How to fry chicken-fried steak
Shallow-fry chicken-fried steak in oil at 350°F (175°C) for about 1½ min per side (2 batches; oil halfway up a cast-iron skillet), until golden brown. Treat the time as a starting point and confirm with a food thermometer. Whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb: 145°F (63°C), then rest for 3 minutes.
- Oil temperature
- 350°F (175°C)
- Method
- Shallow fry
- Starting time
- 1½ min per side2 batches; oil halfway up a cast-iron skillet
- Piece size
- 3–4 oz cube steaks pounded to 1/4 inch
- Done when
- golden brown
- Safe internal temp
- 145°F (63°C) + 3 min rest
Numbers from Food Network Kitchen: The Best Chicken-Fried Steak · safe temperature from the FoodSafety.gov chart. Celsius values are rounded.
Getting it right
- Use a wide, heavy skillet with enough oil to come partway up the food, and keep it well below the rim.
- Heat the oil to 350°F (175°C); a clip or instant-read thermometer takes the guessing out of it.
- Pat the food dry before any coating. Water on the surface spits in hot oil and steams the crust soft.
- Lay it in away from you, leaving space between pieces.
- Leave it alone until the underside is set and golden, then turn once with long tongs.
- Drain on a rack rather than paper so the underside stays crisp.
- Lift a piece out and check its thickest part with an instant-read thermometer before serving. Whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb: 145°F (63°C), then rest for 3 minutes.
Why the temperature matters: oil that is too cool lets the coating soak up fat before it sets, so the outside goes heavy and pale. Oil that is too hot browns the outside before the middle is ready. The thermometer is how you hold the window between the two.
Golden chicken cutlets