Growing up, my dad did all the cooking and for us, that meant a lot of chicken, pork, and fish. We butchered a couple of hogs every year along with some hens, caught the fish. Occasionally we would have pot roast for Sunday dinner, that's lunch for those that don't know that it's breakfast, dinner, and supper 
. Special occasions, we'd have a steak, almost always a sirloin, grilled on a homemade pit with wood.
Common meals were chicken perlo (purlieu or bog), fried chicken, fried pork chops and fried fish. If the fish was catfish, then catfish stew could be on the menu. Dad made a cream based stew with potatoes and always left the bones in. I hated picking through the bones, but it was a way to get all the meat off of the carcass and dad never liked wasting food. Now, if I make catfish stew, it's tomato based with NO bones. Homemade vegetable soup was another favorite of his and always made from vegetables we grew. I hated picking butter beans and blackeyed peas, hated shelling them even more, but the soup was good and there was always cornbread.
Anyway, sometimes we had cubed steak and gravy, which I dearly loved and still brings back a lot of really great memories. So I made my version for supper.
From my freezer.
Dad always battered fried his cubed steak in an eggwash/milk combo and seasoned flour. I dry bread my cubed steak in Adluh Carolina Breader. I don't batter because after I make the gravy, the meat goes back in to cook some more instead of spooning gravy over the meat after it is fried like chicken fried steak. And besides, I'm not much of a fan of battered fried anything. This breader is only available online or at their mill in downtown Columbia. I buy it in the 25 lb. bag, break it down, and put it in my freezer. A gallon zipper bag will hold 5 lbs. For those interested, http://www.adluhstore.com/seasonedmixes.html. If you order some to try, DO NOT add anything to it, it is well seasoned.
Next, drain off most of the oil leaving just a couple of tablespoons or so. Here's another place where my version differs from my dad's. His never had mushrooms because they weren't available, but our daughter absolutely loves them so they're a must. I sauté some onions and mushrooms in the oil until softened.
Then I stir in a couple of tablespoons of all purpose flour and cook until the flour starts to brown a little.
Add a quart of unsalted beef broth and bring up to a simmer. I find that Walmart's broth is almost as good as any for this and it's cheaper.
In go the fried cubed steaks.
After a while, the gravy thickens and the cubed steaks get more tender. I have not added any seasoning other than what comes in the breader.
So we need some vegetables. Browned some smoked ham in a pot, added some water and brought up to a boil. Added a bag of frozen blackeyed peas and let them cook for about 30-40 minutes and then adjust the seasoning. Something I do every year around the holidays when smoked ham is cheap, I'll buy a couple of shank halves, cut the meat off of the bone and into cubes. It then goes in quart bags and into the freezer to use as seasoning meat for whatever and the bones are saved for soups.
Fresh okra is becoming available and my wife loves it, so.... As I have said earlier, I oven roast almost all my vegetables and okra is no exception. In a bowl, a good drizzle of EVOO, coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper stirred together and into a 450℉ oven until soft and starting to get a little color.
Family is here and she's got to go to work, so time to eat.
This is comfort food from my past and brings back many great memories. There were 5 of us and we always sat down to eat together as a family.
As a side note, later in life when they could afford to buy chicken at the store, my mom said that she would never, ever again eat fresh killed chicken. And she didn't....
. Special occasions, we'd have a steak, almost always a sirloin, grilled on a homemade pit with wood.Common meals were chicken perlo (purlieu or bog), fried chicken, fried pork chops and fried fish. If the fish was catfish, then catfish stew could be on the menu. Dad made a cream based stew with potatoes and always left the bones in. I hated picking through the bones, but it was a way to get all the meat off of the carcass and dad never liked wasting food. Now, if I make catfish stew, it's tomato based with NO bones. Homemade vegetable soup was another favorite of his and always made from vegetables we grew. I hated picking butter beans and blackeyed peas, hated shelling them even more, but the soup was good and there was always cornbread.
Anyway, sometimes we had cubed steak and gravy, which I dearly loved and still brings back a lot of really great memories. So I made my version for supper.
From my freezer.
Dad always battered fried his cubed steak in an eggwash/milk combo and seasoned flour. I dry bread my cubed steak in Adluh Carolina Breader. I don't batter because after I make the gravy, the meat goes back in to cook some more instead of spooning gravy over the meat after it is fried like chicken fried steak. And besides, I'm not much of a fan of battered fried anything. This breader is only available online or at their mill in downtown Columbia. I buy it in the 25 lb. bag, break it down, and put it in my freezer. A gallon zipper bag will hold 5 lbs. For those interested, http://www.adluhstore.com/seasonedmixes.html. If you order some to try, DO NOT add anything to it, it is well seasoned.
Next, drain off most of the oil leaving just a couple of tablespoons or so. Here's another place where my version differs from my dad's. His never had mushrooms because they weren't available, but our daughter absolutely loves them so they're a must. I sauté some onions and mushrooms in the oil until softened.
Then I stir in a couple of tablespoons of all purpose flour and cook until the flour starts to brown a little.
Add a quart of unsalted beef broth and bring up to a simmer. I find that Walmart's broth is almost as good as any for this and it's cheaper.
In go the fried cubed steaks.
After a while, the gravy thickens and the cubed steaks get more tender. I have not added any seasoning other than what comes in the breader.
So we need some vegetables. Browned some smoked ham in a pot, added some water and brought up to a boil. Added a bag of frozen blackeyed peas and let them cook for about 30-40 minutes and then adjust the seasoning. Something I do every year around the holidays when smoked ham is cheap, I'll buy a couple of shank halves, cut the meat off of the bone and into cubes. It then goes in quart bags and into the freezer to use as seasoning meat for whatever and the bones are saved for soups.
Fresh okra is becoming available and my wife loves it, so.... As I have said earlier, I oven roast almost all my vegetables and okra is no exception. In a bowl, a good drizzle of EVOO, coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper stirred together and into a 450℉ oven until soft and starting to get a little color.
Family is here and she's got to go to work, so time to eat.
This is comfort food from my past and brings back many great memories. There were 5 of us and we always sat down to eat together as a family.
As a side note, later in life when they could afford to buy chicken at the store, my mom said that she would never, ever again eat fresh killed chicken. And she didn't....
