Steak fingers with jalapeño cream gravy

Yield: 4 servings 

Ingredients for the jalapeño cream gravy:

2 jalapeños cut in half lengthwise, stems and seeds removed

2 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons bacon grease or oil

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Salt to taste

Ingredients for the steak:

2 pounds top round steak or cube steak

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

2 eggs

1 cup whole milk or buttermilk

Oil for frying

Instructions: To make the cream gravy, place the halved jalapeños skin-side up and the garlic on a sheet and place under the broiler for 5 minutes or until jalapeños and garlic are blackened. Remove from the oven. Rub off the blackened jalapeño skin and then dice. Mince the roasted garlic. In a large heavy skillet, heat up the bacon grease or oil on medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour and cook until fragrant and lightly browned, about a minute. Slowly pour in the milk and stir until thickened, which should take a couple of minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the diced jalapeños and garlic. Add the cumin and add salt to taste. If too thick for your tastes, add more milk. Reheat on low for serving. To make the steaks, if you using top round steak, you’ll need to pound it with a meat mallet until flattened and doubled in size. If using cube steak, you can skip this step. Cut the tenderized steak into 16 strips. Mix together the flour with the salt, black pepper and cayenne and place on a plate. Whisk together the eggs with the buttermilk. Lightly sprinkle the steak strips with salt and pepper then dredge each strip in the flour. Dip the flour-coated steak into the eggs and then dredge again in the flour. Heat up the oven to 200 degrees. In a large heavy skillet, such as a cast-iron skillet, heat up an inch of oil to 300 degrees. Place 4 strips into the skillet and cook until you see red juices bubbling on top of the meat, about 2 or 3 minutes. With tongs, turn over the fingers and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Drain on a paper towel and place in the oven while you fry the remaining strips. Serve with jalapeño cream gravy and your favourite buns. 

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