Classic Reuben Sandwich
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It’s so quick and easy to make a classic Reuben sandwich, which is overloaded with melted Swiss cheese, tender corned beef, tangy sauerkraut, and scrumptious Thousand Island dressing.
Happy St Patrick’s Day!
Today I’m bringing you a quick and easy way to get your corned beef and cabbage in! I love to make this treat, particularly around ‘s Day.
As the title suggests, this classic Reuben sandwich recipe features everything you’d find on a traditional Reuben sandwich, including melted Swiss cheese, tender corned beef, sauerkraut, and rye bread. It’s so delicious and most importantly, quick and easy to make. Plus, I’ve included some suggestions below to make the sandwich your own (and please everyone in the family if you have a picky eater or two).
While we’re on the topic of delicious sandwiches, there is this place in Decatur, Alabama that I just love called The Brick. They serve these great sandwiches, overflowing with freshly sliced meats and cheeses and toasted to perfection. Located inside an old brownstone downtown, there is usually live music in the evenings and while the service tends to be a wee bit on the slow side when I’ve been before, you can’t complain because that just means you get to soak up the atmosphere a little more.
Now, if you’re a fellow fan of all things Reuben-flavored, you also have to try this ridiculously good Reuben dip recipe. Let’s get cookin’!
Recipe Ingredients
- Swiss cheese
- Corned beef
- Rye bread (any kind, I’m using )
- Sauerkraut
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Ketchup
- Mayonnaise
- Pickle relish
How to Make a Classic Reuben Sandwich
First, we need to make a homemade Thousand Island dressing. You can skip this step if you have a bottle of dressing already open.
But if not, what you want to do is simply combine the ketchup, mayonnaise, and pickle relish in a bowl. Stir well until combined.
Spread some butter on the outside of each bread slice.
I put a layer of Swiss cheese first.
Top with sliced corned beef.
Have you ever noticed how much prettier a sandwich is if you fold and layer the meat rather than just laying them flat?
Add sauerkraut.
At this point, I realized that no one in my house eats sauerkraut but me (dropped on their heads as children – the whole lot of ’em!) so I decided I might as well add one more thing that no one likes but me).
Sliced banana peppers, that is. You can also opt for sliced bell pepper.
Our classic Reuben sandwich is now ready to be toasted! That was easy, wasn’t it?
Place it in a skillet and brown on both sides over medium heat.
We just want our bread golden brown and toasted and our cheese a little melted.
Yum yum yum!
I gotta be lucky today to get to eat one of these!
Recipe Notes
- Oh my goodness, how I love sauerkraut! When we were little, Mama browned it in a skillet with slices of weenies for supper. We usually had that and fried potatoes and pinto beans with cornbread for supper. I would put ketchup on my sauerkraut and weenies and it was the best dinner as a kid! You can get these at your local deli counter and just get whatever you need so there is no waste or additional cost.
- If you like though, substitute the sauerkraut for coleslaw to keep kids happy!
- Add more flavor to your butter by sprinkling it with garlic powder.
- A classic Reuben sandwich is often made with Russian dressing, which is very similar to Thousand Island dressing. They each have a ketchup and mayonnaise base. However, homemade Russian dressing also includes a teaspoon of horseradish, hot sauce (to taste, depending on how spicy you like it), a tablespoon of chopped onion or green onion, 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, and a dash of sweet paprika.
- Now, a traditional Reuben sandwich is always made with corned beef, but if you’d prefer to use pastrami go ahead.
- My favorite Swiss cheese to use is Gruyere.
Recipe FAQs
What do you serve with a Reuben sandwich?
You can keep it simple and serve your Reuben sandwich with a side of potato chips. Otherwise, opt for a side like French fries, potato salad, coleslaw, or pickles.
Here are some more sensational sandwich recipes:
Chicken Salad Recipe for Sandwiches
Pimento Grilled Cheese Sandwich
French Dip Sandwiches (Recipe With a Twist)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp ketchup
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp pickle relish
- rye bread 2 slices per sandwich
- butter enough to spread over the inside and outside of the bread
- Swiss cheese enough to cover the meat on both sides
- corned beef roughly a 1/4-pound for each sandwich
- sauerkraut roughly a 1/4-cup per sandwich, drained
- bell pepper, sliced optional
Instructions
- Mix the mayo, ketchup, and pickle relish together into a nice sauce and set it aside.1 tbsp ketchup, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 1 tbsp pickle relish
- Butter each side of the rye bread. Layer Swiss cheese slices, corned beef, another layer of Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and banana peppers (optional).rye bread, butter, Swiss cheese, corned beef, sauerkraut, bell pepper, sliced
- Spread the sauce over the sauerkraut.
- Toast in skillet until golden brown and the cheese is melted.
Love this sandwich! Mine & Hubby’s favorite, is it lunchtime yet? 🙂
Great Reuben you made. I love them too. Problem is they do not have anything to do with St. Patricks day, which is Irish. Ruebens are strickly Jewish/German. Try New England boiled dinner or other wise known as Corn beef and cabbage. Throw in some Irish soda bread for good measure.
This meal is considered to bring you the luck of the Irish.;-)
*DROOL* I just LOVE Rubens!! I can’t wait to try this out today!!
Thank you! Let me know what time dinner is, I’ll be right over!
Wow, moving on up in the world are we. Congratulations, Christy, you do deserve to be reconized. New York, New York. I hope that you have a wonderful time.
Well your sandwich has really watered my mouth. I love a Reuben sandwich. There was a place, not there any more, that made then in a press. Oh my gosh. To totally die for. I think if we made your version, put it in a pan, put a metal cake pan on top, and then weighed it down with a heavy can, it could be done. I will have to try it.
Again, good luck on your book tour. And get as many hugs as you give out. lol
Christy, I am so happy for you to be going to NYC and to a book signing! I can’t wait to read your posts from there. You made me laugh every day you were in LA for the Kraft food thing, and it brightened my day. I’ve never been to NYC and so will be seeing it vicariously through your eyes, which have a wonderful way of seeing the really good things, by the way. Thanks for the great recipe for the sandwich. We are having corned beef and cabbage, and I really hope there are leftovers. Might have to cook a couple of them! Have fun in New York! Show those city folk what real southerners are like!
Barb
PS: It must be such a thrill to be called an AUTHOR! I’m going to stand in line if you ever come to anywhere around Phoenix, Az. to buy your cookbook and get to talk to you while you sign it. I’ll bet it is going to take you a couple of days at least, to get through with everyone who wants your book. Probably more, because we all want to meet you and talk to you. Have fun!
Christy baby,
Congrats on the author tour. You deserver every happiness for your respect of all food things southern. Many continued blessings. Now I intend to do that reuben with own secret, secret thing. A smoked corned beef. Smoke that fool for a 2-3 hours and put him in a low slow 225 degree oven for a several hours(4-5). Then slice them long slender tender peices and make Christy’s sandwich. Something good will happen to you, I promise!
I LOVE corned beef and sauerkraut but no one else in this family does (yes….dropped on their heads as children) and your version of the Reuben looks absolutely delish. The best corned beef sandwich I ever had was from a Jewish deli in a suburb northeast of me. Unfortunately, after 35 years, Sam and Hy’s is no longer in business. But I can still recall how my taste buds groaned when I had their corned beef, with a thick layer of chopped chicken liver pate, sandwich on seeded rye bread. To die for!! When it was recommended by a friend, “ewwwwww” came to mind but after my first bite, I knew how wrong I had been. It’s been years since I last made it for myself and I don’t know why. You have inspired me to get some deli corned beef and make your sandwich for lunch and the corned beef/chopped chicken liver sandwich for dinner. To heck with the calories/cholesterol naysayers (and those family members who were dropped on their heads as children)! Thank you, Christy.