Chicken Fried Steak with Green Chile Gravy

Chicken fried steak came about as a way to make tough or small cuts of beef go a little further. The gravy, made from the drippings, utilized every bit of the beef and stretched it to feed more mouths than a plain grilled steak could. Over time, it became the preferred way to eat beef in a lot of Southern families. There’s not a true Southern diner in the United States that doesn’t have a good Chicken Fried Steak on the menu.

When I say that I know how to make the crispiest chicken fried steak in the entire world, I’ve got some credentials to back it up. Once upon a time, a big time Chef named Bobby Flay challenged me to a chicken fried steak cook-off on a show called “Beat Bobby Flay.” Y’all, guess who beat Bobby Flay? This chuckwagon cowboy cook right here. It was a great time cooking with an excellent chef, and everyone got to eat some good chicken fried steak.

This recipe is my family’s award-winning Chicken Fried Steak with a kicked up green chile gravy. I love green chilies, and they do make just about everything taste better.

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Choosing a Cut of Beef For Chicken Fried Steak

The origin of chicken fried steak is taking a tough piece of meat, pounding it out flat, and battering and frying it to make it go a little longer. Nowadays, you can make chicken fried steak with any kind of beef, but I prefer to use a bottom round cut – to me, it has some more flavor. You can use any cut of beef, just cut off any large areas of fat, and pound it flat.

You can usually ask your butcher to run the steak through the cuber (I prefer three times through), but if this isn’t available, just pound it flat with a mallet until it’s about a 1/4 inch thick.

Chicken Fried Steak is All About the Batter

You make chicken fried steak by dredging the tenderized beef back and forth between a flour based dry mixture and a buttermilk based wet mixture. The dry mixture is a combination of flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and Original Seasoning (or your favorite Seasoned Salt).

Tip: The cornstarch is to thicken the batter and to help it adhere to the meat. The baking powder is to make the batter pop, creating fluffy air pockets and a crispier crunch.

The wet mixture is egg, buttermilk, and baking powder. Mix well.

Tip: lightly mix 1/3 cup of the wet ingredients into the dry mixture. This will create extra crispiness.

Start by dredging the meat in the wet ingredients. Shake the meat off a little, and then place in the bowl with the dry ingredients. Cover the steak all over and pat with your hands. Then, repeat. It’s the second dredging that is going to give the crust its volume and crunch!

Tip: Once you have dredged everything two full times, set on a wire rack and let it rest for five minutes. It’s important to use a wire rack if you can, because the airflow on the top and bottom is going to let that batter get good and sticky, which will lead to a better crunch.

Deep Frying the Chicken Fried Steak

Preheat your oil to 375 – the meat will reduce the temperature of the oil to around 350, which is about what we want it.

Tip: Use a good high smoke point oil – Peanut, Canola, or Creamy Fry Oil from Sams Club.

Place the chicken fried steak into the oil with tongs, and leave until you can see the batter turning golden on the sides. Once that batter is set, you can gently flip the meat over. It’s done when it’s a deep golden brown on both sides.

Tip: It’s always best to serve Chicken Fried Steak immediately, but if you have to wait a few minutes, preheat an oven to 170 degrees. Lay out the chicken fried steak on a cookie sheet, with a piece of bread in between each piece of meat. The oven and the bread will keep the batter from getting soggy and keep everything nice and crispy.

Green Chile Gravy

Add one tablespoon of butter to a pre-heated cast iron skillet. Take about 1/3 cup of grease from the fryer and add it to the skillet.

Tip: Make sure you have a spatula with some holes in it to mash the lumps out of the gravy.

Sift the flour into the skillet and whisk well. Use the spatula to continually mash out the lumps. On the ranch I like to use canned milk for gravy, but when I’m close to an ice box I prefer heavy cream. Continually stir while you add the cream. Stir in the roasted green chilies. It won’t change the color, but will add a burst of flavor in every bite. Season to taste with Original Seasoning or salt & pepper.

Pour over the chicken fried steak and serve with mashed potatoes, green beans, & biscuits.

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Chicken Fried Steak with Green Chile Gravy – Cowboy Kent Rollins

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

Wet Batter

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoon baking powder

Dry Batter

• 2 ½ cups flour
• ½ cup cornstarch
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoon Kent’s Original Seasoning or your favorite all-purpose seasoning
• Oil for frying

Green Chile Gravy

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoons meat grease drippings or bacon grease
• 3 to 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 3 to 4 tablespoons diced green chilies or to taste
• 4 5 oz bottom round steaks

Instructions

• You can purchase already tenderized steak, however, you can also tenderize the meat yourself with a meat hammer by pounding out both sides of the steaks until about ⅛ to ¼-inch thick.
• For the wet mixture: In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and 2 teaspoons of baking powder.
• For the dry mixture: In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and Original seasoning, or substitute.
• Pour ⅓ cup of the wet mixture into the dry mixture and lightly mix.
• Dip the meat into the wet mixture and into the flour mixture to generously coat. Shake off any excess, then dip back into the wet mixture followed by the dry mixture, to double coat. Lay the meat on a wire rack and repeat with the remaining steaks. Let the steaks rest for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, add enough oil to a deep Dutch oven or fryer to deep fry and heat to 350 degrees F.
• Slowly add the meat to the oil, and fry about 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until a rich golden brown. Strain from the oil and let rest of a wire rack. Serve warm with gravy.
• For the gravy: Melt the butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Stir in the meat grease.
• Sift in the flour and with a flat spatula, begin mashing and stirring the mixture constantly until incorporated and slightly browned, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Slowly stir in the cream and continue mashing and stirring to create a smooth consistency. Keep cooking until the mixture thickens. Stir in the green chilies. Serve warm.