Chicken-Fried-Steak Biscuits with Spicy Honey-Butter

This recipe is a variation on good ol' chicken-fried steak with biscuits and gravy.

Variation: There’s no gravy. And I used the biscuits like slider buns to make sandwiches out of the steaks. A buttery spread that’s a little bit sweet and a little bit spicy brings it all together.

Biggest tip for the biscuits: Don’t overwork the dough. I started the flour mixture in a food processor to help incorporate the butter and form a coarse meal texture. Be careful not to completely emulsify the butter pieces—small remaining bits will help keep the biscuits fluffy when baking.

If you don’t have a three-inch biscuit cutter, use another sturdy three-inch-diameter object—like the highball glass I used!

Makes 4 large biscuits

Ingredients

For the Biscuits

• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1-1/3 sticks cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 3/4 cup cold buttermilk
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tbsp water

Butter Pieces

For the Steak and Honey-Butter

• 2 tbsp clover honey
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 tsp Tabasco (or other bottled hot sauce)
• 1/4 tsp dried red chile flakes
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• all purpose flour, for dredging
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp buttermilk
• 4 4-oz cube steaks, pounded to tenderize
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• lettuce leaves and tomato slices, for serving (optional)

Cube Steaks

Pounded Cube Steaks

Preparation

For the Biscuits

1. Preheat the oven to 375° F. Line a shallow baking pan with parchment paper.
2. Place the first 5 ingredients (through baking soda) in a food processor and pulse 2-3 times to combine.
3. Add the butter pieces and use short pulses to cut into the flour mixture until a coarse meal forms, with a few small pieces of butter remaining. (Don’t overwork it.)

Pulsed Flour-Butter Mixture

1. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and slowly mix in the buttermilk with a fork. Knead until a loose dough forms (the dough will be sticky).
2. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat down until 1 inch thick. Use a 3-inch biscuit cutter (or other 3-inch-diameter object) to cut out the biscuits, rewrapping the scraps once. Place on the prepared baking pan.
3. Whisk the egg yolk and water in a small bowl and brush the tops of the biscuits with the egg mixture.

Loose Dough 

Cut Out 3-Inch Dough Rounds

Yolk-Brushed Dough

1. Bake until puffed and golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

Baked Biscuits

Baked Biscuits

For the Steak and Honey-Butter

1. Combine the honey, butter, Tabasco, and chile flakes in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Mash with a fork until well incorporated and creamy.

Honey Mixture Ready to Blend

Spicy Honey Butter

1. Place flour in a large baking dish or on a plate.
2. Whisk together eggs and buttermilk in a shallow bowl.
3. Season the steaks with salt and pepper. Working with 1 at a time, dredge the steak in flour, coating both sides, then dip in the egg mixture to coat. Dredge a second time in the flour mixture and dip a second time in the egg mixture.
4. Place on a plate and repeat with the remaining 3 steaks.
5. Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Fry the steaks until golden brown and just cooked through, 3-4 minutes per side.

Steak Beginning to Fry 

Chicken-Fried Steak

To serve, split the biscuits and lay 1 steak on the bottom half of each. Spread the honey-butter mixture on the top halves and add desired toppings (if any). Close the biscuits and serve hot.

Split Biscuit

Chicken-Fried-Steak Biscuits with Spicy Honey-Butter