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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Fun Sandwich Ideas: An open faced Smoked Meat & Chicken Reuben

As part of an ongoing feature we will be introducing new and fun sandwich ideas. The sandwich is such a staple of Western eating, yet many of us eat essentially the same two-or-three sliced meat and cheese variations over-and-over again. In these blogs we will be passing along some new ideas to mix it up a bit.

Today we are doing an Open-Faced Chicken & Smoked Meat Reuben Sandwich. 


The traditional Reuben is a glorious hot grilled sandwich that is a combination of corned beef, sauerkraut and melted Swiss Cheese on Dark Rye bread with Russian or Thousand Island Dressing on the side for dipping. As with many cool food ideas, there is an ongoing debate as to who invented the Reuben, but it is widely accepted that it originated in New York about a hundred years ago.

In our version we will be changing up the ingredients a little and placing the sandwich open faced under the broiler!

Take slices of your favourite Dark Rye bread and top them sliced smoked chicken or turkey breast and with Montreal style smoked meat or corned beef. Cover with a generous portion of sauerkraut. Always remember to drain the kraut in a colander before using or your sandwich will quickly become soggy. Top with slices of Swiss Cheese. 

In the meantime you need to set your oven to maximum and to the broil setting and place an oven rack so that the top of your sandwiches will be about an inch to half inch from the element. Place the sandwiches on a tray and put under the broiler.

Broil for about 4-5 minutes or until the Swiss Cheese is melted and a little golden brown. Let the sandwiches sit for a couple of minutes and then top with lots of Russian or Thousand Island Dressing. While many put it on the side, in the case of an open faced sandwich dipping can be perilous.  I suggest taking the full flavour plunge and putting it right on top!

These are great and make a terrific day off weekend lunch or as a fun dinner anytime. They go perfectly with a Caesar salad or seasoned French Fries. 


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