Chicagoans are proud of their gourmet steak sandwich which they call Italian beef. Did you know that this sandwich does not – and never did – exist in Italy?
There are many different stories about the origin of this gourmet Italian sandwich, but it is believed to have started in the 1930′s. One story tells us that an Italian immigrant cook in a restaurant thought the Philly steak sandwich was too bland and started playing around with some Italian seasonings and hot peppers to “kick it up a notch”. Supposedly, his boss was not happy with his new “concoction” and promptly fired him. The man then decided to start setting up stands and selling his gourmet Italian beef sandwiches to the public. It soon became quite popular and it was often served at Italian weddings. Since the cut of meat used is not very expensive, this made for thrifty fare to serve the guests without breaking the bank.
Here is my favorite version of the gourmet Italian beef. The day before you will be serving it, take a 5 pound RUMP roast and sprinkle it with half a teaspoon each of garlic powder, fresh ground black pepper and dried oregano. Roast the beef, uncovered, at 325 degrees for 30 minutes per pound. Do not overcook this because it will cook again the following day. Once the roast has cooled a bit, slice the beef as thin as you can. An electric slicer is fabulous if you have one.
Now, to the roasting pan that cooked the beef, add a quart of boiling water, 4 beef bouillon cubes, 4 teaspoons dried oregano, 2 teaspoons dried thyme, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, 2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce, 16 cloves of garlic that have been minced in the processor and 4 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce. At this point I like to throw in about 8 peperoncini peppers. Simmer this for about 20 minutes and adjust for salt. Place the meat in this mixture, cover and refrigerate overnight.
Reheat everything the next day and serve your gourmet steak sandwiches on sturdy, crusty rolls!
Watch Chef Ed make his fabulous Italian beef here!
Mangia Bene!
