Every time my grandparents come into town, I’m spoiled with great food. Friday night it was pizza at California Pizza Kitchen and Sunday it was a home-cooked meal of hummus chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes and Culver’s ice cream for dessert. Saturday, the best food day of all, we had corned beef sandwiches for lunch. My mouth waters just thinking about it. My mom only gets corned beef when my grandparents are in town so when I do get the chance to make a corned beef sandwich, it has to be perfect. Now, I’m not usually one to share my food secrets (i’m selfish and like to keep all the savory goodness to myself), but today I’m feeling generous.
Here are my tips for perfecting your corned beef sandwich, from the meat and bread to the condiments:
Meat: The actual corned beef is the most important component, in my opinion, to making the perfect corned beef sandwich. First of all, it has to be warm. There’s nothing worse than cold corned beef on a sandwich. Second, the meat has to be fresh from a deli. No packaged meat from the deli aisle of your supermarket!
Bread: Rye bread is a must. Saturday I had rye bread with lots of seeds, but I think the sandwich ends up being better when the bread has less seeds. I also think the corned beef would be good on sourdough bread, so if you’ve had it like that, let me know if it is as good as it sounds! As for the preparation, I prefer to leave my bread as is, rather than heating it, but this is just a matter of preference.
Condiments: This is a matter of preference, but mustard is a necessity on my corned beef sandwich. Regular mustard is okay, but if you like an extra kick like me, use spicy or honey mustard. Although I prefer mustard, you can easily make your sandwich a reuben by swapping the mustard for thousand island sauce.
My secret: Now, this may not really be a secret, but I know it is something not everyone typically does when they make a corned beef sandwich. Along with the mustard and corned beef, add coleslaw onto your sandwich. I used to be disgusted by the idea, but I’m telling you it makes all the difference!
