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Chopped Cheese Sandwich

Source of Recipe

From "One-Hour Comfort" by America's Test Kitchen


Recipe Introduction

"A real bodega chopped cheese sandwich straight off a flat-top griddle in East Harlem is a local favorite. It features ground beef, seasonings, and lots of yellow cheese piled atop a soft sub roll along with ketchup, mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato—and once you've had one, you'll dream about it. Here's a home-kitchen recipe to help. Bodega cooks in New York sprinkle two mystery seasoning blends on the meat while searing it, but you can achieve a close approximation using a mix of Lawry's Seasoned Salt and Goya Adobo All-Purpose Seasoning. The Lawry's seasoning gives the beef a salty, peppery, oniony flavor while the Goya seasoning adds more salt, along with garlic and oregano. Together, they're a flavor powerhouse. These sandwiches are a wonderful mess to eat, so to preserve your clothing, wrap them in parchment paper and cut them in half before digging in. As a bonus, the swaddle encourages the cheese and beef to meld together."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 pound 85 percent lean ground beef
â—¦ 1 onion, chopped fine
â—¦ 1 teaspoon Goya Adobo All-Purpose Seasoning
â—¦ 1 teaspoon Lawry's Seasoned Salt
â—¦ 4 (8-inch) sub rolls, split
â—¦ â…“ cup mayonnaise
â—¦ 2 tablespoons ketchup
â—¦ 8 slices American cheese (8 ounces)
â—¦ 12 thin tomato slices (2 tomatoes)
â—¦ 2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce


Recipe

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine beef, onion, all-purpose seasoning, and seasoned salt in 12-inch nonstick skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, constantly breaking up meat into small pieces with wooden spoon, until cooked through and excess moisture is driven off, about 8 minutes.

Arrange sub rolls on baking sheet and spread mayonnaise and ketchup evenly on cut sides of rolls. Divide beef mixture evenly among top half of rolls. Layer two slices American cheese over beef on each roll. Bake until bread is warmed through and cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

Layer tomatoes and lettuce over cheese. Close one sandwich, using spatula as needed to keep ingredients contained within roll (sandwich will be very full). Starting from one corner of 16 by 12-inch sheet of parchment paper, immediately wrap sandwich tightly. Repeat closing and wrapping with remaining three sandwiches. To serve, cut sandwiches in half through parchment paper and unwrap as you eat.

Serves 4