The Best Italian Beef

Everyone in Chicago loves an Italian Beef sandwich, but hardly anyone has ever had a good one, let alone a great one. Even the most highly recommended places are hit or miss and sometimes the meat can be grainy because it was cooked too quickly. The best Italian Beef is quick, easy, and made at home.

Ingredients

• 3 lb beef roast, top round preferred


• Kosher salt


• Black pepper, freshly ground fine


• Dried oregano


• Garlic powder or about 6 cloves fresh *


• Red pepper flakes (optional)


• 2-3 cups beef broth


• 2 Tbl. sliced Pepperoncini peppers with additional 2 oz of liquid from the jar


• 4 bell peppers (all red, all green, colored mix – it doesn’t matter), seeded and sliced into 8 strips each.


• Freshly baked French bread

* A note on the garlic: If you are going to use fresh garlic take each clove, slice it in half lengthwise, and then slice each half into 4 long slices. You will have to cut a narrow slit into the beef about each inch and slip a piece of garlic in. It’s a pain and time consuming, but well worth the effort.

Prep The Meat:
If using fresh garlic, prepare as above now. Sprinkle all sides of the meat liberally with Kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, garlic powder (if not using fresh), and dried oregano.

Cook It:
On the stove top, preheat a large roasting pan (make sure it can be used on a stovetop). When hot, all a little olive oil and sear the meat on all side. Really get good caramelization on all sides; this is the key to flavor! When all side are well browned remove the meat to a tray.

Turn the heat to low and deglaze the roasting pan with 2 cups of beef broth. Using a spoon scrape up all of the brown bits that stuck to the bottom. Add the red pepper flakes, if desired, the pepperoncini peppers, and the pepperoncini liquid (top secret ingredient!).

Add the meat back into the pan and cover the roasting pan with a lid or foil.

Roast at 300 degrees for about 1 hour or so. Check with a meat thermometer and pull out of the over and pan at 140 degrees (medium rare). Once the meat is out, let it cool down to room temperature. Most recipes will tell you to cook at a higher temperature, but that is because they do not sear the meat first. The slow cooking after searing will develop a much deeper flavor. Keeping the foil tightly sealed around the pan will keep the meat tender and moist.

Slicing:
Not many homes have a meat slicer; if you do slice it thin. If you are going to slice in by hand, as I do, use a very thin and very sharp slicing knife. Mine is about a 1” thick blade, about 12” long, with “scallops” cut into the slides of the blade. You do not want a short blade that is going to require a lot of sawing, and do not want to use a serrated edge that will shred the meat.

Usually the roast will be made of several different muscles. Try to remove each muscle and slice individually. This will make it easier to handle and will give you an easier time figuring out “the grain” pattern. Always slice against the grain. If you don’t, even the thinnest slices will be tough to chew.

Finishing:
Throw the sliced beef into the roasting pan with the liquid and peppers. Throw in any juices that came out of the beef as it was resting. Turn the heat back on and bring to a simmer. Make each sandwich with a couple spoonfuls of the liquid on the bread, then pile on the beef, peppers, and pepperoncini.