Chicken-fried steak, also known as country-fried steak, is an American Southern breaded cutlet dish consisting of a piece of beefsteak (most often tenderized cube steak) coated with seasoned flour and either deep-fried or pan-fried. It is associated with the Southern cuisine of the United States. It is breaded and fried with a technique similar to the more common fried chicken, hence "chicken-fried". When deep-fried, it is usually referred to as "chicken-fried steak". Pan-fried versions are typically referred to as "country-fried steak".
Chicken-fried steak resembles the Austrian dish Wiener schnitzel and the Italian dish . It is a tenderized veal or pork cutlet, coated with flour, eggs, chicken stock cube, and bread crumbs, and then fried. It is also similar to the recipe for Scottish collops.
History
200px|left|thumb|[[Lamesa, Texas|Lamesa, Texas, hosts an annual chicken-fried steak celebration.]]
The precise origins of the dish are unclear, but many sources attribute its development to German and Austrian immigrants to Texas in the 19th century, who brought recipes for Wiener schnitzel from Europe to the USA.
The Virginia Housewife, published in 1838 by Mary Randolph, has a recipe for veal cutlets that is one of the earliest recipes for a food like chicken-fried steak. The recipe for what we now know as chicken-fried steak was included in many regional cookbooks by the late 19th century.
A 1943 American cookbook recipe for Wiener schnitzel includes a white salt and pepper cream gravy.
Chicken-fried steak is among numerous popular dishes which make up the official state meal of Oklahoma, added to the list in 1988.