Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023

Photos by Jacy Lewis

April 29, 2021Updated: April 29, 2021 6:23 p.m.

“The birthplace of chicken-fried steak” celebrated the 11th annual Chicken Fried Steak Festival last weekend at Forrest Park.

Midlanders cutting through the west side of Lamesa on State Highway 137 on the way to Lubbock might have noticed Forrest Park as they entered the city, but this week, the park was home to those paying homage to the breaded meat fried in a large skillet

Chicken Fry Run Race Description

Chicken Fry Run coincides with the Lamesa Chicken Fried Steak Festival (CFSF) and supports the nonprofit Lamesa Adoptables Pets.

Race Starts at 9:00AM Saturday, April 24, in Forrest Park on South 9th and South Houston Ave. in Lamesa.

For more info on the Festival events go to: https://www.facebook.com/Chickenfriedsteakfestival/?ref=page_internal

Get ready for the Chicken Fry Run

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Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023



Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023

    Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023
    Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023

    Chicken Fry Run Where & When

  • Location: Lamesa, TX 79331
  • Race Date: 2021/04/24 09:00:00 AM (Saturday)
  • Categories:
    • Adult (18 and over)
    • Youth (17 and under)



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Below are some of the highest rated restaurants in Lamesa as well as the highest rated activities in Lamesa. Extend your experience with all Lamesa has to offer.

Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023

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Lamesa chicken fried steak festival 2023

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International Fire Code Section 505

  1. International Fire Code Section 505

    Please be advised that ALL residents must comply by June 30, 2021. Failure to do so will result in a fine of up to $500 for violating city ordinance 1.01.009 Section 505.1 Address Identification. New and existing buildings shall have approved address numbers, building numbers or approved building identification placed in a position that is plainly legible and visible from the street or road fronting the property. These numbers shall contrast with their back-ground. Where required by the fire code official, address numbers shall be provided in additional approved locations to facilitate emergency response. Address numbers shall be Arabic numbers or alphabetical letters. Numbers shall be a minimum of 4 inches (101.6 mm) high with a minimum stroke width of 0.5 inch 12.7 mm. Where access is by means of a private road and the building cannot be viewed from the public way, a monument, pole or other sign or means shall be used to identify the structure. Address numbers shall be maintaine

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Crispy breading and creamy gravy — just a few things you can look forward to on October 26, National Chicken Fried Steak Day. It’s a Southern cuisine classic. So, break out your deep fryer, get your gravy ladle ready and get excited to have a full belly of Southern fried goodness!

It seems like big things always happen in Texas! This includes celebrating that guilty pleasure, chicken fried steak, which is said to be the result of a mixup in a fried chicken versus steak food order in 1911. But first the chicken fried basics. Chicken fried steak is simply described as a thin, round cut of beef which you bread and fry. Most folks serve it up with mashed potatoes and cream gravy.  Seems simple enough and yet, there’s a whole story behind a dish that’s worthy of genuflection.One of the reasons for chicken fried steak’s popularity certainly stems from the great publicity it generated. Whether you call it chicken fried steak, pan fried steak or country fried steak; an early mention of this dish allegedly appears in 1924. Writer A.L. Wyman describes the dish in the “Los Angeles Times” as ”beef steak rolled in flour, fried in a pan, and served with country gravy being poured on a hot platter and the fried steak placed over it.”  Later recipes show up in publications like the “Winnipeg Free Press” in 1936 and the “Household Searchlight Recipe Book” in 1949. Hungry yet?But it’s really in Texas where this carnivore’s delight gains popularity with three different regional versions of chicken fried steak. The East Texas version dips the meat in egg followed by flour. In Central Texas, bread crumbs replace flour and in West Texas, there’s no egg-dipping at all, according to a former Texas food critic. (It’s tough to write about this on an empty stomach!)By 2011, Lamesa, Texas launched its “Lamesa Original Chicken-Fried Festival” in commemoration of the chicken fried steak centennial. Today, we crown it the fore-runner of the current National Chicken Fried Steak Day. Whatever…let’s eat!

National Chicken Fried Steak Day timeline

​1911

Chicken fried accident?

​Jimmy Don Perkins, a short-order cook in Lamesa, Texas, accidentally creates chicken fried steak by mixing up a chicken order and a steak order (or so one of the stories go).

​1924

Chicken fried steak recipe in print for the first time

​The Los Angeles Times printed a recipe for chicken fried steak.

​1988

​Chicken fried steak became an official meal

​Oklahoma made chicken fried steak — among other dishes — part of its official state meal.

2011

​Celebrating a centennial anniversary

​The “Lamesa Original Chicken Fried Festival,” an inaugural celebration in Lamesa, Texas, marked 100 years since the recipe was invented there.

National Chicken Fried Steak Day FAQs

Why is it called chicken fried steak when it’s not made of chicken?

The name refers to how the steak is cooked since, depending on the recipe, the steak is treated similar to cooking fried chicken with a flour, bread crumbs or batter coating.

What is the difference between country fried vs. chicken fried steak?

Although the two recipes are very similar, country fried steak is cooked with a flour coating and served with a deep brown gravy while chicken fried steak is dipped in egg, fried and accompanied with a cream gravy on top and mashed potatoes on the side.

What part of the cow does the steak for chicken fried steak come from?

The beef usually comes from the round, is pounded very thin and either dipped in batter or dusted in flour, then fried.

National Chicken Fried Steak Day Activities

  1. Head south

    What better way to celebrate National Chicken Fried Steak Day then taking a trip to Texas or Oklahoma? For a Texas trip, check out the Gristmill River Restaurant, Blue Bonnet Cafe or Barbecue Inn. For Oklahoma, stop by Cheever’s Cafe, Tally’s Good Food Cafe or Kendall’s Restaurant. That’s good eatin’, y’all!

  2. Follow the recipe

    Never made chicken fried steak? Well, National Chicken Fried Steak Day is the perfect time to do so! Decide on a recipe (pan fried or deep fried?) and which gravy you think you’d prefer — and do your best to create a Southern favorite.

  3. Have a fry-off

    Whether it’s your first time making chicken fried steak or you consider yourself a pro, celebrate National Chicken Fried Steak Day by having a cook-off. Have friends and family come over — ready to fry up chicken fried steaks — and see whose recipe comes out on top

​3 Great Chicken Fried Steak Debates

  1. Pan fry vs. deep-fry

    ​Well, as the name suggests, frying is a given, but what's the best way to do it? Some enthusiasts will argue that frying in a pan is the only way, but those who deep-fry say their way is best.

  2. White cream vs. brown gravy

    ​The two most common sauces to choose from for chicken fried steak is a white cream sauce or a brown gravy sauce. Die hard chicken fried steak eaters will (happily) debate to the death why theirs is the best one.

  3. ​You say coleslaw, we say biscuits — but everyone says potatoes

    ​Mashed potatoes as a side dish are a given when it comes to chicken fried steak, but many people also enjoy it with collard greens, grilled corn on the cob, fried okra, green beans, and spinach — just to name a few.

Why We Love National Chicken Fried Steak Day

  1. It’s so freakin’ good!

    The crunchiness of the chicken, the creaminess of the gravy and the butteriness of the mashed potatoes. Yes, please! Well, these are all the things you’ll get in a forkful when eating chicken fried steak. And thanks to National Chicken Fried Steak Day, you have an excuse to eat as many forkfuls as you’d like — we won’t even judge you if you lick your fingers when you’re finished!

  2. It highlights Southern cooking

    Unless you live in an area where chicken fried steak is a common cuisine, the odds of ever eating it — or enjoying it frequently — are probably slim. Thankfully, National Chicken Fried Steak Day not only gives you an excuse to indulge, but it also serves as a reminder that there are other cuisines out there — in this case, great Southern cooking — that may be outside of your usual food choices.

  3. Since it’s protein it’s kind of healthy, right?

    Okay, this may be a bit of a stretch, but it’s also kind of true. Sure, fried anything may not be the most healthy thing in the world, (everything in moderation, right?) but at least you know you’re getting some protein on October 26. Plus, National Chicken Fried Steak Day only comes once a year and if this is the one day where you splurge on a fried food then, it’s worth it.

National Chicken Fried Steak Day dates

YearDateDay
2022 October 26 Wednesday
2023 October 26 Thursday
2024 October 26 Saturday
2025 October 26 Sunday
2026 October 26 Monday