Chicken Fried Steak

 

Texas comfort food doesn’t get more iconic than Chicken Fried Steak—a Lone Star legend that’s been sizzling in skillets since the 19th century! While its roots stretch back to German and Austrian immigrants in the Texas Hill Country, this crispy, gravy-smothered masterpiece became a true Texan creation by the early 1900s. Picture German settlers like the Volga Deutsch, who arrived in the 1840s with recipes for Wiener Schnitzel—breaded veal cutlets. In cattle-rich Texas, they swapped veal for cheap, tough beef cuts like round steak, tenderized it with a mallet, and fried it up like Southern fried chicken. Add a ladle of creamy pepper gravy, and a star was born.

The dish took off in the ranching towns of Central and West Texas, where beef was plentiful and cooks needed hearty meals for hardworking cowboys. By the 1930s, it was a diner staple, especially along highways like Route 66, where truck stops and cafés—like the Blue Bonnet in Marble Falls—served it with mashed potatoes and green beans. The name 'chicken fried' stuck because of the batter-and-fry method, mimicking poultry prep, though there’s no chicken in sight. Texans perfected it with a double dredge—flour, egg, flour again—for that extra-crisp crust, and the gravy? A peppery, pan-dripping magic that ties it all together.

Chicken Fried Steak hit its stride in the 20th century, becoming a symbol of Texas grit. In 2011, the Texas Legislature even named October 26 'Chicken Fried Steak Day' to honor its legacy. It’s so beloved that Lamesa, Texas, hosts an annual festival celebrating it, complete with cook-offs. Fun fact: some say the first written recipe popped up in a 1914 San Antonio cookbook, though oral tradition credits chuck wagon cooks decades earlier. Today, it’s a must-try at spots like The Wagon Wheel in Eagle Pass - pictured below

Bluebonnet Cafe 

The Wagon Wheel