Easy Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

Last night, I grilled some steak for family dinner. I used this recipe from Yummy magazine, and it was phenomenal! I'm used to having the sweet-spicy/juicy kind of steak, but what I liked about last night's dinner was that the flavors were so simple. With only a cup of oil and a handful of some basic herbs, the flavors of the beef were well brought-out, ceasing the need to cover it up with barbecue sauce and such. I served it with roasted potatoes, garlic mushroom, and some home-made coleslaw. Needless to say, I got all of us stuffed!

This afternoon, I noticed some left-over steak in refrigerator. And because I was mad-hungry for something substantially filling, I came up with this great philly cheesesteak sandwich. A cheesesteak, or a Philadelphia cheesesteak to be exact, is a sandwich made from thinly sliced pieces of steak and melted cheese in a long bun. True to its name, it traces its origin to Philadelphia, USA.

I've never had a philly cheesteak in my life, but due to long hours of exposure to the Food Network and all those recipe books which made a hole in my wallet, I can say I've theoretically mastered the art of making it. However, due to limited resources, I had to improvise and make use of what was readily available.

Since the remaining steak piece was relatively huge, I sliced it into thin strips. The next thing you wanna do is prepare the gravy. You can use any ready-mix gravy, but I make mine from scratch.

In a bowl, mix 1 beef cube with 1 cup hot water and stir to combine. Once this is properly mixed, add in 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.

Heat a small pan and pour in the liquid mixture. Keep stirring. Once it thickens, pour in 2 tablespoons of all-purpose cream.* Add in the beef slices and allow to simmer.

* This is not my usual gravy recipe as I normally make a roux out of butter and cornstarch first before adding in the broth. But like I said, I had to make do with what's available. The new gravy recipe turned out to be better than the first. :) 

Meanwhile, slice a loaf of French bread into two pieces, lengthwise. Toast them for about 3 minutes only. You don't want your bread to be crunchy, but you wouldn't want it to absorb the liquid from the cheesesteak either.

One the gravy mixture is reduced in half, pour it on top of the bread. Add in some fresh onion rings. Then here's the best part - scoop some Cheezewhiz spread over the whole thing and watch it melt into perfection through your own eyes. Oooooooooh la la!

Place the top part of the bread and serve. Eating the sandwich can be quite messy, so I covered mine in a layer of parchment paper and aluminum foil. This is also a great way to pack your sandwiches if you intend to take it out as your baon.

Making this sandwich was so much fun because I was not really following any standard recipe. Instead, I went with my instincts and it's such a nice feeling to make something truly yummy out of nothing. 

Does this sandwich make me the most awesome girlfriend ever? ;) I think it's a big YES! :)