 Cheesesteak with Cheez Whiz |
|
| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Alternate name(s) | Philadelphia cheesesteak, Philly cheesesteak |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Creator(s) | Pat & Harry Olivieri |
| Dish details | |
| Course served | Main course |
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredient(s) | Sliced steak, cheese, bread |
| Variations | Multiple |
A cheesesteak, also known as a Philadelphia cheesesteak, Philly cheesesteak, or steak and cheese, is a sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of steak and melted cheese in a long roll. The cheesesteak is one of the favorite foods of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[1]
Contents |
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.[2]
Philadelphians Pat and Harry Olivieri are often credited with inventing the sandwich by serving chopped-up steak on hoagie rolls in the early 1930s.[3] They began selling his variation of steak sandwiches at their hot dog stand near south Philadelphia's Italian Market. 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 claims cheese was first added by a manager at the Ridge Avenue location. His name was Joe "Cocky Joe" Lorenza and the first cheese he added was provolone."[4]
Pat's and Geno's Steaks have a highly publicized rivalry. They are located across the street from each other on 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia.[5] Cheesesteaks have become popular throughout the city[6] with many locations being independently owned family run businesses.[7] Variations of cheesesteaks are now common in different fast food chains.[8] Versions of the sandwich can also be found in locations ranging from bars to high end restaurants.[9]
Description
The meat used is thinly sliced rib-eye or top round although other types are also used.[10] The steak is placed on a lightly oiled griddle at medium temperature. The slices are quickly browned and then scrambled into smaller pieces with a flat spatula. Often, the steak is placed on top of already slightly fried onions to prevent the steak from becoming over-cooked. Thicker slices are also sometimes used. Some vendors omit the chopping, serving their sandwiches with these slices of steak in whole form.
Some locations with large volumes will griddle the steak in a large pile, chopping and flipping the steak with a large metal spatula until cooked to a light brown. The thicker pieces of steak, due to their need to be cooked more thoroughly, will be set in a single layer on the griddle and flipped until brown.
A cheesesteak may include other optional ingredients such as fried onions, sautéed green peppers, and mushrooms. Some menus include mayonnaise, hot sauce, ketchup, or pizza sauce (a Pizza Steak, often with mozzarella as the cheese).
In Philadelphia most cheesesteak places use Amoroso or Vilotti-Pisanelli rolls.[11] One source writes that "a proper cheesesteak consists of provolone or Cheez Whiz slathered on an Amoroso roll and stuffed with thinly shaved grilled meat,"[12] while a reader's letter to an Indianapolis magazine, lamenting the unavailability of good cheesesteaks, wrote that "the mention of the Amoroso roll brought tears to my eyes."[13] 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."[14]
Cheese
Cheesesteaks should have a creamy cheese taste that does not dominate the sandwich.[15] White American cheese, Mozzarella, provolone, and Cheez Whiz are the most frequently used cheeses.[16]
Cheez Whiz, first marketed in 1952, was not yet available for the original 1930 version, but it is now a common option.[17] A 1986 New York Times article called Cheez Whiz "the sine qua non of cheesesteak connoisseurs."[18] 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."[19]
American cheese is a favorite[20] due to its mild flavor and medium consistency. Some places pre-melt the American cheese to achieve the creamy consistency, while others just put freshly cut slices over the meat, letting it slightly melt under the heat. Provolone is also popular. One Los Angeles reporter claimed that "provolone is the cheesesteak cheese, preferably an extra-sharp provolone with a distinctly savage bite."[21]
The proprietor of Geno's considers provolone or American cheese more authentic, but Pat's introduction of Cheese Whiz allowed it to quickly become a "topping of choice."[22]
During his presidential campaign in 2003, John Kerry was ridiculed for attempting to order the sandwich with Swiss cheese.[23] A food critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer explained: "In Philadelphia, that’s an alternative lifestyle".[20]
Variations
Most cheesesteak restaurants offer chicken cheesesteaks, which, as the name implies, use chicken instead of beef.
A steak sandwich topped with pizza sauce and sliced or crumbled mozzarella constitutes a pizza steak, which is often placed briefly in a pizza oven or under a broiler to melt and lightly brown the cheese. Some establishments offer sliced pepperoni as an optional topping, to make a pepperoni pizza steak.[24]
A cheesesteak made with chicken is called a chicken cheesesteak. When served with buffalo wing sauce and blue cheese dressing, it is called a buffalo chicken cheesesteak.
Other variations include a "cheesesteak hoagie", which contains lettuce and tomato and often mayonnaise.
The Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania is also known for its own style of steaks. Typically, these feature not Cheese Whiz, but instead a special tomato-based "steak sauce," onions, pickles, and peppers.[25]
The Reading, Pennsylvania–headquartered Steak-umm Company has long been known for its thin-sliced frozen steaks, which are sold in supermarkets throughout the US and are used for making home-made Philadelphia-style cheesesteaks.[26] The company claims to be "the best-known sandwich steak brand in America" and to have "helped turn the regional 'Philly Cheese Steak' Sandwich into standard fare on America's dinner tables over four decades ago".[27]
See also
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Cheesesteaks |
Notes
- ^ Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, "Philadelphia - African American Visitor's Guide". Retrieved 21 November 2008.
- ^ Mary Anne Hines, Gordon Marshall, and William Woys Weaver (1987). The Larder Invaded. The Library Company of Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. ISBN 0-914-07670-1.
- ^ Katie Stuhldreher (July 30, 2007). ""Rick's Steaks takes Reading Terminal Market dispute to court"". philly.com. Archived from the original on 2008-01-24. http://web.archive.org/web/20080124113843/http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20070730_Ricks_Steaks_takes_Reading_Terminal_Market_dispute_to_court.html. Retrieved 2007-07-30.
- ^ Fiorillo, Victor. "The Cheesesteak Cometh". Philadelphia Magazine. http://www.phillymag.com/articles/the_cheesesteak_cometh/page2. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ McCauley, Mary Beth (2006-06-05). "Backstory: Philly's cheesesteak wars". The Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0605/p20s01-lifo.html. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
- ^ Brookes, Karin; John Gattuso, Lou Harry, Edward Jardim, Donald Kraybill, Susan Lewis, Dave Nelson and Carol Turkington (2005). Zoë Ross. ed. Insight Guides: Philadelphia and Surroundings (Second Edition (Updated) ed.). APA Publications. ISBN 1-58573-026-2.
- ^ Price, Betsy (2009-07-10). "Tour de cheesesteak". The News Journal. http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090710/LIFE/907100334. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
- ^ Hein, Kenneth (2009-01-22). "Domino's, Subway Battle Heats Up". Brandweek. http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/client/e3icc0b0d908a93102282d02f4de66daa3b. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
- ^ Horowitz, Rachel (2004-04-11). "Cheesesteak raises eyebrows and drains wallets". The Daily Pennsylvanian. http://media.www.dailypennsylvanian.com/media/storage/paper882/news/2004/11/01/News/Cheesesteak.Raises.Eyebrows.And.Drains.Wallets-2150246.shtml. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ John Fischer. "How To Make a Philly Cheese Steak". About.com. http://philadelphia.about.com/cs/cheesesteaks/ht/makecheesesteak.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
- ^ John Hodgman (May 2002). "Philly Mignon". Men's Journal. Amoroso Baking Company. http://amorosobaking.com/news/ar_article01.html. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
- ^ Jeffery Fekete (2009). Making the Big Game. Mill City Press. pp. 21. ISBN 9781935097327.
- ^ Powell, Warren (December, 2000). "Beef Eaters". Indianapolis Magazine: pp. 17. ISSN 0899-0328.
- ^ Kerr, Michelle (April 2005). "Hungry for a taste of Philly?". Risk and Insurance 16(4): pp. 20.
- ^ Price, Betsy (2009-07-10). "Tour de cheesesteak". The News Journal. http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090710/LIFE/907100334. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
- ^ Price, Betsy (2009-07-10). "Tour de cheesesteak". The News Journal: pp. 2. http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090710/LIFE/907100334. Retrieved 2009-07-12.
- ^ Hevesi, Dennis. 9 June 2007, New York Times, Edwin Traisman, 91, Dies; Helped Create Iconic Foods". Retrieved 10 November 2008.
- ^ "Cheese Steak: An Original". The New York Times: pp. C6. 1986-05-21.
- ^ William K. Stevens (1985-11-16). "About Philadelphia: Where Cheesesteaks are King, One Family Has Assumed the Crown" (Subscription required). The New York Times: pp. 10. http://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/16/us/about-philadelphia-where-cheese-steaks-are-king-one-family-has-assumed-the-crown.html. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
- ^ a b Fiorillo, Victor. "The Cheesesteak Cometh". Philadelphia Magazine. http://www.phillymag.com/articles/the_cheesesteak_cometh/page5. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ "Ask Mr. Gold". LA Weekly. 2004-09-02. http://www.laweekly.com/index.php?option=com_lawcontent&task=view&id=9041&Itemid=47. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
- ^ David Whitford (2003-06-01). "Sandwich Superheroes Philadelphia's cheese-steak kings have fought for more than 30 years. Now they cannot imagine life without each other.". Fortune. CNN. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_archive/2003/06/01/346418/index.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-10.
- ^ Milbank, Dana (2003-08-14). "Steak ups the stakes for Kerry in Philly". Washington Post. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/08/14/MN243526.DTL&hw=dana+milbank+washington+post&sn=007&sc=539. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ "The Perfect Philly Cheesesteak". http://philadelphia.about.com/cs/cheesesteaks/a/cheesesteak.htm.
- ^ http://lehighvalley.metromix.com/restaurants/roundup/cheesesteaks/294131/content<
- ^ "Frozen Meat Retail Sales Hit $837 Million In USA Market". Quick Frozen Foods International. 2000-07-01. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-28226969_ITM.
- ^ "About Steak-umm". http://www.steakumm.com/about.htm.
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