20-minute (or so) recipes from gamers

[Elili]

This is my favorite one that I own. Nobody gets to use this one except me.
http://www.amazon.com/Rival-SCVP600-...ef=pd_sim_hg_6

I have that crock pot! =P

Oh, fair warning "Holy shit wall of text"

Alright so I'm game on this one. I'll start with Chicken Fried Steak because, well it's good stuff, (I did want to be a chef, but then I grew a brain and realized I didn't want to work 16 hour days 6 to 7 days a week and get paid almost nothing, all the while being victim to the people that eat at restaurants and expect to be treated like kings. I mean, I love cooking, Just not that much)

Start out with picking some good sides, personally i'm going to go for Mashed spuds, and creamed spinach (But since this is a 20 minute meal, we will do from a box, Green Giant makes good creamed spinach really).

Shopping List

Steaks, obviously. Now there's a few different ways you can go on this. Cubed steak is the obvious first choice for chicken fried steak, but there is something to be said for the flavor of getting a good steak and Cubing it yourself. For those that have the time, find a good steak, without bones, that's about half an inch thick. I reccomend getting bottom round, trimming it of excess fat, and slicing it, with the grain about 1/2 Inch thick steaks. Once sliced, take a fork and begin the cubing process. The idea behind cubing is to break up the tough fibers and connective tissue in meat, this makes it much more tender when cooked, to the point where you can easily slice it with a fork. Since we are working with bottom round, which is a part of the cow which is worked hard in it's life, it's very tough, but full of good flavor. So take your fork, and pierce each steak, up and down, just go in a line, trying to get as many little stabs into it as you can. Go each direction, then flip it over and repeat.

If all that seems like too much work, simply purchase "Cubed Steak". Try to find "Cubed Steak Special" if you can, it will be of a higher quality. There is no rare in the world of chicken fried steak, so it will be cooked through.

Potatoes. I go with red. about 3 small red potatoes should be good per person. 2 medium, 1 large.
Sour Cream (I never said healthy.)
Salt, Pepper
Flour
Unsalted Butter
Vegetable Oil - I personally prefer peanut oil. It has a higher smoke point, allowing you to cook at higher temperatures. If there is a problem with allergies use Sunflower oil. Similar smoke point, and good flavor too. You could use any oil, except Olive oil. It will burn.
Eggs This will depend on how many your feeding. I use 1 egg for every two steaks.
Milk
Chives (optional, if you can't find them, don't fear)
Creamed Spinach, if going with the Green Giant boxes, each box should feed 3 people.
Form of bread. Anything you like, I like to go with a fresh loaf of Rye bread from a local bakery, or a good French loaf. This is optional of course, but really, it's not a meal without bread.


Alright, this is actually a really simple meal. Start out by placing a pot of water large enough for your potatoes on to boil. I generally make more then I need, since potatoes are cheap.

Wash each potato, just a good scrub with your hand under running water. If you don't like the skins, peel them, I like to peel half of them and leave half the skins.

Slice each potato into cubes, about inch. The best way to do this is to cut a small slice off the bottom of each (Think of it as a foot) so they sit stable. Slice them in half, the same direction as the first slice you took off, then place it on it's flat bottom, and slice it into thirds, lengthwise so it looks like your cutting french fries, (Or half if it's small), now come back across and cut it into cubes. Practice doing it the same on each one, and it looks like you know what your doing when your cooking for someone =D. You can drop these straight into the water (Even if it's not boiling).

Now onto the cubed steak. Start by seasoning both sides with cracked black pepper, and salt.

Scramble your eggs, and place them on a tray / plate. Something you can fit your entire steak on to coat it with egg.

Setup two plates with flour, something again that you can fit your entire steak into. Place one on each side of the plate with egg. (You can do this with one plate of flour, but it will be messy.)

You'll need a resting place for the meat once it's coated. A wire rack is a great solution (Sitting ontop of a cookie sheet or baking pan)

Begin, by taking one steak at a time, and coating it with flour, shake off the excess, and then coat it with egg, make sure the excess drips off, then coat it with flour in the last plate/container, and shake off the excess again. Now place this in your resting place, and repeat for each steak.

Place a frying pan on the stove, fill it with about a quarter of an inch of oil and put it on medium high heat. Make sure this is large enough to hold the number of steaks your cooking, or at the very least half of them (If your preparing for a large party)

Now you want to wait, for 15 minutes. (Sucks). You need your oil to warm up, as well as allowing the flour / egg coating to thicken on the steak. This way when you cook it, it won't slide off, it will stay on the steak.

During this process be sure to check on your potatoes occasionally. The best indicator is if they are done is "fork tender" take a fork and try to pierce a piece of potato. When your fork goes in with little resistance, and the potato just about splits in half when you stab it, it's time to pull them out. Drain them into a colander. If you don't have a colander, the best method is to take a lid that fits the pot, hold it onto the top, and let a small area of it open, to have water pour out, but not large enough for the potatoes to fall out. This method can become dangerous (Boiling water, heavy objects, not safe) I do this, but I'm also an idiot.

After draining your potatoes place them back into the pot, and begin to mash them. I use an actual potato masher, if you don't have one, a large fork, or beaters, work just as well. You don't want them to become smooth. After you've busted up all the potatoes a bit, add the sour cream. The amount you want to use will vary depending on the number of potatoes, so start with a little (Fourth of a cup or so) and add more until you reach the consistency, and flavor, you want. Dice up some of the chives, add salt, pepper, chives, and butter (A couple tablespoons of butter), all to taste. You can use full chives as a decoration, just take a few and slide them into the middle of the serving bowl of potatoes, with a pat of butter under them. I also take a few of the diced chives, and spread them around top.

After you've waited 15 minutes, place each steak into the hot oil. It will take about 4 minutes per side until each is browned, after about 4 minutes, flip it over, and wait another 4 minutes. When they are finished, place them back on the wire rack, cover them with an aluminum foil tent (Just make sure it isn't touching the meat).

If your using frozen sides, such as creamed spinach, now is the best time to throw it in the microwave.

Drain the oil from the pan into a bowl, place the pan back on the heat, add 3 tablespoons of oil, and 3 tablespoons of flour left from the dredging. This process is to make what's called a Roux. A roux is used to thicken sauces, and it's the basis of what are the three "mother sauces" in french cooking. We are making something similar to a bechamel sauce, Flour, Butter, and Milk, but not to offend the French we won't call it that.

Whisk the flour and oil together completely, and begin to add milk, while whisking. Add about 3/4's of a cup of milk, continue whisking at a medium high heat until it just looks like it's starting to boil, drop the temperature to low, whisk for the next minute or so and it should become much thicker. If it's too thick for your taste, add more milk. Whisk occasionally for the next 4 or 5 minutes, while you prepare the plates.

After about 4 or 5 minutes, add salt and pepper to the sauce to taste, pour some of the sauce on each steak, and the mashed potatoes if you like.

Overall this should only take about 30 - 35 minutes to prepare, Granted I've done it enough to get used to it. Not quite 20 minutes, but it's a great meal.