Enjoy The Rachel Sandwich: Twist on the Reuben

Delicious Rachel Sandwich
When March rolls round, the price of corned beef usually drops and we grab a couple for meals. I like to come up with different ways to eat it, cue the sandwich recipes. This prevents leftovers going to waste. We’ve made a Rachel sandwich that is a twist on the classic Reuben sandwich so that we could use the leftover corned beef.

What Ingredients Are Needed For This Recipe?
corned beef
rye bread
Swiss cheese
thousand island dressing
butter
coleslaw

Isn’t This a Reuben Sandwich?
A Reuben has corned beef, Swiss cheese, Russian dressing or Thousand Island dressing, and sauerkraut on rye bread. While a Rachel sandwich typically has turkey and sometimes pastrami, this is my mashup of both of them together. These are both grilled sandwiches, cooked until golden brown to melt the cheese an heat the inside of the sandwich. Toppings and sauces are different.

How Do I Cook The Corned Beef?
We cook our corned beef in the Instant Pot or slow cooker. The Instant Pot method is my preferred because it’s a time savor, but both ways make a delicious beef.

Do I Need Rye Bread And Swiss Cheese?
Use your favorite rye bread (or bake it!) and Swiss cheese. If you have thin sliced Swiss cheese, you may want to use extra to get that melted cheese for a golden brown bread.
How Do I Prepare A Rachel Sandwich?
This is a grilled rye bread sandwich. You make it similar to a grilled cheese, but with more ingredients. You will want to use a Panini press. If you are cooking on the stove, use the weight of a burger press (that’s heavy) on top of the sandwich to press down. If you don’t have those, put a heavy skillet on top to press your Rachel sandwiches together. Cook the sandwich in a buttered hot pan on the stove. The sandwich is cooked until it’s golden brown on both sides and the cheese layer is melted and the meats are heated.

Should I Use Shaved Meat?
We are using leftovers and you might not have a meat slicer. If you do, you can certainly shave your meat into thin slices. Cutting the meat into thin pieces (or your desired thickness), eats just fine too.
Other Ways To Make The Rachel Sandwich
Traditional Rachel sandwiches are made with sliced turkey or leftover roast turkey. Creamy coleslaw is key in making the Rachel sandwich, thousand island dressing and grilled rye bread. What’s in your Rachel sandwich recipe?
The Rachel Sandwich | Twist on The Reuben
Ingredients
- Rye bread
- cooked corned beef
- slices of Swiss cheese
- thousand island dressing
- coleslaw
- butter
Instructions
- This recipe, you will be measuring with your preferences on how much to use of each ingredient.
- Heat your pan to medium.
- Butter your rye bread, like you would a grill cheesed.
- On the other side, put a layer of thousand island down (we used about a tablespoon per slice).
- Put one piece of bread down (with the thousand island spread side up).
- Add a layer of Swiss cheese.
- Add a layer of corned beef. You can use shaved or slices.
- Spoon on coleslaw (however much you want), evenly over the corned beef.
- Put on another layer of cheese (if desired), we had used thin Swiss slices and wanted more)
- Add the other slice of bread, thousand island side down.
- Add the burger press (or a heavy pan) over the sandwich to press it down. You could also use a panini press.
- Cook until the bread is golden brown.
- Once the cheese is melted and the meat is warm/hot, and the bread is cooked, it’s time to enjoy.
- Slice in half and consider sharing or enjoying the other half later.
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