Chicago Style Beef Sandwiches Food

AUTHENTIC CHICAGO ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH RECIPE

Steps:

• Prep. If you wish, you can stab the surface of the meat every inch or so and stick slivers of fresh garlic into the meat as does my brother-in-law. If you do this, leave the garlic out of the rub. Otherwise, mix the rub in a bowl. Coat the meat lightly with water to help the rub stick, sprinkle it generously on the meat, and massage it in. There will be some left over. Do not discard it, we will use it in the juice.
• Fire up. If you are cooking indoors, put a rack just below the center of the oven and preheat to 225°F. If you are cooking outdoors use a 2-zone setup or a smoker and get it the oven or the indirect side up to about 225°F.
• Cook. Pour the water into a 9 x 13" baking pan and heat it to a boil. Dissolve the bouillon in the water. It may look thin, but it will cook down and concentrate during the roasting. Pour the remaining rub into the pan. Place a rack on top of the pan and place them both on the indirect side of the grill or in the oven indoors. Place the roast on top of the rack above the juice. Roast at 225°F until interior temperature is about 130-140°F for medium rare, about 3 hours (exact time will depend on the cut of meat, its thickness, and how well calibrated your cooker is). This may seem long, but you are cooking over water and that slows things down. Don't worry if there are people who won't eat medium-rare meat. The meat will cook further in step 5, and you can just leave theirs in the juice until it turns to leather if that's what they want.
• While the meat is roasting (mmmmm, smells sooooo good), cut the bell peppers in half and remove the stems and seeds. Rinse, and cut into 1/4" strips. Cook the peppers in a frying pan over a medium high heat with enough olive oil to coat the bottom, about 2 tablespoons. When they are getting limp and the skins begin to brown, about 15 minutes, they are done. Set aside at room temp.
• Prep again. Remove the roast and the juice pan. Take the meat off the rack and remove the rack. Pour off the juice, put the meat back in the pan, and place it in the coldest part of the refrigerator. Let it cool for a few hours, long enough for the meat to firm up. This will make slicing easier. Chill the juice, too, in a separate container. Slice the meat against the grain as thin as humanly possible, preferably with a meat slicer. My wife remembers that her family would cook the roast and take it to the butcher to slice on his machine. That's a good strategy if you don't have a meat slicer but it may be against your local health codes. If you don't have a slicer, use a thin blade and draw it along the meat. If you try to cut down or saw through the crust you will be cutting it too thick.
• Next, taste the juice. If you want you can thin it with more water, or make it richer by cooking it down on top of the stove. In Chicago beef stands it is rich, but not too concentrated. Then turn the heat to a gentle simmer. Soak the meat in the juice for about 1 minute at a low simmer. That's all. That warms the meat and makes it very wet. You can't leave the meat in the juice for more than 10 minutes or else it starts to curl up, squeezes out its natural moisture, and toughens. If you go to a beef stand and the meat is really curly, they have committed a mortal sin. At Mr. Beef, for example, I watched them take a handful of cooked beef and dump it into the juice every time they took out enough for a sandwich. This also enriches the juice with meat protein and seasoning from the crust.
• Serve. Slice the rolls lengthwise but leave them hinged on one side. Or slice a loaf of Italian bread the same way, then cut it widthwise into 10 portions. To assemble the sandwich, start by spooning some juice directly onto the bread. Get it wet. Then lay on the beef generously. Spoon on more juice (don't burn your hand). Top it with bell pepper and, if you wish, giardiniera. If you want it "wet", dip the whole shootin' match in juice. Be sure to have plenty of napkins on hand. You can also try one of the following variations of the classic:Da Combo. Most Italian beef joints offer a "combo," which also has a grilled Italian sausage nestled in with the beef (shown being made at Al's in a photo at right). These are thick, uncured, coarsely ground pork sausages in natural casings, flavored with fennel, paprika, black pepper, red or green bell peppers, onions, garlic, parsley, and crushed red chili peppers for some heat. Italian sausages are made in your choice of hot, medium, or mild (sometimes called sweet).Da Cheef. Cover it with shredded mozzarella and/or provolone, broil for a few minutes, and you have a "cheesy beef" or "cheef". Not many stands offer this mutant strain.Wit Gravy. An even rarer and more heretical variant, topped with marinara.Da Soaker. Just dip the bread in the juice and you have the classic laborer's lunch, a soaker, a.k.a. "sugo pane", or gravy bread. Sugo pane is also commonly made with marinara sauce.

CHICAGO ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH

Steps:

• Rub meat with dry ingredients, cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.
• Add meat to a roasting pan with bacon fat, add onions and garlic, saute for 15 minutes, deglaze with wine, and add Worcestershire sauce, beef stock and bay leaves.
• Place roasting pan in the oven and cook for 3 hours, uncovered, or until an instant-read thermometer registers 135 degrees F in center. Remove, let cool, then slice very thin.
• Cool broth in roasting pan and remove the fat that rises to the top. Strain.
• Reheat the broth, and add the sliced meat. Place some meat on each toasted roll, ladle with some broth and top with giardiniera vegetables and red peppers.

CHICAGO-STYLE BEEF SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Cut roast in half; sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, brown meat in oil on all sides. Transfer to a 5-qt. slow cooker., In a food processor, combine the mushrooms, carrots, onion, garlic and oregano. Cover and process until finely chopped. Transfer to slow cooker. Combine beef broth and base; pour over top. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until tender., Remove meat and shred with two forks. Skim fat from cooking juices. Return meat to slow cooker; heat through. Using a slotted spoon, serve beef on buns; top with giardiniera.

CHICAGO-INSPIRED ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH

Steps:

• Season beef with a pinch of salt and black pepper. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy pot over high heat. Cook and stir beef in hot oil until browned, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Stir garlic, vinegar, oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, thyme, rosemary, 1 teaspoon black pepper, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes into beef. Pour enough chicken broth into beef mixture to cover the meat by 1 inch and bring to a simmer.
• Cover pot with a lid, reduce heat to low, and simmer until meat is fork-tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
• Transfer meat with a strainer or slotted spoon to a separate pot; pour about 1/4 cup of meat broth into pot. Use a wooden spoon to gently break meat into smaller chunks. Cover pot with a lid or aluminum foil and keep warm.
• Skim excess grease from top of broth remaining in the first pot; season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover pot with a lid or aluminum foil and keep broth warm.
• Lay halves of a roll out on a work surface and spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons meat broth over each half. Top bottom half of roll with a generous portion of meat and a spoonful of pickled vegetables. Place tops on sandwich. Repeat with remaining buns, broth, meat, and pickled vegetables to make 3 more sandwiches.
• Spoon hot meat broth into ramekins and top each ramekin with 1/2 teaspoon parsley. Serve sandwiches with hot broth for dipping.

CHICAGO-STYLE ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH

Steps:

• For the pot roast: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 300 degrees F.
• Liberally sprinkle the entire roast with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the roast on all sides until golden and caramelized, 5 to 7 minutes per side; reduce the heat if the fat begins to smoke. Transfer the roast to a plate and reduce the heat to medium.
• Add the onions and a pinch of salt and saute, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper and garlic and saute until fragrant, another minute. Deglaze with the red wine, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Simmer until reduced by about half, another 2 to 5 minutes. Add the stock and thyme and bring to a simmer. Adjust the seasoning of the liquid.
• Put the roast back in the pot with any accumulated juices and place in the oven, covered. Cook the roast, turning every 30 minutes and uncovering the pot for the last 30 minutes of cooking, until very tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Transfer the roast to a cutting board and tent with foil. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F for the peppers and bread.
• For the sweet peppers: Toss the pepper strips with the olive oil, granulated garlic and some salt and pepper on a baking sheet. Bake, stirring halfway through, until lighter in color and softened, about 45 minutes.
• Strain the pot roast jus through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl and return to the pot. Bring to a simmer and simmer until reduced slightly, 5 to 10 minutes. Adjust the seasoning if necessary. Keep warm.
• Once the meat has cooled a bit, remove the twine. Pull the meat into smaller chunks and return to the reduced jus until ready to build the sandwiches.
• For the sandwich build: Rub the rolls with some of the giardiniera oil and toast in the oven until golden brown and crispy, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Place some beef on a roll, then some sweet peppers (with some of the oil they were cooked in), followed by some hot giardiniera. Pour a small dish of reduced jus. Quickly dunk the whole sandwich in the hot jus, then wrap in deli paper or parchment paper and wait for 2 to 3 minutes while the magic happens. Repeat with the remaining rolls and toppings. When ready, open up and eat!

COOKING THE EPISODE: THE BEAR'S ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICH IS THE MOST ICONIC SANDWICH IN CHICAGO

Steps:

• Chicago Italian Beef Sandwich Trim fat from beef and set aside, you can always use it as the fat base if you have a food processor but if you don't, cover the base of your pan with grapeseed oil. Season beef with salt and pepper. In a large rondeau heat grapeseed oil under medium / high heat. Sear beef on all sides to brown. Once browned, remove beef and rest on a half sheet tray with a cooling rack. Deglaze pan with your aromatics - the rough chopped, skin on, carrots, celery and garlic and stir with a wooden spoon to melt. Once all the fond has come up from the pan, deglaze with beef stock and stir. Mix in dried herbs, bouillon, and seasonings. Add beef back in with the torn or sliced green peppers, just make sure to remove all the seeds. Cook in oven set at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Checking internal temp to 140 degrees. Once your beef has cooked, take it out and let it rest until cool. Remove your peppers from the jus and place in to another large pot that is on very low heat, then strain your liquid to remove all the onions, celery, carrots, and garlic. Taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Once the beef has fully cooled and rested, thinly slice the beef about half an inch thickness if you can and place it all back in the jus with the peppers. Get all your buns ready to start building! Slice your bun in half and take a tong-full of your beef, lay it in gently, then stuff one of the peppers in there and top with your giardinara. Dip each corner into the jus and wrap up your sandwich in parchment or wax paper.

CHICAGO-STYLE ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Place roast on a rack, in an open roasting pan, I use an 9" X 13" (230mm x 330mm) baking pan with the rack in it. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees (165 C), allowing 25 minutes per pound (55 min per kilo) , roast will be rare.
• Cool, and slice very thin, I use an electric slicer to do this. To the drippings in the pan, add the boiling water, bouillon cubes or granules, (1 bouillon cube for each cup of boiling water used). Add marjoram, thyme, oregano, hot pepper sauce, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, garlic cloves, and chopped green pepper. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add the thinly sliced beef and cover. Marinate in gravy in refrigerator overnight.
• Next day, heat thoroughly, and serve warm on the French bread, along with a crisp, green salad and plenty of napkins!
• Note: Our family loves the gravy so much that I usually double the gravy recipe so there is plenty to dip the beef sandwich into. We also like to put a lot of gravy on the bread before adding the meat. Sometimes we add barbecue sauce to the sandwich before eating it, for a different flavor, not a lot, just a touch, about 1 Tablespoon or less to taste.
• Courtesy of Joseph Strain.

CHICAGO-STYLE BEEF ROLLS

Steps:

• Brown roast in oil on all sides in a large skillet; drain. Transfer beef to a 5-qt. slow cooker. Combine the broth, onion, dressing mix, garlic, Italian seasoning and pepper flakes in a large bowl; pour over roast., Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until tender. Remove meat; cool slightly. Skim fat from cooking juices. Shred beef with two forks and return to slow cooker; heat through. Place 1/2 cup on each roll, using a slotted spoon. Serve with pepperoncini and pepper rings if desired.