Philly Cheese Steak at home?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

giggler

Sous Chef
Joined
Dec 4, 2007
Messages
731
Location
Austin, TX.
Can I make a passible copy of this sandwich at home?

I have sirloin steak, and can get nice little sub rolls from the bakery up the street.

I need to look up the other ingrediants like cheese. are there onions and maybe can mushrooms?

I normally do a decent French dip with this, but would like something new.

Thanks, Eric, Austin Tx.
 
I've made it at home. DH really liked and he's had it in Philly. It's a bit of a pain because we don't have a flat-top grill like they do in restaurants. And yes, the steaks need to be paper thin. I think a former neighbor of mine used to use Steak-Ums to make them.
 
One of our little BBQ places here makes the best Phillies. Yes, paper-thin steak is key. They also use fried peppers and onions along with provolone. Whiz is in the original though.

Sure wish we'd gone to the two original places that have an ongoing rivalry when we were in Philly.
 
Another vote for paper thin beef and a big splash of Worcestershire sauce.

If you have a meat market with a real live butcher you can ask them to slice an inexpensive roast so you can portion it for the freezer. The thin beef is great for sandwiches and Asian inspired stir fry dishes like Broccoli and Beef.
 
Last edited:
The most important thing is that meat needs to be sliced paper thin. Get a jar of Cheese Whiz and an onion.

+1
Our Penn Dutch has packages of sirloin tip in the freezer section that has been sliced super thin. We buy a few packages when we want steak sandwiches, Philly or not.:yum:
 
My husband is from the Philadelphia area and we have had Cheesesteaks in many different locations, but I have to say my personal fave is this one:
Pudge's Steak and Hoagie
Now, since moving first to Hawaii, DH got to make him Cheesesteaks and I used Steak-ums, but the rolls weren't quite right.
Then we moved to the middle of the desert aka AZ and we found a joint that had Amoroso rolls flown in form Philly.
Amoroso's | Philadelphia Hearth-Baked Bread Rolls | Est. 1904
002.JPG
I tried mine, this one time, with broccoli rabe, mmm!
IMHO, a good Cheesesteak is made with thinly shaved Rib eye and an Amoroso roll, provolone, grilled onions and sweet peppers, hot cherry peppers on the side please.
 
The best traditional Philly cheesesteaks that I've ever had were at the Mecca of cheesesteaks, the intersection where Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks in Philly reside (both were equally good). Even though Cheez Whiz is more famous, the locals prefer regular ol' American cheese or provolone. And yes, they're made from very thinly sliced ribeye that gets chopped as it cooks on a flat top.

However, I've had even better ones, though they veered a bit from the traditional cheesesteak heretofore described.
They are sold every year at the San Gennaro festival in NYC's Litlle Italy. It also begins with a very thin slice of ribeye, but it is grilled over charcoal as one slice - not griddled and chopped. Also, the bread is toasted and lightly coated with garlic butter, and then it is served with chopped sauteed onions (I prefer raw), and again, American cheese.

Some diners in the city call this version, on garlic bread, a Balboa hero. I guess it's in reference to Rocky Balboa, the most famous fictional resident of Philadelphia.

Man, now I want one.

Oh yeah, I've tried making them with Steak-Ums, but I've found it to taste kinda greasy. It's better to spend the money and get a quality cut of meat.
 
Last edited:
A couple of big names in the Philly cheesesteak business use ribeye sliced thin.

That's what I use -- with onions and provolone. I'm not a Wiz kinda' guy.

The tough part of replicating a Philly Cheese Steak here in Texas (or a Hoagie) is finding the right bread. In a pinch, you can slice a baguette into rolls, but it is not exactly the same.

Growing up in the burbs of Philly, my parents used steak-um. We could also get Amoroso's rolls in the supermarket.

CD
 
We use filet mignon. My slicer can't get it paper thin but I get as close as possible.

Then sautee' the onions.
Then FRY the mushrooms. By fry I mean to make them fried, not just sauteed. Start them up in the butter but when they look done keep going. Eventually the darken a bit and shrink, and take on this excellent favor.

I use uncut buns and V cut them at the top. I splash some mayo on the inside of the bun, then goes the cheese, the meat right on top which will melt it some, then the veggies.

Some people don't seem to like the bun, they just eat it on a plate.

T
 
The most important thing is that meat needs to be sliced paper thin. Get a jar of Cheese Whiz and an onion.

I can't get past the Cheese Wiz. I use sharp provolone.
Also a Philly is not whole thin steaks, but its shaved steak and almost shredded it seems. A sub roll with just a steak on it to me is a steak sub.
A sub roll with shaved pieces of steak is the Philly to me.

I slice very thin slices from a good steak to make it. Very very thin. Thin as I can get it. I have a mandolin, but I doubt its up for this task?
 

I can't get past the Cheese Wiz. I use sharp provolone.
Same here! I could never understand the appeal of the cheese wiz in the iconic Gino's and Pat's cheese steaks. That was my first thought when I saw this thread - why would someone want to make a true Philly cheese steak???

The best way I have found to cook the meat for a cheese steak is in my Big Kahuna burner. Just like with Chinese food, the very high heat (65k) gives it that "wok hei flavor", which is similar to the browning they get on those griddles the steak is usually browned on in good steak shops.
 
The best way I have found to cook the meat for a cheese steak is in my Big Kahuna burner. Just like with Chinese food, the very high heat (65k) gives it that "wok hei flavor"

Agreed. I do kind of a stir fry method in cast iron, with a bit of Worcestershire and soy sauce, along with chopped onions, mushrooms and bell peppers.

I'll then assemble it all together, add cheese on top and cover for 2-3 minutes, using a long spatula to remove it and place it on the roll. Yum!
 
Rib eye is very expensive to be used in making sandwiches. I would use my namesake, flank steak, or skirt steak. I also prefer provolone to cheez whiz. That's not even cheese. I also like to use an Italian rool, split down the middle (no 'v' cut!)

Place the steak slices on the grill and chop it with the spatula as you sauté it, add onions, peppers and mushrooms as desired and continue to sauté until cooked through. Place provolone slices on top of the cooked steak and vegetables, place the split roll on top of the cheese and use the spatula to lift the entire mess off the grill and stuff the stuff into to the roll as you close it. Add your lettuce and tomato, and dress it with oil and vinegar "cheesesteak juice' and salt and pepper. I prefer mine with lettuce, tomato, pepperoncini and mayonnaise, no juice.

There is only one place I know of, actually outside Philadelphia, that puts tomato sauce on a cheesesteak. That is like putting ketchup on a medium rare NY strip! Fortunately, most cheesesteak makers are not familiar with sauce on a cheesesteak.
 
Last edited:
My take on Cheesesteak


Red and green bell peppers, onions and mushrooms

cheesesteak_edit_1.jpg

Crusty bread with melted under broiler American on one side and muenster on the other side

cheesesteak_edit_2.jpg

Seared thin sliced flank or sirloin steak.

cheesesteak_edit_4.jpg
 
A cheese sauce made with Extra sharp Pinconning is grand on a Philly Cheesesteak.:yum:

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

I am originally from Pennsylvania, many a great cheese steaks and not just in philly. We had a local fair every year and there was a cheesesteak stand called Vince’s. They made a cheese sauce like that and it was awesome. But maybe I am not the right person to give an opinion, because I am a cheez wiz girl. ?
 
We travel all over on our boat and really miss Philly cheesesteaks. I have found Amoroso's rolls in several different Aldi’s. I agree the steak needs to be shaved rib eye. I like cheez wiz and fried onions, hubby likes his in the garden with American cheese.

Trying to get a good cheesesteak outside of Pennsylvania is like trying to get a good crab cake outside of Maryland ��

I will admit, if you have a Jersey Mike’s sub shop in your area, they do make a pretty good cheesesteak.
 
Back
Top Bottom