Chicken Fried Steak (CFS) is an Austin staple. Usually a CFS is made from a fairly cheap cut of beef which has been tenderized to within an inch of it’s life. Being a big fan of slow cooked meats, and recently playing with Sous Vide cooking I was pretty sure I could make a very tender ( yet still nicely pink) CFS out of a quality steak.
The surprising standout of this dish was actually the fried potato. I had some left over mash from yesterday which I’d kneaded with some flour with thoughts of making gnocci. With all the hot oil around I decided to fry balls of it instead… The rustic round balls after frying looked a lot like small potatos and when bitten into yielded a very tasty soft creamy mash. I also made an entirely forgettable Puree with Daikon Radish.
Chicken Fried Steak
- A good quality Steak ( I used a NY strip )
- Flour
- Cream
- 1 Egg
- Salt & Pepper
- Milk
- Chicken or Beef stock
Season the steak generously with Salt and Pepper. Place the steak in a ziplock bag and pour in a dash of cream, seal the bag removing as much air as possible. If you have a vaccum sealer use that instead. Bring a pot of water up to 150F/65C and place the steak in it. Cook the steak for around 2 hours like this.
When the steak is done, remove from the bag and pour the cream into a small saucepan. Remove any large bits of fat from the outside of the steak to improve the eatability of it. Dredge the steak through some flour making sure it’s well coated, then dredge through a egg/milk mix and dredge in the flour again.
Bring enough oil to completely submerge the steak up to temperature and while it’s heating prepare the gravy. Add some milk and stock to the cream in the saucepan and whisk in a tablespoon of flour. Bring it up to a simmer whisking frequently. When its thick enough to stick to the back of a spoon remove it from the heat.
Now that the oil is up to temperature, place the steak carefully in the oil and cook until the batter is nicely browned. Make sure the oil is very hot so that the batter browns quickly without cooking the steak which is already a beautiful medium rare.
Heirloom Tomato Salsa
- 1 large Heirloom Tomato
- half a red onion
- a clove of garlic
- half a bunch of Cilantro ( or Coriander )
- a lemon
- a rehydrated chipotle chillie ( seeds removed )
- Salt and Pepper
Finely chop up all the ingredients. If you want to remove some of the bite from the onion place it in some water with a drop of vinegar for a few minutes, then dry carefully. Season to taste just before serving.
Creamy Fried Potato
- Yesterday’s Creamy Potato Mash
- Flour
Add a few handfuls of flour to the potato and knead well. Roll it into a ball and refridgerate for at least an hour ( overnight is better ). Take the potato out of the fridge and roll into balls, flour the outsides to stop them sticking to your hands. Fry them in the hot oil until outside browns.
