Chicken Fried Steak

Have you ever noticed how much a good chicken fried steak will run you at a halfway decent restaurant? On the average you are looking at a dish that will cost a minimum of $10.00 at the lowest end, well over $20.00 at the higher end. Well, if you are in the mood for some chicken fried steak and don't want to spend that much money on it, simply use this recipe to make your own.

Ingredients:

• 4 1/4 pound cube steaks
• 1 cup milk
• 3/4 cup flour (all-purpose)
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons flour (all-purpose)
• 1 teaspoon salt (divided)
• 3/4 teaspoon hot sauce (your favorite brand)
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper (divided)

Recipe:

1. Make breading and dredge. Using a shallow bowl, or a deep dish, begin mixing the breading. This is done by mixing 3/4 teaspoon salts, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and the flour into the bowl. Use a fork or a whisk to scramble everything together until it is evenly mixed. In a separate bowl pour the butter milk, and your hot sauce. Stir the milk and hot sauce together until it is evenly mix.
2. Dredge. Perform this step one steak at a time until you have finished each steak. Dredge the steaks through the flour mix, then submerging the steak in the milk mixture, and then dredge it through the flour again. Set each steak aside on a piece of waxed paper for later use.
3. Heat oil. Pour 1/4 cup of the canola oil into a large skillet and turn the heat to medium high. Allow the oil to heat up completely (about three or four minutes) before you begin frying the steaks.
4. Fry steaks. When the oil is heated up you can start frying the steaks. Carefully lower the steaks into the heated oil, being careful of any popping. Cook the steaks for no more than five minutes on one side, and then flip and repeat.
5. Drain. Once you have cooked the steaks for five minutes on each side, remove them from the oil. Set each steak onto a small pile of paper towels (about three or four for each steak), and allow the grease to drain off. While you are doing this, you can make the gravy. Make sure that you flip the steaks at least once to remove all the grease.
6. Make gravy. In a separate skillet pour two tablespoons of oil into the skillet, and then whisk in two tablespoons of flour. Have the heat set to medium and whisk the oil and flour continually for about five minutes, or until the mixture is a golden brown color. Slowly add in the milk mixture, continuing to whisk, until you have reached your desired consistency, and it is bubbling lightly (this takes roughly 10 minutes). Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper (or to taste), remove from heat and serve.

When you are finished making the gravy, you are pretty much ready to serve the dish. Keep in mind that you will still need to have a couple of side dishes to go along with the steak. Some classic ideas would be to cook a vegetable of some sort (such as green beans, corn, peas, or carrots), and some mashed potatoes. The recipe as it is presented here will create four servings, so if you need more simply adjust the recipe accordingly.