Country Steak - A Local Delicacy

Around these parts, lotsa folks eat food that is hearty, salty, and DELICIOUS. You know that I'm super into weird flavors and vegetables, spicy foods, and pretending that I'm Japanese, but sometimes there's just nothing better than a great home cooked meal that's simple and filling.

That's what this is!

I made this for my pretty sister Emily a few weeks ago after she was sweet enough to house sit for me while Jay and I went to Asheville - hopefully the meal served as half thank you, half bribe to come back and help me out again!

Country Fried Steak

This is so easy and delicious and requires VERY few ingredients - you'll love it! I like to make a lot - this is great on sandwiches the next day!

1 lb cube steak
salt
pepper
flour
oil, for frying
beef broth or stock
Worcestershire sauce
butter
cooked rice, for serving

Cube steak is super duper cheap and has been extra tenderized so it works well in this capacity - try it if you never have!

Let the cube steak thaw if you purchased it frozen and dry out a little bit - blot it with paper towels if you need to!

Coat both sides of the meat with salt. Use pepper too, if you like! I prefer to have the meat salty and the gravy peppery, but that's just me!

Meanwhile, bring about ½ inch oil to medium/medium-high heat in a frying pan. Pour some flour in a plate, and, using tongs, lightly dip each side of the steak into the flour, then shake off the excess.

When the oil's nice and hot, put the steaks in to fry. The steaks should sizzle A LOT when you put them in the oil - turn up the heat if you need to! Don't cram all the steaks in at once - it's fine to do this in batches and keep the cooked steaks warm in a 200 degree oven while the rest of the steaks finish.

See how nice and buubbly the oil is? That's perfect! After about 3 minutes, once the edges turn brown, flip the steaks and fry them for 2 more minutes on the second side. The outsides should be really brown. When the steaks are cooked, drain them on paper towels.

Then, drain all but 3 tablespoons of the frying oil from the pan and put it back on the heat. Sprinkle flour over the entire pan, add a pat of butter, and whisk it into the fat until a paste forms. Let the flour/fat paste cook for one minute, and then slowly add in beef broth and whisk constantly until the gravy is smooth and the consistency you like - I use about 2 cups of broth for a medium-thin gravy.