Chicken-Fried Steak, Gravy, and Potatoes

This is my favorite meal that my Mom cooks. I always request it on my birthday!
She makes it with fresh deer steak... yum! Another alternative would be beef steak. This week, we made it with pork chops. And... it still hit the spot!!!

Chicken-Fried Steak

1. Beat the steak to a thin pulp, to tenderize it. (this is Dante's favorite job. He carried the cutting board around the house, beating the steak while chasing Sierra.)

2. Beat 2 eggs with salt & pepper. Dip the steak first in the eggs, then coat thoroughly in flour. (Dante: "now I see why it's  called 'chicken-fried'... because you coat it in eggs, which are chickens.")

3. Fry in a skillet in 1/2 inch of hot oil until golden brown, then drain on paper towels. (This is a time-consuming process if you're cooking many steaks... our skillet can only hold 2 pieces at a time, so be prepared to spend some time on this!)

Cream Gravy

1. After you finish cooking the steak, rinse out the skillet well and add fresh oil.
2. Once the oil is well-heated, add flour to make a thick roux. Stir continually. Once this mixture is thick, add milk, salt, and pepper. Stir constantly. You can always add more milk to make it thinner, but you can't add more flour later... so add it gradually.

Serve with mashed potatoes. I just learned the quickest way to make potatoes... instead of boiling, fork and cook in the microwave for 6-8 minutes. (You can peel before or after... or not at all... I just leave the skins mixed in.) Then blend with butter, milk, and spices, as usual.