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You're the STAR Blog Hop & HOME Features

T his linky party is the perfect place to show off your creativity! Share your blog posts, for a chance to be featured next month!     WELCOME to the August 2022  " You're the Star " Blog Hop! Before we continue onto the Linky party I wanted to share from my blog: Keep cool during these last few weeks of summer with my delicious 3-Ingredient No Churn Ice Cream ! ___________________________ WELCOME to  HOME feature week of the August 2022  " You're the STAR " blog hop! Meet your HOME week Hosts   This week is HOME feature week Swing by the Home Hosts' Blogs: Bev from Eclectic Red Barn Cindy from Mom, the Lunch Lady Niki from Life as a LEO Wife This is a month long Linky party featuring YOU! There will be 4 different features each week and 4 different feature categories.  Just to be clear - this is NOT a themed party - you may link up ANY family-friendly blog posts any day of each month.   The "theme" occurs in our weekly features:

Skinny Chicken Fried Steak

 A healthier chicken fried steak? By baking these steaks, you still get the crunchy breading, without all the oil and fat! This popular comfort food still packs all it's classic flavours, but looses half the fat!

One way I like to save money on groceries, is by shopping early in the morning, and checking out the discounted meat section. Every grocery store has a section, where they put meat that is close to it's best before date, at a discounted price. It's still perfectly good meat, it just needs to be sold quickly, before it reaches it's date. Once you place it in your freezer, it's just like any other meat you've purchased. A few weeks ago, I found some cube steaks, at 40% off. They weren't very expensive to begin with, but with the additional discount I got 4 good sized steaks for around $3. Who could pass up a deal like that?

I don't buy cube steak all that often. I mean other than chicken fried steak, the only other way I've ever eaten cube steak, was the way my mom made it. She would fry it (to a very well done state, LOL) and then would deglaze the frying pan with tomato juice, scrapping up all the yummy brown bits. Once the tomato juice had
reduced to a thick sauce, she'd toss in some cooked pasta, or rice. It's pretty tasty, but I know that my SO would be mortified if I ever cooked steaks to that extent. So, I planned on making country fried steak, but didn't really want to fry it. I decided to see if I could make a baked version, that would be healthier. I still wanted the crispy crust, just not all the oil.

I processed my soda crackers with some olive oil, which insured a nice crisp crust. For the gravy, I used chicken bouillon, with some beef stock and low fat milk. I couldn't bring myself to using 1/2 C of shortening to fry the steaks and then using the remaining fat to make the gravy, LOL. Not that it isn't delicious, I just didn't want to feed my everyone that much fat in one meal. I must say that the steaks turned out great and only took about 10-15 minutes in the oven. The crust was crispy, the gravy was yummy and I didn't feel guilty about eating dinner. 

Our whole meal, including the mashed potatoes I served with the steaks, only came to 8 points on the Purple WW plan!

What is Chicken Fried Steak?

Chicken fried steak, or country fried steak is an American dish, consisting of a beef cutlet (usually tenderized cube steak), coated with flour and either deep fried, or pan fried. It is most often associated with Southern United States cuisine. The name chicken fried, comes from the similarity to deep fried chicken. Deep fried versions are usually called Chicken Fried Steak, while pan fried versions are called Country Fried Steak. Both versions are served with a creamy gravy.

What makes this version of Chicken Fried Steak skinny?

My version of chicken fried steak is lower in fat, due to it being baked and not fried. The gravy is also lightened up, since it also does not contain any fat. By adding a small amount of olive oil to the soda crackers, it ensures a crispy crust, without frying in oil.

How do I make Skinny Chicken Fried Steak?

Chicken fried steak is prepared by using thin cuts of steak, that have been tenderized. Season the steaks and dredged in flour, then egg and finally into the cracker/oil mixture.

The steaks are then baked to preferred doneness and served with a creamy gravy.

Prepare the gravy by mixing the beef broth, with chicken bouillon and low fat milk. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Whisk in the cornstarch and simmer until thickened.

PIN IT!!!

Equipment needed for this recipe

  • 3 shallow dishes
  • food processor
  • baking sheet
  • measuring spoons
  • measuring cups
  • whisk
  • small bowl
Skinny Chicken Fried Steak

4 cube steaks (1- 1 1/2 lbs)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 sleeve unsalted soda crackers
3 Tbs olive oil
1/3 C flour
salt & pepper
1 egg
splash of water
1 Tbs chicken bouillon powder
1 C beef broth
1/2 C low fat milk
2 Tbs cornstarch
3 Tbs water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Using a food processor, process the soda crackers and olive oil, to coarse crumbs; place in a shallow dish. Place flour in a second shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. Whisk the egg, with a splash of water in a third shallow dish. 

Take each steak and season it with garlic powder and onion powder. Dredge steaks in flour, then coat with egg mixture, finally coating it with the soda crackers. Place coated steaks on a cookie sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, until coating begins to turn golden brown and steaks are cooked to preferred doneness (we like med-well). Remove steaks to a cooling rack, and tent with foil to rest.

While steaks are resting, whisk the chicken bouillon into the beef broth and milk, in a small sauce pot. Cook over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil.  Mix the cornstarch in a bowl with 3 Tbs water. Reduce heat and whisk the cornstarch slurry into the broth. Simmer on low, whisking until gravy thickens. Serve steaks smothered in gravy.

I'm sharing this recipe with these linky parties

Comments

  1. looks like a yummy katsu chicken steak! will give it a try

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  2. I'm needing all the skinny I can get these days. Thanks for sharing your tips on making a healthier meal. Pinned for later and I can't wait to try this recipe.

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  3. This looks great! I don't think I've ever had this kind of chicken fried steak before. I must try it out! Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Something to try when my daughter next visists. It's useful to have a few skinny options to try now and again.

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  5. Being from the south, Chicken Fried Steak is on many menus. I like the option to make it skinny and still taste delicious.

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  6. What a smart and delicious way to enjoy chicken fried steak! The use of soda crackers is genius!!

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  7. Love this, could always use a Chicken Fried Steak recipe! I really like the "skinny" of it, you know so you can eat more...hahaha! Thank you for sharing!

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  8. love that its lower in fat than the usual recipes by baking and good tip when grocery shopping I do that too with fruits :)

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  9. Great job making this skinny! Baking is a great solution!

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  10. Oh this looks great! I love that it is a skinny version. I am going to try this with my husband because this is one of his favorite things!

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  11. It looks so yummy, I wish I had it ready to eat :))

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  12. You and I are the same; that is also how I save money on meat. I buy meat when they are close to their expiration date, and I save so much money that way 😁.
    I love this recipe, I'm a big fan of fried chicken, but I'm excited about your healthy option. Thanks for the tips.

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  13. Such a classic comfort food! I remember my grandmother making country fried steak, it always made the house smell amazingly delicious, and everyone was happy because it's our favorite dinner! Thanks for helping me relive those memories :)

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  14. Thanks for sharing at the What's for Dinner party. Really glad you stopped by. Have a fabulous weekend.

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