I’ve always loved this deli favorite but never tried to make one at home until now. It turns out that the
secret to a good Reuben sandwich is the dressing, which is always a creamy tomato based salad dressing like
Russian or Thousand Island. Luckily I had just started making my home made Russian dressing when I
decided to make my own Reuben sandwich.
Ingredients for 8 sandwiches:
16 slices rye bread (I like the seeded variety)
8 slices Muenster cheese
¾ lb corned beef brisket, thinly sliced
½ lb sauerkraut, canned or bagged, drained,
more or less to your taste
½ cup, more or less to your taste Russian dressing
If you want to make this a cold sandwich then just assemble the ingredients in any order you
want, and enjoy!
But if you want a hot sandwich then you have a couple of options. First, you can assemble
your Reuben and then butter both slices of bread on the outside and pan fry it on your stove-top
on medium low heat. It is tricky to completely heat the sandwich filling and melt the cheese
without burning the bread so keep the heat on medium low and be patient. You can speed up the
process by keeping the heat low but covering the sandwich on the frying pan with the cover to
one of your 3 quart pots.
Want to cheat? For a faster and lower fat option you can assemble just the meat, a little
dressing , then the cheese and sauerkraut (in that order) and microwave it on a small plate until
the cheese melts. Toast the bread lightly and when it is done spread both slices with some more
of the dressing then use a spatula to scoop up the microwaved filling and place it on the bread to
make your sandwich. You can make an open faced version of your Reuben this way too.
Optional:
Substitute some or all of the corned beef with thinly sliced pastrami
Substitute Thousand Island dressing for the Russian dressing
Some Reuben recipes call for Swiss cheese but I think it’s harder to melt than
Muenster. Try the Swiss and see for yourself
Try mozzarella cheese if you are looking for a change. It also melts well.
Purists may prefer pumpernickel bread, but you can try any dark and flavorful bread.
Reuben Sandwich