The Best Irish Reuben Sandwich Recipe with Corned Beef (2024)

FAQs

What is an Irish Reuben? ›

Juicy corned beef, creamy Swiss cheese, delectable dressing, and traditional sauerkraut are nestled between toasted rye bread and served with crispy sea-salted chips for a sandwich experience that will put your green beer-drinking buddies to shame. Pair it with a Guinness and feel the Irish pride rush over you.

"Ham and cheese is a classic combination so we're not surprised it's the nation's favourite sandwich."

Both kinds of meat are cured, but pastrami is then coated with a flavorful spice rub and smoked. Why is my Reuben sandwich soggy? The culprit is most likely the sauerkraut. Be sure to drain off as much liquid as possible from the sauerkraut before piling it onto your Reuben sandwich to prevent any sogginess.

The classic Reuben sandwich: layers of corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing, tucked between slices of hearty rye bread, grilled to crispy, melty perfection.

While the Reuben sandwich itself doesn't have Irish roots (it was thought to be created in Omaha, Nebraska mid-poker game) the meat inside it – corned beef, does. Well, it kind of does. The Irish-corned beef relationship is considered to be much more Irish-American than it is purely Irish.

But the Reuben is a deeply early-20th-century American Midwestern creation, a Jewish sandwich that isn't kosher, made by an assimilated Eastern European whose family left Russia, Poland, and Germany several generations before World War II.

Corned beef and cabbage is not the national dish of Ireland. You would not eat this dish on St. Patrick's Day in Dublin. It is usually only eaten around the religious holiday in the US.

You may be surprised to hear that the carrot has been victorious in claiming the title of Ireland's favourite vegetable, even though you thought it might have been the potato!

A Reuben sandwich is typically made with corned beef. It would taste great with pastrami too, it just wouldn't be a classic Reuben! Bottom line: You can't go wrong with either of these flavor-packed deli meats.

In some cases, this rule works for melts, which is what a Reuben technically is. But with the Reuben, I prefer to revert to single-side toasting, because I like the inner surfaces of the bread in a Reuben to be slightly steamed and tender, the whole thing partially fusing together.

Is a Reuben still a Reuben without sauerkraut? ›

You can certainly make a sandwich without sauerkraut, but it won't be a reuben sandwich since one of the ingredients that defines the sandwich as being a reuben is sauerkraut.

The ingredient that differentiates Russian dressing from Thousand Island is—drumroll, please—horseradish. When you have Russian dressing accenting a hearty sandwich like a Reuben, the horseradish can be hard to detect, especially when you've got the sharp, funky flavors of sauerkraut to contend with.

Reuben sandwich is known to be originated at Mader's, a German restaurant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the chef Dennis Wegner created them for a summer festival circa 1990. The Main ingredients of this sandwich are : Corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, rye bread.

In the U.S., corned beef is made from beef brisket. You might have seen it at Jewish delis, and that's because the brisket is a traditionally kosher cut of meat that's cured to tenderize it.

In some states, like Michigan, a turkey Reuben is known as a “Georgia Reuben” or a “California Reuben,” instead — in some cases, barbecue sauce or French dressing replace the Russian. Others say that a Rachel swaps rye for white sourdough, though I consider this a step too far.

It is believed that Irish immigrants in the U.S. started eating it on St. Patrick's Day as a symbol of their newly found status and it eventually evolved into the traditional holiday dish. Corned beef and cabbage is to Ireland like Taco Bell is to Mexico – more American than authentic cuisine.

Irish Translation. ceapaire.

The difference between a Rachel and a Reuben is the use of cole slaw rather than sourkraut. Traditionally, both sandwiches were made with corned beef, but that has been modified by using other meats, such as turkey. But the form of cabbage is the distinguishing factor.