Ree Drummond's Chicken Fried Steak Secret For A Perfectly Golden Crust

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Chicken fried steak — not to be confused with country fried, the somewhat similar schnitzel, or plenty of other proteins that are battered and bubbled to a crisp finish — is a hot oil marvel if there ever was one. Although the Southern favorite also enjoys worldwide acclaim, one potentially lingering mystery must be resolved: Chicken fried steak does not contain poultry of any kind. But it is fried as though one might fry chicken, and food world personality Ree Drummond has a special trick to achieve some golden color insurance: She adds a bit of butter to her frying oil.

There are more potential oil and batter combinations that might lead to your new favorite chicken fried steak recipe than you might ever have time to try. Drummond's is appealing because it's a little adaptation that could make a noticeable difference with minimal effort. After her steaks are "heavily breaded," as she describes them in a clip from "The Pioneer Woman" shared on Facebook, they're pan-fried in "oil and a little butter, for color." The finished beef ends up with a lovely, deep hue with a flourish that's simple enough to try for yourself the next time you're chicken frying some steaks.

Chicken fried steaks are typically made with more affordable cuts whose prices can actually rival your everyday bird's. Many recipes, including Ree Drummond's, specifically recommend cube steak, which is a portion of beef round that's been pre-pulverized before packing, giving it its signature dimples. You could also buy an equally thin selection from elsewhere on the cow and bash it to heck with a meat mallet to tenderize for a similar effect, but whatever you do, don't splurge in this fry-cloaked case.

Unlike the generally accepted cattle choice, batter seasonings can vary as wildly as you want them to. Flour should be stirred with salt and pepper at least, plus flavor amplifiers like smoked paprika or red pepper flakes. You'll also want to whisk together eggs and milk for a wash that gets it all to stick. The steaks go from dry mix to the wet and back again before they're set aside while the fat heats. If you're used to using something like canola exclusively, here's where Drummond's twist comes in: melt about a tablespoon of butter in with it over medium, too. The oil should hover at around 350 degrees Fahrenheit, which is best gauged with a dedicated fry thermometer like ThermoPro's digital temperature gauge. The steaks only take a couple of minutes on each side to finish before you can get to work on your compulsory chicken fried steak gravy.