Philly Cheesesteak

This is one of the most delicious hot sandwiches I have ever eaten. It’s substantial enough to serve for a meal and is especially good served with a robust green salad on the side…although most people seem to prefer it with French fries (which I, personally, find to be a bit of carb/fat/fried food overkill).

To be perfectly clear, I’ve never been to Philadelphia, so I make no claims of authenticity here. I was introduced to the cheese steak sandwich at Sir John’s in Sunnyvale, California and found it fabulous. The internet provided me with some background information and I was delighted to find enough information to replicate and even improve on Sir John’s version of this classic American dish. Here is what I came up with:

Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

Ingredients:
2 soft crust French rolls about 6 to 8 inches long (Amoroso rolls if you can get them)
Soft butter
1 tbsp olive oil
2 lean rib-eye steaks, half frozen
1 onion, cut into thin slices
1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut into narrow strips or 1” chunks (optional)
½ cup mushroom slices (optional)
1 tsp garlic oil (optional)
1 cup Provolone cheese, roughly grated (must be Provolone)
Salt and black pepper to taste

Prepare rolls:
Split rolls lengthwise, open and butter. If you have a toaster oven, put rolls in oven, buttered side up, and toast until slightly browned. Then remove rolls to plates. If you don’t have a toaster oven, heat a skillet or flat griddle and place rolls on hot surface, buttered side down, and heat until slightly browned. Then remove rolls to plates.

Prepare filling:
The meat is easiest to slice if it is partially frozen. Using a sharp knife, slice as thin as possible, ¼” or less. Trim off excess fat and discard.

Heat large skillet or griddle and coat with olive oil. Add meat, onions, bell pepper, mushrooms and garlic oil. Keep moving on griddle, so nothing sticks or burns. You can chop the steak strips into smaller pieces if you like, but I keep mine whole. Cook until onions are limp and meat is browned. (If using green peppers and/or mushrooms, make sure they are soft as well). Add salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble sandwich:
Remove filling and divide equally between the rolls. Spread the cheese over the top of the meat and place the top half of the roll on each sandwich. Microwave briefly if necessary to get the cheese to fully melt.

Comments with your additions/variations are welcome!


Photo by bertosolo, Flickr