This is how the Chicago Italian from ‘The Bear’, the meatball sandwich from ‘Friends’ and the cubanito from ‘Chef’ are prepared

Click here to read the Spanish version.

They say it is one of the series of the year, and it is gaining fans at a dizzying pace. Almost as fast as its kitchens. FX’s The Bear, which in Spain can be seen on Disney Plus, premiered in the United States in June, and its ‘recipe’ has seduced hundreds of fans. In it, Jeremy Allen White plays Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzato, a chef who returns to Chicago to take over the family sandwich shop -Original Beef of Chicagoland- after his brother’s suicide.

Themes such as “family, food, the madness of routine, the beauty of a sense of urgency and loss of control,” as the platform notes, follow one another with a vibrant cadence, always on the verge of exploding. With so much drawing power, it was inevitable that one of the series’ most iconic dishes, the Chicago Italian Beef Sandwich, would go viral.

The recipe for this juicy, slow-cooked sandwich of Italian-American origin is one of the most sought-after on the web, and we at Tapas are going to share it with you, along with two other iconic sandwich recipes from the big and small screen that you can also make at home: the meatball sandwich from Joey (Friends), one of our favorite foodies; and the Cubanito from Chef, which is succulence made into a sandwich.

Chicago Italian Beef Sandwich from ‘The Bear

Ingredients:

• One kilo of sirloin steak
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1.5 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1.5 tablespoons of onion powder
• 1.5 tablespoons dried basil
• 1.5 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon pepper
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 quarts beef broth
• 2 whole garlic heads
• 2 large carrots
• 2 quartered onions
• 1 whole celery stalk
• 1 liter of soft giardiniera
• 5 green peppers
• Sandwich rolls
• Olive oil

Preparation

1. Trim the fat from the meat and season with salt and pepper.
2. Brown the meat in a skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Once browned, remove the meat and set aside.
4. Deglaze with the chopped carrots, celery and garlic and stir with a wooden spoon. Once it has risen to the bottom of the pan, deglaze with beef broth and stir.
5. Mix the dried herbs, broth and seasonings.
6. Add the meat together with the green peppers (previously cut).
7. Bake in the oven at 250 degrees for one hour.
8. Once the meat is cooked, remove it and let it rest until it cools.
9. Remove the peppers from the juice and place them in another large pot over very low heat.
10. Strain the liquid to set aside the onions, celery, carrots and garlic. Taste and season.
11. Once the meat has cooled completely, cut it into thin slices about half an inch thick and place it back in the juice with the peppers.
12. To prepare the rolls, cut them in half, place the meat, fill with the peppers and cover with the giardiniera.
13. Dip each corner in the juice and wrap the sandwich with paper.

Joey’s Meatball Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 350 grams of minced pork
• 350 grams of minced meat
• Half a yellow onion
• 2 tablespoons oregano
• 2 tablespoons parsley
• 2 tablespoons thyme
• 2 tablespoons basil
• Half cup bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup red wine
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 3 cups marinara sauce
• 6 Italian rolls, about 6 inches thick
• 12 slices mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and line a baking tray with baking paper.
• Mix in a bowl the minced pork, minced meat, onion, oregano, parsley, thyme, basil, breadcrumbs, red wine, eggs and pine nuts.
• Shape the meatballs and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes.
• Heat the marinara sauce in a saucepan.
• Once the meatballs are browned, place them in the marinara sauce and let them simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
• While the meatballs are simmering, open the Italian rolls in half.
• Place one or two slices of cheese on the rolls and bake until the cheese is soft and melted (about 5 minutes).
• Once ready, place 3 or 4 meatballs inside each roll with some of the sauce.
• To finish, sprinkle with Parmesan and parsley.

The little Cuban from ‘Chef

Ingredients:

• One kilo of roasted and sliced pork loin
• 8 slices of cooked ham
• Sliced cheese
• Mustard
• Butter
• Gherkin
• Olive oil
• Orange juice
• Lemon juice
• Orange zest
• Garlic
• Oregano
• Parsley
• Salt
• Pepper
• Bread

Preparation:

• To prepare the marinade, mix the garlic, parsley, oregano and orange zest and, once the mixture is ready, add the oil and juices and season with salt and pepper.
• Reserve part of the marinade.
• Season the pork with salt and pepper, cover it with the marinade and let it rest in the refrigerator until the next day.
• Bake the pork at 200 degrees for two hours, covering it with aluminum foil.
• Reserve the pork.
• Open the bread and toast it. Spread with mustard and add the ham (previously fried), the roasted pork loin, the cheese, the pickle and the reserved marinade.
• Toast the sandwich on a griddle with butter until the cheese melts.