Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond's throwing open her Oklahoma ranch for a brand-new food series with juicy slices of frontier life. There's a quintessential ranch dinner, a dawn cattle gathering with the kids and cowboys, and rookie cowgirl Ree's facing two family challenges. With Chicken Fried Steak and Creamy Mashed Potatoes with Gravy with a Marinated Tomato Salad With Herbs on the side, as well as Cowboy Breakfast Sandwiches and Sunrise Punch, it's going to be a mouthwatering feast of fabulous food and fun.
Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond's throwing open her Oklahoma ranch for a brand-new food series with juicy slices of frontier life. There's a quintessential ranch dinner, a dawn cattle gathering with the kids and cowboys, and rookie cowgirl Ree's facing two family challenges. With Chicken Fried Steak and Creamy Mashed Potatoes with Gravy with a Marinated Tomato Salad With Herbs on the side, as well as Cowboy Breakfast Sandwiches and Sunrise Punch, it's going to be a mouthwatering feast of fabulous food and fun.
Below are the recipes used in today’s episode:
Chicken Fried Steak with Gravy: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/chicken-fried-steak-with-gravy-recipe-1925056
Marinated Tomato Salad with Herbs: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/marinated-tomato-salad-with-herbs-recipe-1925166
Creamy Mashed Potatoes: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/creamy-mashed-potatoes-2-2118819
Cowboy Breakfast Sandwiches: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/cowboy-breakfast-sandwiches-recipe-1925259
Sunrise Punch: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/sunrise-punch-recipe-1925463
On The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond shares her comforting home cooking from her kitchen on the ranch. With direct audio from her hit Food Network TV show, you can now enjoy Ree’s company as she cooks up meals for every occasion, from last-minute family suppers to elegant celebrations.
For even more recipes head to discovery+ and stream full episodes of The Pioneer Woman on discovery+. Head to discoveryplus.com/pioneerwoman to start your 7-day free trial today. Terms apply.
For even more recipes head to discovery+ and stream full episodes of The Pioneer Woman on discovery+. Head to discoveryplus.com/pioneerwoman to start your 7-day free trial today. Terms apply.
Find episode transcript here: https://the-pioneer-woman.simplecast.com/episodes/home-on-the-ranch
[MUSIC PLAYING] REE DRUMMOND: I'm Ree Drummond. I'm a writer, blogger, photographer, mother, and I'm an accidental country girl. I live on a ranch in the middle of nowhere. And I've got a lot of mouths to feed.
My style of food is simple yet scrumptious. And all my recipes have to be approved by cowboys, hungry kids, and me. Here's what's happening. It's a busy time on the ranch and the family's been working since dawn. So I'm making them the ultimate ranch dinner, chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, and a marinated tomato salad.
SPEAKER 1: This is pretty close to a perfect meal.
REE DRUMMOND: For dessert, I'm happy to provide them with their after dinner entertainment. I showed you, guys. The next morning, the family's back in the saddle for another 5:00 AM cattle gathering. And I'm cooking up cowboy breakfast sandwiches and sunrise punch. All right. I got to head back to the house.
LADD DRUMMOND: You still got some stuff to do.
REE DRUMMOND: Welcome to my frontier. I love gardening. After the long dreary winter we had this year, I went a little crazy. I over planted. Now, my zucchini and tomatoes aren't quite ready yet, but I have plenty of fresh herbs for dinner tonight.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Got it. Now, I got to head up to the lodge and cook dinner. My garden's back at our house but we're all going to have dinner up at the lodge tonight. The lodge is a great place for us to have family dinners, kick back and enjoy a nice meal.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
I'm making chicken fried steak tonight. My family's been working since about 5 o'clock this morning. So I figured they could use a really good dinner and one that would stick to their ribs. Now, chicken fried steak is, of course, delicious, but it's not exactly what one would call a pretty dish. So a lot of times, I'll serve up a platter of ripe, sliced tomatoes just to give the meal a little color.
But since we're in that great time of year right now and I'm growing herbs on the ranch, I'm going to make a marinated tomato salad that's really colorful and gorgeous. I'm under no illusions that it's going to be the most popular dish of the meal tonight since we're having chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy.
All right. I've got some green onions from my garden. Lop off the tops and just slice them really thin. My family really is a meat and potatoes family. My husband is especially a meat and potatoes guy. So chicken fried steak is his absolutely favorite meal.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
LADD DRUMMOND: Yeah, she said she's going to have a good meal tonight. So I'm looking forward to that. That'll be pleasant. I might even take Josh along if he's nice to me.
REE DRUMMOND: Josh has been our cowboy for years and years. He's lived on the ranch for a really long time. And he really is a part of our family in many ways.
LADD DRUMMOND: He's glutton for punishment.
REE DRUMMOND: OK. I've just got some green onions and those will go in with the tomatoes. And then I'm just going to make a really simple vinaigrette. I don't like to whisk my vinaigrette. I like to put them in mason jars and shake them. I use that opportunity to get my aggressions out.
I'm just going to drizzle in some balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, a little bit of brown sugar. I love it so much I'm going to put some more in. And then just a dash of salt and a dash of pepper. And that's it. And then just shake it up.
OK. Since this is marinated tomato salad, this goes over. I don't want to use all of it, just enough to coat them. And then I'll give it a toss. Oh, it smells so good. Whoever invented balsamic vinegar is one of my heroes. I love it.
And then I brought some really pretty herbs from my garden. Fresh parsley. I just give it a rough chop. I don't like to mince the heck out of herbs because I think they're so pretty in big pieces. And then I'll just scrunch up the basil leaves, do a really rough chiffonade. I had to throw that word in there it makes me feel sophisticated. And then in go the herbs. Just stir them around and this looks so good and the flavors are going to be out of this world.
Well, chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes go hand in hand. And these are the best mashed potatoes I've ever had. And there's a reason for that. I start by boiling five pounds of potatoes then mash them over low heat to keep them from getting watery. And that's when I get serious.
And getting serious means adding a stick and a half of butter, eight ounces of cream cheese, and a cup of heavy cream. Then you mash it all in. Add some seasoned salt, some regular salt, and some black pepper. Then I spread the potatoes in a butter dish. And as if that's not decadent enough, I dot the top of the potatoes with butter. Later, I'll stick these in the oven and heat them up. Right now, I'm going to go get the stuff to set the table. That sounds like a good job for my kids.
Well, out here on the ranch, I can say without a doubt that it does not get any more cowboy friendly than chicken fried steak. The guys have been working so hard for the last two weeks, getting up at 5:00 AM every morning. And while we don't eat chicken fried steak every day, right now is the time that they really need something that sticks to their ribs.
I seasoned this cube steak on both sides with salt and pepper. And then it goes into a seasoned flour mixture. I've got some cayenne, paprika, seasoned salt, little salt and pepper. After the flour, goes into an egg and milk mixture.
The reason this is called chicken fried steak is it has a breading on it that resembles fried chicken. It's kind of confusing to people who aren't familiar with the dish. They want to know where the chicken is. OK. Once it's heavily breaded, you can set it aside. I've got some chicken fried steak already frying in a big skillet with oil and a little butter for color and that's what brings the cowboys to the kitchen.
This really is a great assembly line. If you just get it going, you can bread these while the other ones are cooking, take them out, and it's ready to put the other ones on. This also makes a really nice cuticle treatment. These need to cook for about 2 to 2 and 1/2 minutes per side so they're nice and golden.
I just sent the kids outside to set the table, which ought to be really interesting. We'll see how it goes. These are looking really good. You can see why Cowboys love this, and cowgirls too, for that matter.
Oh, guys, we really need to start setting the table. Todd, you go get a chair and set it at the end. And, Bryce, you sit one on that end, OK?
[PLATEWARE CLANGING]
OK, the stake's all done. The mashed potatoes are in the oven. And now I'm going to make the gravy. You cannot have chicken fried steak without gravy. It's written in a law somewhere.
[SIZZLING SOUND]
So I started by draining off most of the oil from the pan where I cooked the meat. And I'm sprinkling in the seasoned flour that I used to bread the steak. It's really difficult to give a precise recipe for gravy because there's so much eyeballing going on. You just add a little grease, sprinkle on a little flour, stir it together. Basically, you want to add enough flour into the pan that the mixture is more of a paste and doesn't have that greasy, oily appearance.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 1: Hey.
JOSH: What's up?
SPEAKER 1: Ree's cooking some chicken fried steak. You won't come up and eat?
JOSH: Sure. She's getting gravy cooked up?
SPEAKER 1: Oh, yeah.
JOSH: All right. OK.
SPEAKER 1: A little gravy.
JOSH: A little bit of mashed potatoes?
SPEAKER 1: Yep.
REE DRUMMOND: So I'm going to grab some milk, whole milk, please. You can't make gravy with skim milk, guys, I'm sorry. I'm going to turn up the heat just a bit. And then, with the whole time while I pour the milk into the pan. It looks really weird when you first start pouring the milk in.
[METAL ON METAL SOUNDS]
And you'll become filled with self-doubt. You'll worry if you've messed it up. But just stick with it. And as you're whisking, listen to this.
[METAL ON METAL SOUNDS]
That sound you here are the little bits of flavor that were in the bottom of the pan after I cooked the meat. And that's what makes the gravy delicious. So you want to scrape all of that up so it becomes part of the gravy.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 1: All right, well I'll just see you up at the lodge then.
JOSH: All right, I'll see you in a little bit.
[METAL ON METAL SOUNDS]
REE DRUMMOND: And at this point, it's just about babysitting the gravy. Never leave your wingman.
[METAL ON METAL SOUNDS]
Hey, Todd, where's your hat?
TODD: It went over there and off the deck.
REE DRUMMOND: Well, you need to be sure to get it before you eat.
[TODD GROWLS]
If you can master the fine art of gravy with chicken fried steak, you can do most things in life. Even if the gravy has plenty of salt, you always need to add more black pepper. Cowboys love black pepper in their gravy.
[METAL ON METAL SOUNDS]
And my husband and Josh are in route. They'll be here any minute. I'm going to go ahead and have the kids come in and get their plates filled. Guys, come on in, time to eat.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
You hungry?
SPEAKER 2: Yes.
PAIGEY: Yes.
REE DRUMMOND: Where's your brother?
SPEAKER 2: He had to go get his hat?
[LAUGHTER] Here you go, Paigey.
PAIGEY: Can I try? Gravy.
REE DRUMMOND: Here, I'll let you do gravy, honey. There you go. Alex. Hey! Look who's here.
PAIGEY: Hello, daddy.
SPEAKER 1: Is that ours?
REE DRUMMOND: Yeah.
SPEAKER 1: It looks good.
REE DRUMMOND: It's ready.
SPEAKER 1: That looks perfect.
REE DRUMMOND: You guys had a long day, my gosh. Now, honey, be sure to leave room on your plate for tomatoes.
SPEAKER 1: No. This is perfect right here.
REE DRUMMOND: You want some, Josh?
JOSH: That's perfect.
SPEAKER 1: I don't need any more.
REE DRUMMOND: But I thought you were meat and tomatoes man.
SPEAKER 1: I'm a meat and potatoes guy, not meat and tomatoes. There's a big difference. This is just right. Man, it doesn't get any better than this.
TODD: Well, daddy. He doesn't need--
REE DRUMMOND: I see you guys went ahead and dug in.
SPEAKER 1: Yeah, we waited on you.
[REE LAUGHS]
This is a perfect meal.
REE DRUMMOND: Aw.
SPEAKER 1: You did good. What about you, Todd?
TODD: I love it.
SPEAKER 1: You want me to cut you up a little more steak?
TODD: Yes, please.
SPEAKER 1: We've got to go get the horses in here in a little bit.
REE DRUMMOND: I'll get the horses in.
[LAUGHTER]
What are you laughing at?
TODD: Sorry.
REE DRUMMOND: I don't get no respect around here.
SPEAKER 1: You definitely have your strong points. Getting the horses in may not be one of them.
REE DRUMMOND: I'm getting the horses in.
SPEAKER 1: You're very valu-- you don't have to get the horses in to be valuable.
REE DRUMMOND: I am so getting the horses in.
[HARMONICA MUSIC PLAYING]
I'll show them.
[MOTOR STARTING]
I'll show you all.
[ENGINE SOUND]
Come on.
[DOG BARKS]
Let's go, boys.
[DOG BARKS]
Charlie, come back here and help me. Woo! Let's go.
SPEAKER 1: I mean, a good thing we're not in a hurry.
JOSH: No.
TODD: I don't take them around--
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
--that way. I take them this way.
SPEAKER 1: She's moving now, though. Good job, mama.
REE DRUMMOND: I showed got you guys. Agh!
JOSH: Yeah, they did it!
[HUSBAND LAUGH]
REE DRUMMOND: How do you like them apples?
SPEAKER 1: You did pretty good. I think Charlie did most of the work, though.
REE DRUMMOND: Oh!
[HUSBAND LAUGHS]
It's dark 30, I don't know what time it is.
SPEAKER 1: Yeah, let's go catch our horses. You ready?
REE DRUMMOND: Well, the family's going to go gather cattle this morning.
SPEAKER 1: Just take--
REE DRUMMOND: That's where everybody rides out and rounds up the cattle. Then they bring him back to the pens. Hang on, everybody. We start before dawn and work the cattle early so it's still cool, which makes it much easier for the cattle and the family. I use my telephoto lens to get good pictures. But I also use it to count the kids and make sure they're all still there. [LAUGHS] Everyone's present and accounted for.
All right. Time to go get breakfast ready. I've made breakfast sandwiches. And I'm getting ready to make a sunrise punch. It's kind of a special day. I don't make punch in little jars very often. In the blender, I'm just throwing in some orange juice, some pineapple juice, and milk. Then I'm going to add some meringue powder. And when I whip this up, the meringue powder's going to give it this wonderful frothy texture. A little powdered sugar, , it's a special treat, and a splash of vanilla. And then I'll just whip it up.
[BLENDER MIXING]
Looks perfect. Then I'm going to drop in an orange slice, and then screw on the lid. And that's it, they're portable. I'll bet the crew is starving by now, so I'm going to head on out there. I made cowboy breakfast sandwiches for breakfast this morning. There's one thing I've learned on the ranch in all these years. When the family gets up at 4:30 or 5 o'clock, works the cattle till 7:00 or 8:00 AM, nothing does the trick better than these cowboy breakfast sandwiches. And everybody loves them. The Cowboys love them. The kids love them, ranch wives love them. Even kings and presidents love them. Just kidding about the kings and presidents part. They'd never be able to find our ranch anyway.
I start with Texas toast. I cook it on a skillet until it's golden brown, and I use lots and lots of butter. Then I fried patties of breakfast sausage. And as I cook them, I smash them down with a spatula to make them really flat. Then, while the sausage is frying, I whip up some scrambled eggs, then a nice splash of half and half. Add plenty of salt and black pepper. OK, now back to the sausage. When it's nice and cooked, put the patties on the toast.
Then you pour the eggs on the griddle in a rough, rectangular shape. Use your spatula to kind of keep it in shape. After it's cooked, I cut the eggs into squares, and then I lay each square onto the pieces of sausage. The cheese comes next, and you can use whatever kind you like. My father-in-law showed me how to make these sandwiches he loves them and he's made them for years.
Finally, the secret ingredient, slices of jarred jalapeños. I just throw them onto the grill and chop them up and cook them. Be careful, though, when you do this because they give off some fumes and your eyes will water. So open windows, turn on the exhaust, get a gas mask, if you have to. Then I put on the top slice of Texas toast, wrap them in foil, and I'm good to go.
SPEAKER 1: It's so hard--
[COWS MOOING]
Because there's a lot of cows and calves here. Hey! Hey!
[ENGINE NOISE]
REE DRUMMOND: Breakfast!
TODD: Woo!
REE DRUMMOND: Breakfast! You guys hungry?
TODD: Yes!
REE DRUMMOND: Yep, dig in. I got to take papa spicy ones. Want a sandwich?
SPEAKER 1: Yeah. Thank you, dear.
REE DRUMMOND: You're welcome. The sandwich was great. Really good, jalapeños and all.
SPEAKER 1: The sandwich was good.
REE DRUMMOND: All right, honey, I'm going to go back to the house. I got stuff I got to do back there.
SPEAKER 1: Oh, no. You're not going anywhere. You're still too clean. I think you need to get on one.
REE DRUMMOND: I'm really not that clean.
JOSH: Whoa! That's how you do it.
SPEAKER 1: OK, you're clean.
REE DRUMMOND: All right, find me the smallest one.
SPEAKER 1: Yeah. Get it, Ree. That's all yours.
[MOOING]
Grab that other leg.
TODD: Come on, mom.
[MOOING]
SPEAKER 1: You guys-- get down, mama.
[MOOING]
TODD: Mom, pull the leg back more.
REE DRUMMOND: Wah! Woo! [LAUGHS]
SPEAKER 1: Watch out, watch out, watch out.
REE DRUMMOND: Woo! I had it. It was all going fine. And then it decided to rebel a little bit.
[MOOING]
And I wasn't really paying attention, and it almost threw me 50 feet across the pen.
[MOOING]
I just uploaded the photos I took this morning at the cattle gathering. Now I'm writing the blog post about it. And there are just so many things to share, everything from the kids, to the horses, to the cattle, to the cowboys, to the chaps. Sorry, I had to say it.