Warmer weather on the horizon means that Mike and I are planning on heading out to our patio more, which means drinks and nibbles as the nights start to get longer. I hardly ever (read: never) drink without having something to snack on and even though I’m not the biggest indulger, I absolutely love coming up with drink pairings. There’s something so satisfying about figuring out what goes with what.
I partnered up with Dark Horse Wine to bring you this unexpected pairing of Sauvignon Blanc with crispy, crunchy chicken fried steak bites and white wine sausage gravy. Their light, crisp, refreshing white is the perfect foil against deep-fried deliciousness. All of their wines are under $10, so they’re perfect value for money.
I’m sure I’ve said this before, but I’m still not sure why battered, deep-fried steak is called chicken-fried. I kind of get it, but at the same time, deep-fried steak makes sense to me too. Regardless, chicken fried steak is delicious. I had the chance to have the real deal (I hope!) while I was in Dallas last year and I was absolutely smitten. So smitten that I had two chicken fried steaks in under 24 hours. It was okay though because I was only in town for two days, so really, it just meant that I ate one for lunch one day, and then again the next.
As much as I love the knife and fork aspect of chicken fried steak, I wanted to create a more bar-style snack to go with the Sauvignon Blanc. It wasn’t much of a stretch for me to create steak bites, seeing as I am absurdly obsessed with miniature foods. Most people don’t think of Sauvignon Blanc as something to have with bar snacks, but I really liked the contrast of the delicate citrus notes paired with the in-your-face flavor of the steak bites.
This is my kind of steak: bite-sized, deep-fried, dip-able, and delicious. Cheers to Spring!
Bite Sized Chicken Fried Steak
serves 2
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 lb top round cube steak, cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 cup flour
- 2 tablespoons potato starch or cornstarch
- 1/8 teaspoon each of: paprika, garlic powder, cayenne
- 2 tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- oil for frying (I like grapeseed or rice bran)
Preheat the oven to 250°F.
Season the steak cubes generously with salt and pepper.
In a shallow bowl, whisk together the flour, potato starch and spices. Whisk the buttermilk into the flour. This helps create extra crunchy bits. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can skip this step. In another shallow bowl, lightly whisk the egg.
Toss the steak cubes into the flour mix, then the whisked egg, then back into the flour. Let floured steak pieces rest on a plate/tray while you heat up your oil – it helps with crunch.
Place a cooling rack over a rimmed baking sheet lined with paper towels. Heat an inch of oil in a high-sided, heavy bottomed pot or skillet over medium high heat until oil reaches 350°F.
Fry the steak pieces, being careful not to crowd the pan, until deeply golden brown and crispy, about 5-6 minutes, flipping if needed. Drain the steak bites on your prepared rack and keep warm in the oven while you make your gravy.
Inspired by: The Candid Appetite
Sausage White Wine Gravy
makes about 1 cup gravy
- 1/4 pound sausage, removed from the casing
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 3/4 cups milk
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Over medium-high heat, in heavy bottomed skillet, cook the sausage, breaking into pieces, until brown and cooked through. Sprinkle on the flour, stir and cook for a minute or two. Pour the wine into the pan in a slow stream, stirring constantly. Add the milk and cook, stirring frequently until the gravy thickens. Season with salt and plenty of freshly ground pepper. Enjoy hot.
This post was sponsored by Dark Horse Wine – follow them on Twitter and Instagram for other unexpected wine pairings. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that help keep I am a Food Blog up and running!
We raise our own beef so always looking for fun things to do with cube steak. I will say it took about 3 – 4 minutes to get to golden brown color and we thought it needed a bit more zip in flavor. May marinade the meat first and really increase the seasonings to 1 teaspoon instead of 1/8! Tasted good with BBQ sauce, and ranch. Was very easy. Just need to tweet for us