I can get me a great CFS within 200 miles of NYC???

quote:

Originally posted by Ballpark Roadtripper

THIS is the last one I had, the one in Texas I was talking about:




Yowza! So, can ANYONE tell me where I can get me a great CFS within 200 miles of NYC???

The best CFS I Have found in NYC is at Acme bar and grill. Another acceptable choice is Brothers BBQ on Varick street. Brothers does not have it on the menu, however it is available if you ask. Be sure to specify standard CFS not smothered.

quote:

Originally posted by colt45

I lived in Houston in the 70s & 80s, and the best Chicken Fried Steaks were at Dirty's on Richmond. I've been told that they closed down & now the best are at some place called Jack's on Shepard across from Cadillac Bar & Grill. Anyone know about Jack's?

Colt45

I never ate at Dirty's, which as I recall was on Chimney Rock, a block south of Richmond. There was another one on Durham just down from Jax until a year or so ago; same owner, I think. The most awesome CFS I ever had also came from that period and was at a place on Beverly Hill at Fountainview in the 70s, not far from Dirty's, before that area became known as the Richmond Strip. I can't remember the name of it, but I think it included 'Ranch.'

Best CFS in Houston? I dunno. I've never had the CFS at Jax but I'd expect them to do a good job. I like their mesquite grilled burgers, catfish and onion rings, especially. There's another Jax on Rice at Bissonett in Bellaire, but the one on Durham is better (parking lot and entrance face Durham, altho the address is on Shepherd).

I've also had good CFS at Hickory Hollow, Pig Stand (as Lone Star mentioned) and Avalon Diner. There are 3 HHs; the one on Waugh just off Washington is the one I've been to. Also good catfish and burgers. Their CFS comes with brown cream gravy, btw. Avalon Diner is the remnant of the old legendary Avalon Drug, also with 3 locations. The one in Sugarland/Stafford on 59S is better than the one in Greenway Plaza. I've never been to the one on Westheimer. I had a great burger and banana malt at the one on 59S last week.

It'd be hard for me to pick the best of these, much less claim to pick the best in Houston.

Robert del Grande's Rio Ranch serves an $18 CF sirloin! Ouisie's Table, which used to be near Rice U in the 70s but now is on San Felipe in River Oaks, has a CF Ribeye as a Tuesday special. People also rave about the CFS special at Lankford Grocery (Tuesday, I think) but I always go there for the burger and haven't tried any of these.

Update: had the CFS at Jax on Shepherd today. It's deep fried. The good: best cream gravy I've encountered recently; golden, crispy crust. There was too much batter for the steak, meaning some bites were nothing but crispy fried batter and gravy! MMMMMMM .

The bad: toughest piece of meat I've had for CFS in some time. I've had better at Steak Kuntry AYCE buffet. Also, too much gravy - crust got too soggy.

Maybe just a bad sample. Jax does other things well, but I may just stick to the mesquite burgers.

FYI: The place Bobby Flay went to was the Ranchman Steak House in Ponder, TX (near Denton/Ft. Worth).
I usually get a steak there, but my daughter likes their CFS. Of course the steak that the owner made on TV looked much bigger than the one she got with her order. I recall hearing somewhere that the baked potato they serve is a tradition peculiar to that restaurant (call ahead for a spud).
If anyone ever finds themselves around Sherman, TX (broken down car, hiding from the law, etc.) then try a place called Tracks. Pretty good CFS!

My first post, my favorite food....
The best CFS I've ever had out was in Brenham TX, (also the home of Blue Bell ice cream) at the Country Inn II on Horton St. Wonderful coating and hung off the edges of the plate. Cream gravy was served on the side. Of course the best is served from my own kitchen!

Oh yeah...IMHO, properly made CFS is always prepared in a cast iron skillet.

quote:

Originally posted by alb

My first post, my favorite food....
The best CFS I've ever had out was in Brenham TX, (also the home of Blue Bell ice cream) at the Country Inn II on Horton St. Wonderful coating and hung off the edges of the plate. Cream gravy was served on the side. Of course the best is served from my own kitchen!

Oh yeah...IMHO, properly made CFS is always prepared in a cast iron skillet.

I am from a family of ranching heritage that came to Texas in 1870 and I grew up in the fifties in far West Texas but moved to Houston after college. I have been eating CFS since I had teeth. Likely before. I have eaten CFS from Amarillo to Brownsville and from Beaumont to El Paso and at nearly every little hole in the wall roadside cafe in between. I have eaten nearly as much CFS as I have eaten enchiladas or barbecue. And that is a lot. Cattle sale barns restaurants used to always be a good bet for authentic fresh off the hoof CFS, but there are not as many around as there use to be. The one in Taylor still makes a good one. In order for CFS to be authentic the breading must be crispy but stay on the meat. It must be pan fried at a medium high heat. Deep frying will not do that. Its still a CFS deep fried, just not as good. The meat must not be stringy or tough to chew. A good one can be cut with a fork. It must be served with mashed potatoes (no real Texan leaves the skin on his taters) and bacon cooked green beans. Spinach or turnip reens and fried okra (dirt snot) are also very acceptable sides. It must also be accompanied by grilled Texas toast. If you don't know what that is, then it probably won't matter to you anyway. Sweetened ice tea is the preferred beverage. And everything must be topped off with black peppered cream gravy and then you add a bunch more black pepper after its served. CFS can not have too much black pepper. I've eaten the one you recommend in Johnson City (only restaurant in town, Junction of Hwy 281 and Hwy 290) and it is certainly good. But on my word as a pedigreed CFS connoisseur, the best in Texas, and therefore the world, is down Hwy 281 north from there about 20 miles at the Blue Bonnet Cafe just over the Colorado River bridge in Marble Falls, Tx. Been in business since 1927. If you look up CFS in the dictionary, the Blue Bonnet Cafe's picture is beside the definition. And while you're there, mozy on down the road to Llano and eat some barbecue at Coopers.

In NYC, you can get good chicken fried steak at Tennessee Mountain in SOHO. I've been there a number of times and everything I've had there is good. Granted, I'm not an expert on CFS having grown up in Brooklyn, which while having many good points, is not known for it's CFS, but THis place is good http://www.tnmountain.com

I'm definitely not an expert on CFS, but Karen's Diner on W. Broad St. here in Richmond has it as one of the lunch specials once or twice a week. I have to say that it's very good. The batter is lightly seasoned, the gravy is the white peppered creamy kind. On the side are real mashed potatoes, and the other day, being that sweet corn is in season, they had homemade (shaved off the cob) creamed corn instead of the usual green beans. Really good.

Frank

quote:

Originally posted by MikeSh

I've eaten and cooked CFS from 1 coast to the other and back again for 40 some years and this is what I've learned.
1) You use round steak that you tenderize or use cube steak, in a real butcher shop they run a round steak thru the tenderizer if ya ask them too.
2) You whip up some eggs with a pinch of salt and a lil cold water. You use any old flour and spice it up with S&P for sure and I always put in some garlic powder.
3) You dredge, dip & dredge again. I use a ziploc bag for the dredging part. Cuts down on the mess.
4) You fry the meat in a pan with a couple big spoons full of Crisco. I switched over to butter flavor a couple years ago.
5) Once all the meat is fried and sitting on a plate in a warm oven you add some of the leftover flour to the fry pan, stir up a roux, brown it some and then start adding milk tell ya get a nice gravy.
6) Serve with mashed taters and some greens.
One of the best things to every come out of Texas, excepting maybe both of my parents.

MikeS.

Mike:
I tried to fix CFS this past Friday evening. Pretty much followed your classic method as outlined above. Used cube steak bought at Food Lion. I didn't try to do any additional tenderizing/pounding. It came out stringy and tough. I don't know if I did something wrong or if it was just tough meat. I will say that the crispy coating and gravy from the drippings were great. But the tough meat ruined it. I probably need to try round steak that I tenderize/pound myself next time.

Frank

Chicken fried steaks accross Kansas:
http://www.explorekansas.org/chicken.html
....And Frank, YES! You have to pound your own. It's required for this course. I would sprinkle some flour on the steak also as you're using the back side of a knife to do both sides, both directions-that's what breaks the fibers down .
Bill

quote:

Originally posted by bill voss

Chicken fried steaks accross Kansas:
http://www.explorekansas.org/chicken.html
....And Frank, YES! You have to pound your own. It's required for this course. I would sprinkle some flour on the steak also as you're using the back side of a knife to do both sides, both directions-that's what breaks the fibers down .
Bill

Bill: That's a great link. And I'll get it right with the CFS next time! Thanks.

Frank

quote:

Originally posted by Bushie

Mr. Mayor, the terms are interchangeable as far as I'm concerned.

And, to tell the truth, I've only ordered CFS in the West a few times. Each time, it's been served with brown gravy, as yumbo experienced, so I stopped ordering it long ago.

I haven't ordered it that often out here in California, but I've never seen it served with brown gravy. We HATES brown gravy! Ick!

quote:

Originally posted by Lucky Bishop

...what's with that little pissant scoop of mashed potatoes? Triple that, and peel 'em the next time, fer cryin' out loud!

No! Don't peel them! That's the best part!

quote:

Originally posted by Lunza

quote:

Originally posted by Bushie

Mr. Mayor, the terms are interchangeable as far as I'm concerned.

And, to tell the truth, I've only ordered CFS in the West a few times. Each time, it's been served with brown gravy, as yumbo experienced, so I stopped ordering it long ago.

I haven't ordered it that often out here in California, but I've never seen it served with brown gravy. We HATES brown gravy! Ick!

Funny, but I've never seen it with anything else but a white gravy here in CA. Had one in Ventura yesterday, as a matter of fact-----CFS with biscuits and gravy and home fries at the Main Street Cafe and Steakhouse in Ventura. CFS was freshly made and only lightly battered. Same gravy on the biscuits---nice and white! Yummy way to start the morning!

quote:

Originally posted by EdSails

quote:

Originally posted by Lunza

quote:

Originally posted by Bushie

Mr. Mayor, the terms are interchangeable as far as I'm concerned.

And, to tell the truth, I've only ordered CFS in the West a few times. Each time, it's been served with brown gravy, as yumbo experienced, so I stopped ordering it long ago.

I haven't ordered it that often out here in California, but I've never seen it served with brown gravy. We HATES brown gravy! Ick!

Funny, but I've never seen it with anything else but a white gravy here in CA. Had one in Ventura yesterday, as a matter of fact-----CFS with biscuits and gravy and home fries at the Main Street Cafe and Steakhouse in Ventura. CFS was freshly made and only lightly battered. Same gravy on the biscuits---nice and white! Yummy way to start the morning!

Now I'm going to have to make some. Excuse me while I drool.

The best CFS on the Wild River's Coast is in Brookings, OR at a place called Whaleshead Resort, just north of town. Not only is the food great, but you have a wonderful ocean view along with it!

Mamaw Smith who lives next door does country steak every 4th Sunday. While a bit different than country fried steak, she does something to tenderize the cube steak and believe me it is tender.


Mamaw Smith first dips the steak in seasoned flour and browns it on both sides, then she puts it in a pan with a little water and onions, covers it with foil and puts it in the oven at 225 and lets it cook while she is at church which is generally about 3-4 hours.

She makes a Tennessee gravy out of the residuals adding a little flour and milk and more salt and pepper.

She generally serves this with fresh hot yeast rolls.

This has been a staple for at least 50 years.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

I made my CFS today, at last. Craving satisfied.

I seasoned the flour with a steak rub I bought while in Oregon recently. I figured this would work because those things have paprika, salt, pepper, etc. in them already. Yes, this is true; they also have a bit of sugar, which gave the CFS a different flavor than usual. Nevertheless, it was good to my palate.

I shallow-fried it in peanut oil.

The cream gravy was sort of tan colored because of the presence of tumeric in the steak rub, but what the heck.

I forgot to buy potatoes and didn't want to postpone this any longer, so instead made rice to go on the side. I loooooove rice and cream gravy.

Now I have to find something else to obsess about.

The best CFS in Houston is at the BAR_B_Q INN and has been for 50 years

I know I'm gonna get flamed, probably big time, for this post but here goes anyays..

Flame retardent spray being applied.......

I have decided that the CFS that I like best of all time has to be the 100% Angus beef CFS done by the Chili's chain. Yes, I said chain.

It has a great flavor, is almost always 100% tender, has a great breading, real mashed potatoes with a bit of the peel and a good commerical white gravy. At a decent price even.

Ok, flame away, I have my spray on.

MikeS.

No flames, but are you aware of the fact that most "Angus" beef does not come from Black Angus cattle? The only brand that guarantees there is even a little "Angus" in its beef is the Certified Angus Brand. There was a story on this a week or so ago in USA Today.

quote:

Originally posted by EdSails

quote:

Originally posted by Lunza

quote:

Originally posted by Bushie

Mr. Mayor, the terms are interchangeable as far as I'm concerned.

And, to tell the truth, I've only ordered CFS in the West a few times. Each time, it's been served with brown gravy, as yumbo experienced, so I stopped ordering it long ago.

I haven't ordered it that often out here in California, but I've never seen it served with brown gravy. We HATES brown gravy! Ick!

Funny, but I've never seen it with anything else but a white gravy here in CA. Had one in Ventura yesterday, as a matter of fact-----CFS with biscuits and gravy and home fries at the Main Street Cafe and Steakhouse in Ventura. CFS was freshly made and only lightly battered. Same gravy on the biscuits---nice and white! Yummy way to start the morning!

Ed and Lunza, I'm happy to hear that my experiences are apparently not normal.

This was in '86, and I stayed in Milpitas for 6 weeks helping transition my department to a company who had bought us. I was out there with a bunch of Texans who were moving with the company (I opted out of the offer).

We ate at 3 or 4 places where we ordered CFS, and we were served mystery meat, deep-fried, covered in gloppy brown gravy. I don't remember the names of the places, but they were not chains. As I stated in my earlier post, I finally gave up and never ordered CFS out west again.

Please forgive my "prejudice" toward your state.

However, I still ain't never orderin' it out there again!!

MikeSh,

I am not flamin' ya, but I gotta wonder if we had the same experience at Chili's with their CFS?

I had it at lunch a year or so ago, and it, I swear, tasted like something thawed and nuked. It certainly was NOT breaded and fried up fresh while I was there. Isn't Chili's one of those places that doesn't do fresh food to order? Just pre-packaged and nuked? Or maybe even thrown into a frier, honest, I just don't know.

I just remember that it was so salty I could hardly bear it. I am on a low-salt diet, so it was wrong of me to order it in the first place, so maybe that was part of the problem. CFS is supposed to be salty, right?

Just can't understand your approval there, pal..........

quote:

Originally posted by Michael Hoffman

No flames, but are you aware of the fact that most "Angus" beef does not come from Black Angus cattle? The only brand that guarantees there is even a little "Angus" in its beef is the Certified Angus Brand. There was a story on this a week or so ago in USA Today.

I did a search at USA Todays site, and the article you refered to was dated August 3rd and already in the archives... Pay to see deal... But I did find this which is probably the same story:

http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20040821/food.asp

quote:

Originally posted by Pwingsx

MikeSh,

I am not flamin' ya, but I gotta wonder if we had the same experience at Chili's with their CFS?

I had it at lunch a year or so ago, and it, I swear, tasted like something thawed and nuked. It certainly was NOT breaded and fried up fresh while I was there. Isn't Chili's one of those places that doesn't do fresh food to order? Just pre-packaged and nuked? Or maybe even thrown into a frier, honest, I just don't know.

I just remember that it was so salty I could hardly bear it. I am on a low-salt diet, so it was wrong of me to order it in the first place, so maybe that was part of the problem. CFS is supposed to be salty, right?

Just can't understand your approval there, pal..........

I don't know about your experience Pwingsx but I have had it numerous times now at several locations and it has been pretty darn good all of them.

Maybe I just need to get back to my Texas roots and rediscover the real thing??? Don't know though...

Taking the wheel, I veer this thread off the road and through a cornfield -

SCTV did a parody of 'The Grapes of Wrath' (available on their DVD collection) where the Joad family was heading back to Oklahoma. Grampa (Dave Thomas) kept rhapsodizing over the promised land of chicken-fried steaks...to an alarming degree.

quote:

Originally posted by Vince Macek

SCTV did a parody of 'The Grapes of Wrath' (available on their DVD collection) where the Joad family was heading back to Oklahoma. Grampa (Dave Thomas) kept rhapsodizing over the promised land of chicken-fried steaks...to an alarming degree.

If it's as good as their parody of "The Godfather," I have GOT to see it. :)

The best I've ever had was at the Stockyard Cafe in Amarillo, TX. Pan fried ribeye with a whisper-thin crust and an amazing milk gravy...

Drool...

I absolutely love Chicken Fried Steak. I grew up on it in MS, AL, GA and then TX. We used round steak that had to be pounded with the edge of a saucer. And the name came because it was breaded and fried like chicken. I've only run into Country Fried Steak when it changed locales.

One of the most unusual ones I had and learned to cook was from a truckstop in NE that covered almost 3/4 of the plate and was ground beef. The 'pattie/steak' was made first then frozen, then breaded and fried. Oh, to die for...or maybe it was because I could smoke in there too.

In the 80's there was (maybe still is) a place called Shorty's outside of, I believe, Floresville, TX where we often ate lunch. We could never finished our plates and we were big eaters! jennifer

Although it does not win the "best of" award for country- or chicken-fried steak in Aggieland, Hampton's Cafe in Bryan, Texas, serves the best country-fried steak in the metro area around Texas A&M University. Each steak is hand-dredged in a proprietary mix of ingredients and deep fried to crisp perfection. Broccoli side order was tender-crisp--a delicious accompaniment, rather than the usual soggy veggie afterthought.

Amusing fishing motif decor, wood-paneled walls, and hardwood floors give this small cafe a cozy appeal. Efficient service. It's a favorite among local professionals for lunch.

For years Cattleman's Cafe in Blue Ridge, TX had the best CFS around. Folks used to drive up from Dallas and down from Southern OK to get it. It was also round steak and the ladies would beat it with the edge of a saucer. They floured it and cooked it on a flat grill in a puddle of grease.

The cafe has changed owners numerous times over the years and sadly the original steak recipe has been lost. What I wouldn't give for a large with cream gravy on the fries right now.

For a great CFS, try Hickory Hollow. HTey have 3 or 4 locations in Houston. They have several sizes, the largest being over a pound before breading. We used to order them, eat half and keep the rest for dinner.

Pwingsx and MikeSh,

I share both of your experiences. I'd eaten it at a couple of Chili's and it was very good, so when one was opened in my town I naturally had to try the CFS. The first time it was absolutely wonderful. A week or two later it was tough and incredibly salty, and you could have hung wallpaper with the gravy.

Maybe they just have a consistency (pun intended) problem?

It seems like chicken fried steak is the real thing, full of steak, whild country fried steak is more likely to be full of bread and fillers and ground (mystery) meat, what my boys used to call
"chicken-fried-what's-inside."

Hey RickF,

I don't know much about Chili's overall, but aren't they similar to Applebee's anymore? Don't they primarily have frozen food that they simply nuke and serve? In which case, I wouldn't think there would be a lot of consistency problems -- in my not-so-humble-opinion, it would all be BAD, unfortunately.

Who knows? Perhaps my conspiracy-theory imagination thinks they may start as one thing and end as the other????

I just tried a neat roadfood place in Lewisville, TX called the Mill St. Cafe. Had very good CFS and the gravy was wonderful for breakfast. They also had a superb burger for lunch. And to top it off, they had sweet tea!

Still can't find a TX/OK style Chicken Fried Steak in South Louisiana between Lake Charles & Baton Rouge

I've been playing and came up with this recipe. I'm using it in my restaurant with some great comments.

4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup black pepper

Buttermilk

Drench steak in buttermilk, then dredge in seasoned flour, then drench again. I deep fry at 350 at this point, but you can double drench and dredge for a thicker crust, just be sure you drench before frying because it will have a flour taste if you don't.

And a hint: I also use this recipe for my chicken tenders but I always triple drench and double dredge these. I use the breast tenderloin and it's a MUST to fry at 325. They're so good they'll make you want to slap grandma.

quote:

Originally posted by Slick

I've been playing and came up with this recipe. I'm using it in my restaurant with some great comments.

4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup black pepper

Buttermilk

Drench steak in buttermilk, then dredge in seasoned flour, then drench again. I deep fry at 350 at this point, but you can double drench and dredge for a thicker crust, just be sure you drench before frying because it will have a flour taste if you don't.

And a hint: I also use this recipe for my chicken tenders but I always triple drench and double dredge these. I use the breast tenderloin and it's a MUST to fry at 325. They're so good they'll make you want to slap grandma.

Slick,

That looks very good.
What is the cut of meat that you use for the CFS?

Frank

Tenderized 1/4 lb round steak cutlets.

Y'all are making this transplanted Texan hungry this morning! I now live in the Washington, DC area and really miss down-home cooking.

I just found this website, so this response is really about a year over-due...it's directed at whoever was looking for good CFS in Grand Prairie. Forget Grand Prairie. Drive next-door to Arlington. In far west Arlingon on US 80 (Division Street) is Arlington Steakhouse. I haven't been there since I moved away six years ago, but traditionally, they served the best CFS around - complete with huge, fluffy rolls.

Greetings from the decidedly un-Southern Northeast...some of you CFS die-hards may turn up your noses at this, but I have to put a plug in for the Texas Roadhouse chain. I always get the CFS when I am there.

Cracker Barrel has a decent country fried steak. It is served with white gravy, and isn't too bad, although they tend to overcook them somewhat on occasion. Still, quite good if you can't get one anywhere else.

Just an FYI. I ran across this in a NY Times Just an FYI. I ran across this in a NY Times [url='http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/19/dining/19fall.html']article[/url] on wild game cooking in Texas: on wild game cooking in Texas:

"True to Texas tradition, the most beloved local preparation is chicken-fried back strap (the top loin that extends down the back on either side of the spine). The habit of pounding meat (traditionally round steak), dipping it in egg and milk, dredging it in flour twice and frying it in hot oil is so ingrained in the culinary persona here that the August issue of Texas Monthly magazine devoted a spread to chicken-fried everything, including bacon and foie gras.Though credited to cowboys, the cooking method was probably taken from 19th-century German settlers who breaded and fried veal cutlets for Wiener schnitzel."

As much as I love chicken fried steak, doing that to backstraps ought to be illegal.