A cheesesteak (also known as a Philadelphia cheesesteak, Philly cheesesteak, cheesesteak sandwich, cheese steak, or steak and cheese) is a
sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of
beefsteak
A beefsteak, often called just steak, is a flat cut of beef with parallel faces, usually cut perpendicular to the muscle fibers. In common restaurant service a single serving has a raw mass ranging from . Beef steaks are usually grilled, pa ...
and melted cheese in a long
hoagie roll. A popular regional
fast food
Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredien ...
, it has its roots in the U.S. city of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
History
The cheesesteak was developed in the early 20th century "by combining
frizzled beef, onions, and cheese in a small loaf of bread", according to a 1987 exhibition catalog published by the
Library Company of Philadelphia and the
Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Philadelphians
Pat and
Harry Olivieri
Harry M. Olivieri (May 25, 1916 – July 22, 2006) was an American restaurateur of Italian descent. He is credited, along with his brother, Pat Olivieri, as the co-creator of the cheesesteak in 1933. The brothers opened Pat's King of Steaks in 19 ...
are often credited with inventing the sandwich by serving chopped steak on an Italian roll in the early 1930s.
The exact story behind its creation is debated, but in some accounts, Pat and Harry Olivieri originally owned a
hot dog stand, and on one occasion, decided to make a new sandwich using chopped beef and grilled onions. While Pat was eating the sandwich, a cab driver stopped by and was interested in it, so he requested one for himself. After eating it, the cab driver suggested that Olivieri quit making hot dogs and instead focus on the new sandwich.
They began selling this variation of
steak sandwich
A steak sandwich is a sandwich prepared with steak that has been broiled, fried, grilled, barbecued or seared using steel grates or gridirons, then served on bread or a roll. Steak sandwiches are sometimes served with toppings of cheese, onions, ...
es at their hot dog stand near
South Philadelphia
South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west.[Italian Market
The Italian Market is the popular name for the South 9th Street Curb Market, an area of South Philadelphia featuring awning covered sidewalks, curb carts, grocery shops, cafes, restaurants, bakeries, cheese shops, butcher shops, etc., many with an ...]
. They became so popular that Pat opened up his own restaurant which still operates today as
Pat's King of Steaks.
The sandwich was originally prepared without cheese; Olivieri said
provolone
Provolone (, ) is an Italian cheese. It is an aged ''pasta filata'' (stretched-curd) cheese originating in Campania near Vesuvius, where it is still produced in pear, sausage, or cone shapes long. Provolone-type cheeses are also produced in othe ...
cheese was first added by Joe "Cocky Joe" Lorenza, a manager at the Ridge Avenue location.
Cheesesteaks have become popular at restaurants and food carts throughout the city with many locations being independently owned, family-run businesses.
Variations of cheesesteaks are now common in several
fast food
Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredien ...
chains.
Versions of the sandwich can also be found at high-end restaurants.
Many establishments outside of Philadelphia refer to the sandwich as a "Philly cheesesteak".
Description
Meat
The meat traditionally used is thinly sliced
rib-eye
The rib eye or ribeye (known as Scotch fillet in Australia and New Zealand) is a boneless rib steak from the rib section.
Description
Ribeye steaks are mostly composed of the longissimus dorsi muscle but also contain the complexus and spina ...
or
top round
A round steak is a beef steak from the "round", the rear leg of the cow. The round is divided into cuts including the eye (of) round, bottom round, and top round, with or without the "round" bone (femur), and may include the knuckle ( sirloin tip ...
, although other cuts of beef are also used.
On a lightly oiled
griddle at medium temperature, the steak slices are quickly browned and then scrambled into smaller pieces with a flat
spatula. Slices of cheese are then placed over the meat, letting it melt, and then the roll is placed on top of the cheese. The mixture is then scooped up with a spatula and pressed into the roll, which is then cut in half.
Common additions include
sautéed onions
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onio ...
, grilled
mushrooms
A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans.
The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...
,
ketchup
Ketchup or catsup is a table condiment with a sweet and tangy flavor. The unmodified term ("ketchup") now typically refers to tomato ketchup, although early recipes used egg whites, mushrooms, oysters, grapes, mussels, or walnuts, among oth ...
,
hot sauce,
salt, and
black pepper
Black pepper (''Piper nigrum'') is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, known as a peppercorn, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit is a drupe (stonefruit) which is about in diame ...
.
Bread
In Philadelphia, cheesesteaks are invariably served on hoagie rolls. Among several brands, perhaps the most famous are
Amoroso rolls; these rolls are long, soft, and slightly salted. One source writes that "a proper cheesesteak consists of
provolone
Provolone (, ) is an Italian cheese. It is an aged ''pasta filata'' (stretched-curd) cheese originating in Campania near Vesuvius, where it is still produced in pear, sausage, or cone shapes long. Provolone-type cheeses are also produced in othe ...
or
Cheez Whiz
Cheez Whiz is a brand of processed cheese sauce or spread produced by Kraft Foods. It was developed by a team led by food scientist Edwin Traisman (1915–2007). It was first sold in 1952, and with some changes in formulation continues to be i ...
slathered on an Amoroso roll and stuffed with thinly shaved grilled meat," while a reader's letter to an
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
magazine, lamenting the unavailability of good cheesesteaks, wrote that "the mention of the Amoroso roll brought tears to my eyes." After commenting on the debates over types of cheese and "chopped steak or sliced", ''Risk and Insurance'' magazine declared, "The only thing nearly everybody can agree on is that it all has to be piled onto a fresh, locally baked Amoroso roll."
Cheese
American cheese
Modern American cheese is a type of processed cheese developed in the 1910s made from cheddar, Colby, or similar cheeses. It is mild with a creamy and salty flavor, has a medium-firm consistency, and has a low melting point. It is typically ye ...
,
Provolone
Provolone (, ) is an Italian cheese. It is an aged ''pasta filata'' (stretched-curd) cheese originating in Campania near Vesuvius, where it is still produced in pear, sausage, or cone shapes long. Provolone-type cheeses are also produced in othe ...
, and
Cheez Whiz
Cheez Whiz is a brand of processed cheese sauce or spread produced by Kraft Foods. It was developed by a team led by food scientist Edwin Traisman (1915–2007). It was first sold in 1952, and with some changes in formulation continues to be i ...
are the most commonly used cheeses or cheese products put on to the Philly cheesesteak.
White American cheese, along with provolone cheese, are the favorites due to their mild flavor and medium consistency. Some establishments melt the American cheese to achieve the creamy consistency, while others place slices over the meat, letting them melt slightly under the heat. ''Philadelphia Inquirer'' restaurant critic Craig LaBan says, "Provolone is for aficionados, extra-sharp for the most discriminating among them."
Geno's owner,
Joey Vento
Joseph Anthony Vento (December 18, 1939 – August 23, 2011) was an American cook and restaurateur who founded Geno's Steaks, a cheesesteak restaurant, in 1966, starting a longtime rivalry with neighboring restaurant, Pat's King of Steaks.
...
, said, "We always recommend the provolone. That's the real cheese."
Cheez Whiz, first marketed in 1952, was not yet available for the original 1930 version, but has spread in popularity. A 1986 ''
New York Times'' article called Cheez Whiz "the ''
sine qua non'' of cheesesteak connoisseurs." In a 1985 interview, Pat Olivieri's nephew Frank Olivieri said that he uses "the processed cheese spread familiar to millions of parents who prize speed and ease in fixing the children's lunch for the same reason, because it is fast." Cheez Whiz is "overwhelmingly the favorite" at Pat's, outselling runner-up American by a ratio of eight or ten to one, while Geno's claims to go through eight to ten cases of Cheez Whiz a day.
Variations
* A chicken cheesesteak or chicken Philly is made with chicken instead of beef.
* A mushroom cheesesteak is a cheesesteak topped with
mushrooms
A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans.
The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...
.
* A pepper cheesesteak is a cheesesteak topped with green bell
peppers, hot cherry peppers, long hot peppers, or sweet peppers.
* A pizza steak is a cheesesteak topped with pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese and may be toasted in a broiler.
* A cheesesteak hoagie contains lettuce and tomato in addition to the ingredients found in the traditional steak sandwich, and may contain other elements often served in a
hoagie
A submarine sandwich, commonly known as a sub, hoagie ( Philadelphia metropolitan area and Western Pennsylvania English), hero (New York City English), Italian ( Maine English), grinder ( New England English), wedge ( Westchester, NY), or a spu ...
.
* A vegan cheesesteak is a sandwich that replaces steak and cheese with vegan ingredients, such as
seitan
Seitan (, ; Japanese: セイタン) is a food made from gluten, the main protein of wheat.
It is also known as miànjīn (), fu (Japanese: 麩), milgogi (Korean: 밀고기), wheat meat, gluten meat, vital wheat gluten or simply gluten. It is ...
or mushrooms for the steak, and soy-based cheese.
* A steak milano is a cheesesteak containing grilled or fried tomatoes and oregano.
*The Heater is served at
Phillies baseball games at
Citizens Bank Park
Citizens Bank Park is a baseball stadium located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the city's South Philadelphia Sports Complex. It is the home playing field of the Philadelphia Phillies, the city's Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise. The sta ...
, so named for being a spicy variation as it is topped with jalapeños, Buffalo sauce, and jalapeño cheddar.
See also
*
Barros Luco
Barros Luco is a hot sandwich in Chile that includes beef and melted cheese in one of several types of bread. The sandwich is named after Chilean president Ramón Barros Luco, who served as President of Chile from 1910 to 1915. The sandwich was ...
*
Hoagie
A submarine sandwich, commonly known as a sub, hoagie ( Philadelphia metropolitan area and Western Pennsylvania English), hero (New York City English), Italian ( Maine English), grinder ( New England English), wedge ( Westchester, NY), or a spu ...
*
Italian beef
An Italian beef sandwich, originating in Chicago, is composed of thin slices of seasoned roast beef, simmered and served on a long French roll. The sandwich's history dates back at least to the 1930s. The bread itself is, at the diner's prefe ...
*
List of American sandwiches
This is a list of American sandwiches. This list contains entries of sandwiches that were created in, or ''commonly'' eaten in the United States. A sandwich is a food item consisting of one or more types of food placed on or between slices of brea ...
*
List of regional dishes of the United States
*
List of sandwiches
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
*
List of steak dishes
*
Roast beef sandwich
The roast beef sandwich is a sandwich that is made out of sliced roast beef or sometimes beef loaf. It is sold at many diners in the United States, as well as fast food chains, such as Arby's and Roy Rogers Restaurants. This style of sandwich ...
*
Steak sandwich
A steak sandwich is a sandwich prepared with steak that has been broiled, fried, grilled, barbecued or seared using steel grates or gridirons, then served on bread or a roll. Steak sandwiches are sometimes served with toppings of cheese, onions, ...
References
External links
An Illustrated History of the Philadelphia Cheesesteak
{{Sandwhich
American sandwiches
Cheese sandwiches
Cuisine of Philadelphia
Cuisine of the Mid-Atlantic states
Italian-American cuisine
Italian-American culture in Philadelphia
Fast food
Beef sandwiches
Cheese dishes