Reuben Sandwich Recipe
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A deli favorite, the best Reuben sandwiches strike a balance with a good helping of corned beef or pastrami, a bit of cheese, heaps of sauerkraut, and gobs of Thousand Island Dressing. You can serve a Reuben cold, but we love it toasted in a pan and served warm so that the cheese is melty and the dressing oozes out as you take a bite.
What to buy: We like the strong, nutty flavor of Gruyère in this sandwich, but a high-quality Swiss cheese is more traditional.
This recipe was featured as part of our Make Your Own Corned Beef project, our Most Delicious Sandwiches recipe slideshow, and our How to Make Oven-Smoked Pastrami project.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 tablespoons Thousand Island Dressing
- 2 (1/2-inch-thick) slices rye bread
- 1 1/2 ounces sliced Gruyère or Swiss cheese
- 1 cup sauerkraut, drained and squeezed of excess moisture
- 4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices pastrami or corned beef (about 4 ounces)
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
INSTRUCTIONS
- Spread 1 tablespoon of the dressing on one piece of bread and top with half of the cheese, half of the sauerkraut, and all of the meat. Spread another tablespoon of the dressing over the meat and top with the remaining sauerkraut and cheese, in that order.
- Spread the remaining tablespoon of dressing on the remaining piece of bread and place it on top of the cheese, dressing side down. Press firmly to close the sandwich, then evenly spread the butter on the outside of the sandwich.
- Heat a heavy-bottomed frying pan over medium heat, place the sandwich in the pan, and press down on the sandwich with a spatula. (Alternatively, you can cook the sandwich in a sandwich press.) Cook until the bread is crisp and golden brown, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook until the second side is golden brown, the cheese is melted, and the sandwich is warmed through, about 4 minutes more.
I don't like thousand island so I use mustard instead. You probably can't call it a Reuben but that's fine by me.
@DigitalVelvet-I agree with you on mayo but I don't see how that's worse then thousand island considering that thousand island is basically half ketchup and half mayonnaise.
I plan to buy corned beef and cabbage. Try to make the Reuben with cole slaw.
Ed - What is the difference between Russian and Thousand Island dressing? I have noticed this discrepancy in the classic Reuben recipe recently, and nobody has been able to tell me how the two differ.
I also concur with the response to an earlier post... while pastrami and mustard in a similar sandwich might be quite tasty, that makes it not a Reuben. And whoever would put mayo on a Reuben (or pastrami) sandwich should be severaly flogged! ;)
Though 1000 Island is commonly used, classic recipes call for Russian Dressing. A little harder to find, but not hard to make. There is a difference.
I'd also alternate layers .... so that the cheese melts throughout.
Suggest also a "super Reuben" ... add pastrami to the mix :-)
Now .. some coleslaw (w/ a bit of horseradish in it) & a cold beer & we're talkin'!
I haven't had a palatable Reuben since Berghoff's (I think) in Chicago! or Katz's in NY before that.
>>.A good Reuben should ruin the shirt you’re wearing.>>
I couldn't agree more!
MMMMMMMMM is just not enough Ahhhhhhh helps a little more. This is a Reuben, a full cup of kraut. I ask for double kraut in fancy restaurants and it isn't even hanging out the edge, much less the meat and cheese. A good Reuben should ruin the shirt you’re wearing.
MMMMMM< love them i miss making them . a must is the best meat and i just put the butter in the pan and add as needed .make your oun pastrami , it is so great with this . preboil corned beef brisket with fat !!then when you do your bbq ,,,,put lots of crushed black pepper set off from coals with smoke wood and smoke . some just take uncorned brisket with fat black pepper garlic onion dry and salt and slow cook low heat smoking it for many hours it comes out so dark . aging it in ice box helps make it better mmm john
Pastrami makes it a Rachel, not a Reuben. :)
That one up there in the photo looks just perfect, but I would want a bit more TI dressing on the side. I think this weekend I'll need to buy a corned beef brisket.
WE used to own a restaurant in Washington sate..made our Reubens out of very thinly sliced Pastrami at leats 4 oz, plopped, not layed down!!(less fatty), thousand island on 1 side, sweet hot mustard on the other, triple rinsed our kraut, 3 slices of good swiss cheese, dark rye bread, grilled it on a panini grill..................yum! Made Reuben lovers out of sauerkraut haters!!!!!!
I got turned on to a ruben with cole slaw instead of sauerkraut at the rusty hammer in portsmouth nh. It's a little on the sweet side with the slaw and thousand island dressing.....but yum. the crunchy cole slaw and crispy grilled bread.....the salty corn beef finishes wonderfully.
I had an interesting reuben a few years back, that I am still thinking about. It wouldn't be hard to recreate - instead of rye bread, the whole thing was done open faced, over some really good latkes.
I want that sandwich. Now.
What do I think? I think the Reubens is a standalone example of how sandwiches should be. In the UK, people think you can get away with spreading margerine on some weak bread, then add acouple of slices of crappy ham and call it a sandwich.
America knows sandwiches. At least a 50/50 ratio of filling to bread and we have a winner.
To go with the toasty theme, you should saute your 'kraut first. Dries the moisture out, and helps keep the meat and cheese warm as you're toasting the sandwich. Try sprinkling in some caraway seeds into your 'kraut and toasting them as you dry out the 'kraut.