Getting (country) fried on the weekend

You will notice, dear reader, as you peruse my cooking entries, that I do like to improvise and experiment, mostly because I like to try to create something that is just as tasty and is as close to my own as I can possibly come. I tend not to fool around with the instructions for desserts and baked goods, since improvisation will invariably produce detrimental results.  And, it flat won't taste good, either.

Much as with yesterday's entry, today's dinner is a modification of a recipe that I felt could use a little bit more liveliness.  We hadn't had it for a while, so I prepared country-fried steaks with cream gravy and mashed potatoes.  It's a bit rich, so we limit to maybe once a month or once every two months.

After we got home from our weekly shopping trip, I whipped up a quick snack with the leftover French bread from last night, some melted butter, garlic powder, and some Italian seasoning.  I topped this with some leftover Mexican 4-cheese blend, and popped it in the oven at 400º until the cheese was melted and the edges of the bread had browned slightly.  There it is -- my variation of garlic toast.  I have another recipe I do, usually around the holidays, and I'll share that with you when the time comes.

It was getting time to start the prep for dinner, and the first thing I needed to do was saute some diced onion until it was translucent.  This would be going in to the gravy later on, so it was okay to cook ahead and let sit until it was needed.

The onion I had was one of those large Spanish yellow onions, which worked out well because I could use half today, and save the rest for salads during the week.

The onion was cooked in about 2 tablespoons of butter and seasoned with salt and black pepper.  Once it started to turn translucent, and some of the pieces were browning on the edges, the pan was pulled from the heat and left to cool.

Note my fancy kosher salt holder.  That's quality plastic right there, boy.  Nothing but the best for my kitchen, let me tell you.

Next up was seasoning the steaks.  I put a tiny dot of olive oil on each, then used one of my Penzey's blends, and although it's advertised for chicken or fish, it worked great on the steaks.  You can substitute by using a blend of seasoned salt, garlic powder, pepper, and if you wish, some thyme and rosemary.  Or, you can just season with seasoned salty like the original recipe suggests.  Not gonna break my heart any; make it the way you like it.

With the steaks seasoned and set aside, I prepared the breading mix.  The container you see here is my Batter Pro.  Years ago, when I lived on the Frozen Tundra, we went to this store in the Sprawl of America that had the merchandise you only saw advertised on TV.  I tell you, this thing is a big work-saver, in that I only need this for my dry coating, and another bowl for the wet dip -- lots less to clean, it coats beautifully and evenly, and I really can't ask for any more than that.  I generally don't measure for this phase, but I'd guesstimate maybe a cup of all-purpose flour, about a half cup of yellow corn meal, and season with seasoned salt, garlic powder, and onion powder.  Mix it in good, and set aside until you're ready to cook the steaks.  Of course, if you don't have a Batter Pro, just use a nice big bowl filled as above.

When it's time to cook the steaks, melt about 4 tablespoons of shortening in a frying pan.  Place a broiler pan in the oven, or a sheet pan with a wire rack, and heat the oven to 275º.  You'll use the oven to hold the steaks while you prepare the gravy.

Beat two eggs in a medium-size bowl, and season with either the seasoned salt or the spice blend.  Dip the steaks in the egg, then coat with the dry coating mix.  Here's the before and after of the breading process. You want a nice, even coating of the flour/corn meal mix on each side, shaking off any excess before frying.  Set them on a clean, dry plate while you wait for the oil to get hot.

The excess coating really can't be saved, which is why I keep the batch small.  Let's turn our attention briefly to the potatoes, which are more whipped than mashed, but I don't care because they're still tasty.

Okay, so, we boil the potatoes in salted water, drain them, and place them back into the still-hot pot.  To this, I add a tablespoon and a half of butter, some minced garlic, black pepper, onion powder, and a dollop of horseradish.  Slam the lid back on and set it aside until the butter melts.  If possible, leaving it near (but not on) the burner you used to cook the potatoes will help speed the process along.  Once the butter's melted, break the potatoes into smaller pieces with your masher (or electric beaters on lowest setting, if you're like me and love modern convenience and have very vivid memories of hand-mashing forty pounds of boiled potatoes like I had to do in cooking school). Add some half-and-half, or plain milk if you prefer, and mash/whip until there's very few chunks of potato left.

Time for the payoff -- frying the steaks.  Place the steaks in your frying pan without crowding them, and cook for about three minutes or until the crust turns a nice golden color.  Turn and repeat for the other side.  The thickness of your steaks and the heat of the oil will determine how long you cook them.  I went with medium-high heat, and my steaks were about a half-inch thick, maybe less because I forgot my ruler today and I'm just guessing at this point.  once they're fried on both sides, place them in the oven on that pan I had you heat earlier and hold for service.  Reduce the heat on the burner to about medium.

Drain off the oil, and add the onions to the pan you fried the steaks in.  Add another tablespoon of butter, let this melt along with the butter that's already coating the onions, and sprinkle with flour.  Yes, we're making a roux.  Again, I don't use exact measurements, but what I look for is the roux to be solid when I'm whisking it, only to slowly melt when I leave it alone in the pan.  Cook this for a bit to get rid of the flour taste, then add about a cup and a half to two cups of milk or half-and-half.  Sprinkle in some beef bouillon granules (about a half teaspoon) and season with black pepper.  Cook until the gravy thickens up, stirring it constantly so it doesn't burn to the bottom of the pan.

And there it is -- fairly unadorned, but if you want to add some flair you can sprinkle this with some chopped parsley.

I served this with a 2009 Pinot Noir from California, although it would be just as good with a nice glass of sweet tea.

As you can see, I've been a bit busy this weekend, and it's off to the new job on Monday.  I'll be sure to update with how it went.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday.