There was a time back in high school that I tried my first Chicago italian beef. That was when I was introduced to the “stance”, “wet”, “dipped”, and all the verbiage that went along with it. I went to Al’s Beef and tried one with hot giardiniera, and dipped. I watched them take the sandwich and soak it, wrap it, and later on, watch me fuss with it.
Decade-plus later, I stop off in Chicago every so often and grab another one. It’s an experience and I enjoy it thoroughly. Can we re-create it at home? We sure as hell can!
The Prep Table
My father-in-law was coming into town for the holidays, and we all know it sucks flying in.. getting to where you’re going.. and having nothing ready to eat. I grabbed a couple of these Top Sirloin roasts – one for me, one for him. I don’t know if he went full Italian Beef with it like I’m going to, but he was thankful to have something edible when he got home.
Pretty simple rub – basically it’s my Meaty Bits Beef Rub (SPOG) with some oregano and basil thrown in there. Every BBQ pitmaster has a SPOG on tap at all times (Salt, Pepper, Onion, Garlic) – it’s taking what you know and adding to it. Italian Beef? Yeah, we’re putting some oregano and basil on that.
I did very minimal trimming on the roast itself – It’s a lean cut. We’re going to cook it down and slice it as thin as we can. Now it ain’t an Italian beef without that juice. We need this to shine, so we’re going to start it with a little bouillon/water and let that meat juice drip into it.
We got the meat trimmed and rubbed, we got the smoker fired up to 250. We’re about ready to go. The only other thing I didn’t add in here was my giardiniera prep. I did it after the cook, after I built the sandwich. I bought two products: Alpino’s Hot Giardiniera Relish and Mazzetta’s California Hot Vegetable Mix. I chopped up the Mazzetta’s into smaller pieces and mixed it with the Alpino’s to add a little more substance. I wanted some more veggie in there, MrsForensicBBQ would be proud.
The Process
We’re going to cook these until we got an internal temperature of 130 degrees. We’re going to wrap them up overnight (after it’s cooled), slice and eat. I know, it sucks having to cook something and just refrigerate for later – so if you’re doing this day of – start in the morning for a dinner. Me? I’m always at that damn smoker so another day of running that RecTeq is no big deal. I probably had a ton of leftovers in the fridge for the day anyway.
I hope you love the progression shots as much as I do. For those new to the site, this whole thing started off as a place for me to house my cooks/recipes for easy reference. Sure, I have a OneNote where I keep my cooking logs, but it’s looking at these progression shots where I’m like, “Yep, that’s why I posted it – it’s this good”. That au jus is looking good up top also. I didn’t know if I was going to be more excited for the juice or the meat. It was really going be a nostalgic first bite.
I also love the night cooks when I have the RecTeq fire as my backdrop. Sure, the meat shot isn’t the greatest, but it’s the totality of it all. These two were just about done – maybe 3 hours or so. We’re cooking to internal temp, so just let it ride and it’ll let you know when it’s ready.
There’s your italian beef, post cook and ready for the rest. If you’re scrolling through reading like I am.. you’re like, “That’s it?” Nah, my friends.. that ain’t it. Let’s get to the result and see what we did.
The Result
Post-cook, I put that delicious liquid into a jar for later. We’re going to heat it up on the stovetop and use that to progress through our build. We’re going to get the juice hot, place our sliced meat into it to heat it up. Build the sandwich and either dip that sammich in or ladle some of it on there. I don’t have giant equipment like an Al’s Beef or a Mr. Beef does, so we’re doing it kitchen style.
We’re looking good here! When I unwrapped the foil the next day and saw this beauty.. I was a bit giddy with excitement. I didn’t even slice into it yet. Speaking of which:
Was hoping me bitching about cutting this by hand would convince MrsForensicBBQ that it would be in both of our best interests that we buy a meat slicer, but she’s a strong woman and endured. I did a pretty alright job with my brisket knife, and the look was spectacular. So that there is your roast beef, your italian beef in all it’s glory. You’re here because I titled it “Chicago Italian Beef” – so let’s do it right.
The Sangwitch
My first go, I did the dip as best as I could with the pot-warmed au jus. It was a messy disaster on the stovetop, and didn’t really translate well to photography. So let me show you the italian beef.. wet:
Took a handful of slices, and warmed it in the au jus for just a minute or two. If it curls, you had it in there a little too long. If it looks like it does above, you did it right. Pile it on a roll (I softened it for seconds in the microwave). Ladle on some of that juice. Then ladle some more. Then fill a bowl and prepare to do the dip because you don’t want any of that to go to waste.
Another high-pile of some relish and we built our sandwich. I had this meal for days and it was delightful, reminiscent of Chicago without actually going there (Sorry Chi folk). I like the Italian Beef sandwich better than the Chicago hot dog and just about on par with Garrett’s. All three of which is better than a Chicago style pizza, but you knew that already.
A little extra info nugget: One of my go-to’s when I’m in Chicago is actually to visit The Halal Guys over there on Wabash. I know, not at all Chicago, but when you find a shop who’s hot sauce is actually hot – you show them some love. They always doubt me when I say “more”, but they don’t know me.