Chicken Fried Steak (1914)

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Another food item to check on America's Historical Newspapers & the  
historical Dallas Morning News. This is STILL not in the OED ("miserable on  food")?
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_http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/chi
cken_fried_steak_cfs/_ 
(http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/chicken_fried_steak_cfs/) 
...
 
Chicken fried steak (CFS) is one of the most popular dishes in Texas. It  
contains no chicken. The exact origins of the dish are unclear. 


_http://whatscookingamerica.net/Beef/ChickenFriedSteak.htm_ 
(http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php?URL=http://whatscookingamerica.net/Beef/ChickenFriedSteak.h
tm)   
In Texas, the reigning queen of comfort food or down-home cooking is  
chicken-fried steak, or as Texans affectionately call it CFS. Every city, town,  and 
village in Texas takes prides in their CFS. 
(...) 
You might be  surprised to learn that there is no chicken in Chicken-Fried 
Steak. It is  tenderized round steak (a cheap and tough piece of beef) made like 
fried chicken  with a milk gravy made from the drippings left in the pan. 
(...)  
Although not official, the dish is considered the state dish of Texas.  
According to a Texas Restaurant Associate, it is estimated that 800,000 orders  of 
Chicken-Fried Steak are served in Texas every day, not counting any prepared  
at home.  
1844-1850 - The origin of the Chicken-Fried Steak probably comes from the  
German people who settled in Texas from 1844 to 1850. As Wiener Schnitzel is a  
popular German dish that is made from veal, and because veal was never popular 
 in Texas and beef was, the German immigrants probably adapted their popular 
dish  to use the tougher cuts of beef available to them.  
_http://www.texascooking.com/features/june2002chickenfriedsteak.htm_ 
(http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php?URL=http://www.texascooking.com/features/june2002c
hickenfriedsteak.htm)   
Chicken Fried Steak - A Texas Tradition Revisited 
by David Bulla  
(...) 
Why is it called “Chicken Fried Steak?” Well, in the descriptive  name we 
can find the reason for all the problems associated with the dish. It’s  
supposed to be a piece of steak, fried in a pan in the same way that you would  make 
real old-fashioned fried chicken. But these days, 99 percent of the  
restaurants selling fried chicken tend to use a deep fryer to cook the chicken.  So, 
logically, restaurants also tend to use a deep fryer to cook a piece of beef  
that resembles fried chicken! So, let’s not call this dish “chicken fried” any  
longer. The term is a little confusing. Instead, let’s call it “pan fried.” 
It’s  a more accurate description.  
So, now we’re talking about have “Pan Fried Steak”. Well, that sounds a  
little bland and non-descript, and could be anything. Let’s make sure everyone  
knows where it’s from. Why not call it something like “Texas-Style Pan Fried  
Steak.” But what is the “steak?” Cubed steak? Well that would work, but not 
for  our purposes here. I don’t even know what cut of beef a cubed steak comes 
from!  We need to lift this up to a new level. Let’s describe a cut of steak 
here.  Sirloin would work well, and it’s inexpensive. You definitely don’t 
want to use  an expensive tender cut that would defeat the whole purpose of the 
dish. Who  would want a chicken fried filet mignon? So we arrive finally at the 
properly  descriptive and tempting “Texas-Style Pan Fried Sirloin.” Not bad 
at all.  
(...) 
Now we get to one of the most important components of this  meal—the gravy. I 
would consider the gravy as a side dish because it’s that  significant. You 
could almost consider it a food group in itself. Of course,  when we are 
talking about gravy, we are talking about cream gravy. The fact that  this goes 
against all the traditions and rules of classic European cuisine is  part of what 
makes it so special. The French would laugh, until they tasted it!  It’s a 
rebellious combination that works very well, and part of the reason why  the dish 
is infamous on certain levels. A thick sauce made from pan drippings  and a 
bastardized combination of a volute and béchamel sauce, studded with a ton  of 
black pepper. It’s rich, it’s creamy and oh so good! The main ingredient that 
 makes this gravy special is the pan drippings. They are all too often 
forgotten  in restaurant versions of this dish. For this meal, we will get it right. 
 
19 June 1914, Colorado Springs (CO) Gazette, pg. 6: 
A Summer  Dainty 
Chicken Fried Steak 
Served at 
PHELPS 
111 E. Bijou  


22 January 1918, Kansas City (MO) Star, pg. 9: 
I cooked  the steak for dinner that night. It was not quite as tender as beef 
that has  hung longer, but I pounded in some rye flour, remembering wheatless 
day, and  made it like chicken fried steak, cooking it very slowly. I made a 
delicious  brown gravy with it, seasoning it well with salt and pepper. I 
cooked rice to  eat with it and it made a fine meal, with a dessert, corn muffins 
and coffee.  
2 February 1919, Kansas City (MO) Star, pg. 4A: 
Forum  Cafeteria 
1003 Grand Avenue, Downstairs 
(...) 
Chicken Fried  Steak, Pan Gravy...$.11 


21 February 1923, Los Angeles Times,  pg. II4: 
The muscles of the human jaw exert a force of 534 pounds. And still  they are 
not equal to some of the “chicken fried” steak one gets at the  rapid-fire 
lunch counter. 


5 April 1924, Los Angeles Times,  pg. A6: 
CHICKEN FRIED STEAK 
R. W. S., Long Beach, wants a recipe  for chicken fried steak. 

We have never made this dish and this is the  first time that we have ever 
heard of it. If any of our readers will send us the  recipe we will be glad to 
print it. 


19 April 1924, Los Angeles  Times, pg. A7: 
CHICKEN FRIED STEAK 
F. C. M., Los Angeles,  writes that chicken fried steak is beef steak rolled 
in flour, fried in a pan,  and served with country gravy, the gravy being 
poured on a hot platter and the  fried steak placed over it. 


13 March 1928, Los Angeles Times,  pg. A9: 
CHICKEN FRIED STEAK 
H. E. M., Long Beach, Cal. For the  chicken fried steak take a piece of top 
round and pound as much flour into it as  it will take up. Place in a saute pan 
sufficient shortening and fry the steak.  Remove to a hot platter, make a 
cream gravy, pour on a platter and place the  steak over it. 


23 April 1935, Washington Post, pg. 15:  
This steak, no doubt, is what many call a chicken-fried steak and is a piece  
of top-round, which is prepared in the following manner: Have the steak cut  
one-half inch thick. Pound it well on both sides with a wooden potato masher 
or  mallet. Rub the steak on both sides with flour which has been mixed with a  
sprinkling of salt and pepper. Sear it quickly on both sides in a little 
grease  in a frying pan. Then cover and place in a moderately low oven (325 
degrees F.)  for about 20 to 30 minutes or until tender. This type of steak is 
excellent when  served with mushroom or tomato sauce .The pounding tenders the 
naturally tough  fibers of the meat. 

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