By Case D. Fischer

It’s Father’s Day Sunday and I’m not going to lie – I am looking forward to it! Dads get celebrated, waited on and cooked for. I already know what I am requesting for our Father’s Day meal – a good old Chicken Fried Steak with Sausage Gravy. Sometimes, it seems that particular types of foods fall out of favor at different times in history. These days, people don’t speak very highly of anything fried, but I say, it’s Father’s Day, the perfect day to indulge in something as delicious as this.

I have two different memories of eating Chicken Fried Steak growing up. One was my mother’s, of course. She would usually make something like that for a Sunday dinner. I distinctly remember learning the importance of the tenderized steak from an early age, and she would serve it with either mashed potatoes or extra wide egg noodles. I am sure there were green beans or something else too, but they weren’t too important to me. The other strong Chicken Fried Steak memory I have was the Deluxe Diner on E. Main Street. I guess it was special because usually at the Deluxe, we ordered hamburgers, but sometimes we got to order Chicken Fried Steak – that was a real treat.

I have eaten many Chicken Fried Steaks in my lifetime and everyone has their own special twist when making them, but one of my favorites that I have come across is the recipe I am going to share with you today, which is topped with Sausage Gravy. Now, just in case anyone doesn’t know the basics of frying a steak, let me enlighten you. You start with a tenderized cut of beef (learned that from my mother) – any cut will do, but traditionally an inexpensive cube steak is used. The steak is tossed in seasoned flour, dipped into an egg mixture, and coated again in flour-exactly like fried chicken – hence the name. It’s tender and infused with flavor, and when smothered in gravy you feel that you have never eaten anything so good.

Now gravy is the key, and when it comes to gravy, there are no limits to its uses. The Sausage Gravy we are talking about today can be poured over warm biscuits, potatoes, eggs, and even toast, so remember you can use the gravy recipe for anything. Take it from me – almost every dad wants a Chicken Fried Steak, and this Sunday would be a great day to sit down at the table with him and ask him what his childhood memories about Chicken Fried Steak are – maybe he ate at the Deluxe Diner too!

Ingredients :

For Gravy:
1 lb pork sausage
1 tbsp butter
⅓ cup all purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
1 tsp thyme
½ tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt & pepper

For Steak:
4 cube steaks
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
¼ cup cornstarch
2 large eggs
½ cup whole milk
3 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp thyme
1 ½ tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp salt, divided
2 tsp pepper, divided
2 cups Canola oil (or any neutral, high smoke point oil)

Directions :

For Gravy

1. Add 1lb ground sausage into a medium skillet over medium heat.

2. Once sausage is cooked, add flour. Mix in the flour with the ground beef until absorbed. Add in milk. Reduce heat to medium-low. Once the milk starts to thicken, add in seasonings, & stir. Serve immediately over steak and mashed potatoes.

For Steak

1. In a large bowl whisk flour, corn starch, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, & pepper.

2. In a separate large bowl, whisk together eggs and milk.

3. Lightly season the steaks with salt & pepper. Dip steaks, one at a time, into flour mixture. Coat both sides into flour. Dip steak into egg mixture. Place steak back into seasoned flour mixture & coat well. Place on a baking sheet (to ensure flour doesn’t fall off, sprinkle the base of the baking sheet with some of the flour mix. Set aside for 25 minutes.

4. In a medium frying pan, add oil over medium heat (to test the oil, sprinkle flour into oil, if it sizzles, the oil is hot and ready).

5. Fry steak on each side until a golden brown. About 5-6 minutes. Set fried steaks over a paper towel to catch excess oil.

6. Serve with mashed potatoes, biscuits, gravy, and your favorite vegetable.