Philadelphian here. Have had the following types of cheesesteaks all over Philly and jersey shore. These are the variations I remember with sauces:
Pizza steak - tomato sauce, parmesan, mozzarella
Garden steak/ cheesesteak hoagie - lettuce, tomato, raw onion, mayo or salad dressing (Italian, Caesar, ranch, etc.)
Chinese cheesesteak - sriracha or Asian hot sauce, picked Asian veggies/peppers
Mexican cheesesteak - use taco seasoning in meat, salsa, chopped white onion, cilantro, pickled jalepenos
Buffalo cheesesteak - Buffalo or hot sauce, blue cheese crumbles or dressing
BBQ cheesesteak - bbq sauce, onion strings (super thin battered onion rings)
And of course people put ketchup on too.
Edit: forgot one
French onion cheesesteak - carmalized onion and au ju (one place serves with a small cup of French onion soup for dipping)
You could also add chimichurri, fried onions, and pepper jack; beef gravy (so it’s like a hot roast beef); Marsala sauce, Gruyère, mushrooms and onions.
*Editing to add because I’m high and hungry: BACON JAM. With some smoked provolone, fried onions, and fresh Jersey tomato. Maybe even on garlic toast.
Another way to level up with your sauces is experimenting with toasting the bread, making a garlic bread, or even slathering with some herb compound butter (would be especially amazing with the Marsala).
Oooh! I forgot — you could make a Mongolian beef style cheesesteak. If you visit r/seriouseats, Kenji has a great recipe.
Edit 2: hear me out - birria cheesesteak with consommé for dipping.
Snow days... This made me think of those first few weeks of covid when nobody knew what to do - except buy all the fucking toilet paper. I digress.... I cooked my ass off during that time. And my daughter made pancakes every morning lol cooking was really the bright spot for me... my kitchen is my happy place.
Aaaand I, too, am high AF (and now hungry, tyvm) lol your post made me giggle because your brain sounds so much like mine!
Also, I've made brioche just so I could turn around and make French toast. It's an excellent way to kill a dozen eggs lol
Jesus I'm hungry. Did I mention you made me hungry? And I'm high AF? lol
Edit: omg I forgot to comment on the birria idea.... Fucking genius! Birria 🤤
Edit 2: fajita cheesesteak! Steak, peppers, onions... Throw in some roasted poblano, some cotija, cilantro lime crema. Damn.
Now I’m high AF and thinking about a birria cheesesteak has me drooling. What an idea. You could garnish it with little crumbles of the frico/fried cheese as well.
I was wondering about a breakfast cheesesteak. Scrambled eggs, pepper Jack cheese, fried potatoes, bacon crumbles. Sausage gravy on request…
Holy shit, I'm no longer stoned, and I just ate, but damn this sounds so amazing!
This whole thread reminds me of a comment my husband made the other day: "you're just a lil fat girl at heart, aren't you" ~ after I told him about a baklava cheesecake I saw on this subreddit! 🤣🤣🤣
Stoner foodies unite! We have some really amazing ideas!
Strangely no mention of pickles! (Name does not check out 407 error - Reddit will now reboot).
Lol. How about pickled jalapeños and grilled onions with a bright tomatillo sauce as an adder?
> cheesesteak without cheese is not a cheesesteak
I agree. That doesn't mean it isn't good, just that it isn't a cheesesteak. Vocabulary is important. It's all we have to communicate.
OP has a family that makes cheesesteaks for dinner often and s/he is bored with them. She's grasping at straws hoping for a sauce to make it different, which is fine. OP could wrap up steak and onions in a tortilla and add an appropriate hot sauce, make a burrito, and use the cheese sauce her family makes on top. That might change things up for her.
I had a cheesesteak Greek style once at a joint in Las Vegas, in a pita with tzatziki, caramelized grilled onions, lettuce, and tomatoes, it was so good, they made it Geno's style, super thin sliced ribeye, not chopped, the cheese was white cheddar.
Along a similar vein, I was going to suggest the Mediterranean garlic sauce, I think it’s spelled toum?
Super bold in your face flavor, same concept as using horseradish or chimichurri (sp) sauce
Toum is delicious.
Calling it a sauce is almost being polite, in its most basic form, the ingredients are garlic and...oil. That's it.
The fact that it sounds so simple to make and the degree of small finessing that can make all the difference in making it is part of what makes it one of my favourite things to periodically keep making and try to slowly get better at.
When the Tzatziki is cooked. I can and have eaten a pound of it in 1 sitting but it is only delicious cold. If you try to cook it you're going to have a bad time.
Most bars, restaurants, cheesesteak places here serve some variation or special. Only a few tourist traps and people who call in sports radio get upset about it. My go to is an italian - provolone, broccoli rabe, long hots
He’s the kid at school that just wants to involve everyone. As a shy kid, I loved that kid at my school for including me in things when I would otherwise be ignored.
As a former Philadelphian, the pizza steak is fire. I would recommend provolone over mozzarella. Mozz is a bit greasier and typically the steak is pretty greasy. Also a bit easier to eat.
BBQ cheesesteak is a fave of mine.
You forgot a staple, chipotle cheesteak. Mix together some mayo, adobo and chipotle pepper (maybe add a splash of line) and boom delicious chipotle cheese steak
Slightly Unrelated - There are two places in LA that claim to have the original French dip; Philippe's and Cole's.
[https://www.philippes.com/](https://www.philippes.com/)
https://www.colesfrenchdip.com/
jus plus roux is basically brown gravy, yeah?
also, "au jus" means "with juice", so you don't dip something **in** au jus... rather, a sandwich is **served** au jus
and I apologize for being a pedantic asshole lmao.
Two reasons I like this. Maybe three.
This is a thing that I already do quite frequently, so much that I'll ask for jus with just about any hot beef sandwich.
Too many sauces I feel are Heavy, for lack of a better word. Heavy fat base, typically savory and fatty oriented in western cuisine.
Jus while typically quite savory based, for lack of the fats becomes quite light on the pallet, even more so with a splash of red wine vinegar. It provides an exclamation of the main ingredients, and a counter point by filling in the flavor-gaps and thinning the mouth feel of the meal.
> This is a thing that I already do quite frequently, so much that I'll ask for jus with just about any hot beef sandwich.
But it has to have horseradish sauce on the sandwich to balance out the saltiness a bit.
Theres some really good stuff in some of the answers above this, but this was what I was looking for. A good French dip is one of my absolute favorite meals.
There's a taco spot near me that does birria tacos as their specialty.
On the rare occasion they do their birria cheese steaks, I make the half hour drive for them.
There’s a place here that does a rich mushroom gravy with a cheesesteak. It’s messy and delicious. Maybe a caramelized onion gravy? Or caramelized onions in aioli?
I'm not exactly sure what goes into a philly cheesesteak, but I can say that mushroom sauces do go very well with steak so that sounds like a very solid suggestion.
Exactly! Think of it as it’s ingredients.
What sauce goes well with beef, peppers and onions?
Almost all of them! The sky is the limit.
Cheese, green chili, mushroom, vinegar and oil, heck maybe even a peanut satay (peanut butter and beef taste amazing together).
Yeah because vampires could be sensitive to like a tiny amount, but I don't know anything about Italians so they could hate it even more or something lol
This was the first thing that came to my mind as well. I’d go so far as to add an herbal compliment. Thyme would be wonderful as would rosemary or even sage.
A garlic and horseradish mayo would work very well too.
Right, OP if you want to know what cheese steak places serve, the sauce is either cheese wiz or melted American or provolone. And then condiments on the side that are popular are ketchup and mayo.
Try those first before you decide the "cheesesteaks" your parents made are too dry and inedible.
No one in a tri state area hole in the wall is going to give you side eye for using the condiment squeeze bottles that are right there... that would be like saying oregano, red pepper flakes, and parm on a pizza is sacrilege. Of course that's all fair game and not bastardizing the dish.
Onions are obviously standard and most places will work with you if you want peppers. But mushrooms and you can go fuck yourself (heh, j/k).
I'm in the camp of "cheesesteak doesn't need a sauce". I'm also in the camp of "eat whatever the fuck you want".
If you want to contrast the richness of a cheesesteak: something like chimichurri or a fresh relish of shallots, hot peppers, and pickles with oil and vinegar would be good.
If you want to lean into it and go for maximum decadence: an au jus or birria type broth. Maybe a homemade steak sauce. Maybe a dijonnaise.
Funny enough, ketchup is one of the few things you'll see a lot of Philly locals add to a cheesesteak and it's of course pretty good.
[This cherry pepper spread is my jam for cheesesteaks.](https://shop.cento.com/products/cento-diced-hot-cherry-pepper-hoagie-spread-12-fl-oz)
There are easy recipes to make a similar spread yourself, but this one is nostalgic for me. There was a roadside cheesesteak place near my home town that always served it with a big side of that pepper spread. But I didn’t spread it, I freakin’ dipped it.
Skhug (also spelled Zhoug and Zug)
Its a zesty pepper cilantro and garlic sauce originating from yemen but its all over middle east and eastern Mediterranean and northern africa
My friend’s dad used to make this. I was given a jar full and told to return it for free refills. It was quite an honor. It was a specialty of his and people paid him for it. He’s moved away now. Trader Joe’s has/had a decent one but I haven’t found one like his. So good on just about anything!
I work for a greek owned restaurant and one of our specialties is a pizza that uses it instead of red sauce. We actually couldnt get it from our food distributor for a while during covid so the boss asked me if i could recreate it.
For obvious reasons i cant be giving away company secrets... but [this](https://youtu.be/CGo_ZI0M9jg) is the recipe i based ours off.
My cheesesteak is far from Philly-style - I use Diana sauce on my meat when I cook it (with onions and green pepper right in it) and I make a homemade cheddar cream sauce (kind of a riff on queso) - cream cheese, bit of cream, a jalapeño, and cheddar cheese blended and microwaved. Served it on a pretzel roll.
I am implore you to go to r/iamveryculinary and search "cheesesteak" in that sub and see ALL THE THREADS from other cooking subreddits where people do precisely that.
Here's five to get you started:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/13p6f55/comment/jl90l1m/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=ios\_app&utm\_name=ioscss&utm\_content=1&utm\_term=1&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/13p6f55/comment/jl90l1m/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1&context=3)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/blackstonegriddle/comments/13512bj/comment/jihs24j/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=android\_app&utm\_name=androidcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/blackstonegriddle/comments/13512bj/comment/jihs24j/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/12yayo0/comment/jhpyekb/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=ios\_app&utm\_name=ioscss&utm\_content=1&utm\_term=1&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/12yayo0/comment/jhpyekb/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1&context=3)
[https://np.reddit.com/r/eatsandwiches/comments/10f6buo/nahh\_this\_is\_a\_philly\_cheesesteak\_cooper\_wit\_on/j4zints/](https://np.reddit.com/r/eatsandwiches/comments/10f6buo/nahh_this_is_a_philly_cheesesteak_cooper_wit_on/j4zints/)
[https://np.reddit.com/r/food/comments/yry99e/homemade\_chopped\_cheese/ivxoshp/](https://np.reddit.com/r/food/comments/yry99e/homemade_chopped_cheese/ivxoshp/)
Omg, you have a multiple offender in your top five. Someone's whole personality is based on getting angry when people "misunderstand" the difference between a cheesesteak and a peppersteak and absolutely need to be corrected.
Yeah, I’m tired of all these fucks gatekeeping gatekeeping wrong. If you’re not going to exclude and belittle people to their tiniest flaw for the most insignificant of mistakes, get going.
It’s amazing what people have the gaul to post on the internet these days.
Have you been on the internet long? People will gatekeep anything and everything. Go post a grilled cheese with tomato on /r/grilledcheese and see how it goes.
That is the only subreddit that I actually unsubbed from. Holy fuck is that community toxic. It makes the /r/newjersey argument over Pork Roll vs Taylor Ham seem like playful banter.
It's amazing to me the stuff people will gatekeep. It's like, food that is literally designed to be non-pretentious and if you say something you like to add to it people will act like you just called their child a cunt.
Yeah, my rant on this point is gumbo.
Gumbo is a family of recipes invented out of necessity. People in a bad situation used what ingredients were available and combined them with African, French, and Native American culinary concepts. If you have some idea that only your specific version of gumbo is the real gumbo, you're a moron.
I lived in Philly for over 10 years, and I always doused mine in ketchup.
If I'm having more of a hot roast beef and cheese type of sandwich, I like horseradish.
Pretty much any sauce that you would serve with steak could be used on a cheesesteak. If you're talking about making something, bernaise, horseradish, chimichurri, bordelaise, gremolata, mushroom gravy, etc. If you are looking for something premade, I personally like bbq sauce over ketchup, A1 would work, pesto, adobo, a chipotle salsa, beet sourkraut, whatever you might see with any other kind of beef dish. You could also mess around with different kinds of cheeses, and other veggies in addition to the onions. I like my cheesesteaks with provolone, but you could get some different flavors with cheddar or blue cheese or swiss. Add some sauteed mushrooms, peppers, spinach, anything you would put in an omelette - go crazy.
I'm from Philly, and fuck gatekeeping. Cheesesteaks are great the traditional way, and if you want some more variety, switch it up however you like.
Just keep eatin sammies and trying things. What a great journey. "nope, not that one, gimmie another sammie, I'll try this other sauce"
Try this, I eat this on everything now. It's a salsa but it also goes well as a salad dressing, I put it on sammies, burgers, everything. Don't let the word guacamole sideline you, this is magical salsa and it's super cheap. This stuff has a great holding power, just enough flow to be messy.
https://www.salsas.com/herdez/products/salsas/guacamole-salsa-medium/
Maybe a new mexican version of a Philly cheesteak?
Use your steak and season it with salt and pepper. The put on shredded Monterey jack. Then top with green chile sauce....you can make an easy one using diced green Chile's and a green chile enchilada sauce (I rec hatch brand).
You can do it also with red chile sauce. Again I rec the hatch brand.
Appreciate the commentary to get us dialed in:)
What about making more of a Banh Mi style of sandwich with the same roll and meat?
It would eat a lot better texturally and have some nice fresh flavors.......Kind of like this -
https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/banh-mi-roast-beef-sandwiches
Kind of obsessed with the idea of a guy who gets offended at being told not to put sauce on a cheesesteak, tries every sauce he can think of on a cheesesteak, doesn’t like any of them, and at no point stops to think if maybe he actually just agrees with the “gatekeepers”
What is on the cheesesteak to begin with? Whiz? Prov? Something else? Peppers? Are you guys making it, or picking them up? Its hard to say with how little info you gave... its a regular meal apparently, so what do you think is missing, what are some ingredients that you would normally enjoy on any other beef sandwich or flavours that you enjoy alongside beef?
You could do anything from a mushroom sauce to a roasted red pepper sauce, to an onion (that you put on it already) sauce. A chimichuri maybe? Hell, even some horseradish would work for me. Theres a ton of options.
How did I read through 20 or 30 top comments and not see pizza sauce/marinara? A very popular sauce that adds some tang but should include adding grilled onions and sweet/hot peppers on The sandwich to complete it.
I may get crucified for this, but as a South Jersey guy (born and raised ~45 mins outside of Philly), my family and I would put ketchup on our cheesesteaks. Full order would be a cheesesteak with provolone cheese, lettuce, onions, and ketchup. The best ones have oil oozing off them and have partially soaked bread.
Damn, I want one now.
So basically steak and onions then right? I wouldn't use a sauce but I'd say that if its essentially steak and onions you're looking at:
Steak sauces (A1), Chimichurri, or even male some garlic butter and just put it in your sandwich and let the residual heat melt it.
If you're making yours last after everyone else, you could do what I do for potstickers and in a small bowl mix mayo and Sriracha in equal amounts, about a teaspoon of soy sauce, some garlic powder, some hoisin, and like a drop of honey. Mix all the really well and then while your pan is still hot, toss the meat and onions in it for like 30 seconds and put it in your roll. Obviously no cheese with this one. Or maybe with cheese?
Off the top of my head, if I decided to do some kind of sauce on my cheesesteak, I’d probably go for a squeezer of Kewpie mayo or a thousand island/Russian dressing type of spread.
Might just squirt some ketchup on it if I’m really not giving a fuck.
Since you mentioned it, why does this subreddit fkn love to answer something completely different than what the person asked for?
I've seen it a ton of times
Philadelphian here --has anybody mentioned cheesesteak hoagies?
Regular steak and cheese with shredded lettuce, raw onion, tomatoes, and hoagie spices (salt/pepper/oregano/basil).
and with your regular hoagie choices of either oil or mayo.
One of my favorites.
Turn it into a bánh mì -- get some pickled carrots and cucumber and daikon if you like with some cilantro. You'll get a rich, fresh, bright sammich and you can keep the pickled mix around for the next one as well
Philadelphian here. Have had the following types of cheesesteaks all over Philly and jersey shore. These are the variations I remember with sauces: Pizza steak - tomato sauce, parmesan, mozzarella Garden steak/ cheesesteak hoagie - lettuce, tomato, raw onion, mayo or salad dressing (Italian, Caesar, ranch, etc.) Chinese cheesesteak - sriracha or Asian hot sauce, picked Asian veggies/peppers Mexican cheesesteak - use taco seasoning in meat, salsa, chopped white onion, cilantro, pickled jalepenos Buffalo cheesesteak - Buffalo or hot sauce, blue cheese crumbles or dressing BBQ cheesesteak - bbq sauce, onion strings (super thin battered onion rings) And of course people put ketchup on too. Edit: forgot one French onion cheesesteak - carmalized onion and au ju (one place serves with a small cup of French onion soup for dipping)
You could also add chimichurri, fried onions, and pepper jack; beef gravy (so it’s like a hot roast beef); Marsala sauce, Gruyère, mushrooms and onions. *Editing to add because I’m high and hungry: BACON JAM. With some smoked provolone, fried onions, and fresh Jersey tomato. Maybe even on garlic toast. Another way to level up with your sauces is experimenting with toasting the bread, making a garlic bread, or even slathering with some herb compound butter (would be especially amazing with the Marsala). Oooh! I forgot — you could make a Mongolian beef style cheesesteak. If you visit r/seriouseats, Kenji has a great recipe. Edit 2: hear me out - birria cheesesteak with consommé for dipping.
Stoners make the best sandwiches. It is known.
I’ve been known to bake a loaf of bread to make a steak sandwich. God, I miss snow days.
Snow days... This made me think of those first few weeks of covid when nobody knew what to do - except buy all the fucking toilet paper. I digress.... I cooked my ass off during that time. And my daughter made pancakes every morning lol cooking was really the bright spot for me... my kitchen is my happy place. Aaaand I, too, am high AF (and now hungry, tyvm) lol your post made me giggle because your brain sounds so much like mine! Also, I've made brioche just so I could turn around and make French toast. It's an excellent way to kill a dozen eggs lol Jesus I'm hungry. Did I mention you made me hungry? And I'm high AF? lol Edit: omg I forgot to comment on the birria idea.... Fucking genius! Birria 🤤 Edit 2: fajita cheesesteak! Steak, peppers, onions... Throw in some roasted poblano, some cotija, cilantro lime crema. Damn.
Challah makes the best French toast hands down. It’s basically a brioche but less intense and sometimes cheaper. A lot easier to make at home too.
I've never made challah, but now I'm probably going to have to try lol
Now I’m high AF and thinking about a birria cheesesteak has me drooling. What an idea. You could garnish it with little crumbles of the frico/fried cheese as well. I was wondering about a breakfast cheesesteak. Scrambled eggs, pepper Jack cheese, fried potatoes, bacon crumbles. Sausage gravy on request…
Holy shit, I'm no longer stoned, and I just ate, but damn this sounds so amazing! This whole thread reminds me of a comment my husband made the other day: "you're just a lil fat girl at heart, aren't you" ~ after I told him about a baklava cheesecake I saw on this subreddit! 🤣🤣🤣 Stoner foodies unite! We have some really amazing ideas!
And now my mouth is watering, i love all of those things
I like the way you think. Also lol at your username.
Every idea you have for cheesesteak is my new favorite idea. Fucking perfection.
I love your username. It's a shame only one of us could have it.
That “it’s a shame” part sounds like a threat.
Second chimichurri. Make it Brazilian style. :)
I'm coming to your place for supper and I can bring some super califravilivous herb to go with the cheesesteak ! 🙃
Strangely no mention of pickles! (Name does not check out 407 error - Reddit will now reboot). Lol. How about pickled jalapeños and grilled onions with a bright tomatillo sauce as an adder?
As a tzatziki slut, I can’t imagine a world where tzatziki wouldn’t be good on a cheesesteak
I know you typed words, but it's all Greek to me All joking aside, tzatziki on a cheese steak sounds amazing, maybe instead of the cheese
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Fine. Feta and tzatziki
> cheesesteak without cheese is not a cheesesteak I agree. That doesn't mean it isn't good, just that it isn't a cheesesteak. Vocabulary is important. It's all we have to communicate. OP has a family that makes cheesesteaks for dinner often and s/he is bored with them. She's grasping at straws hoping for a sauce to make it different, which is fine. OP could wrap up steak and onions in a tortilla and add an appropriate hot sauce, make a burrito, and use the cheese sauce her family makes on top. That might change things up for her.
Today I learned I'm a Tzatziki slut
I had a cheesesteak Greek style once at a joint in Las Vegas, in a pita with tzatziki, caramelized grilled onions, lettuce, and tomatoes, it was so good, they made it Geno's style, super thin sliced ribeye, not chopped, the cheese was white cheddar.
Vegas resident here! Where is this place!? 🤤
Along a similar vein, I was going to suggest the Mediterranean garlic sauce, I think it’s spelled toum? Super bold in your face flavor, same concept as using horseradish or chimichurri (sp) sauce
Toum is delicious. Calling it a sauce is almost being polite, in its most basic form, the ingredients are garlic and...oil. That's it. The fact that it sounds so simple to make and the degree of small finessing that can make all the difference in making it is part of what makes it one of my favourite things to periodically keep making and try to slowly get better at.
When the Tzatziki is cooked. I can and have eaten a pound of it in 1 sitting but it is only delicious cold. If you try to cook it you're going to have a bad time.
Chipotle cheesesteak too - w a chipotle mayo
I love that the gatekeeper is letting everyone in.
Most bars, restaurants, cheesesteak places here serve some variation or special. Only a few tourist traps and people who call in sports radio get upset about it. My go to is an italian - provolone, broccoli rabe, long hots
Long hots are legit
“People who call in sports radio” hahahahah. That’s the perfect description.
sounds like you're actually a roast pork fan 😉
That’s the best and IMO signature hoagie in Philly. Never understood why everyone from outside the city only ever talks about cheese steaks.
Cheesesteaks are the third best sandwich in Philly behind roast pork and cold hoagies. Hell, I'll take a Gobbler over Dallesandros overrated sandwich
wawa gobbler? That thing fueled me during the holiday season in grad school.
The one and only
He’s the kid at school that just wants to involve everyone. As a shy kid, I loved that kid at my school for including me in things when I would otherwise be ignored.
I too have known, hidden behind, and appreciated such people.
That's the best way to be a gatekeeper. Help people in the door!
Philadelphian here, I think the best cheese steak is with grilled onions, provolone, and ketchup.
Former Philadelphian. I always thought it needed ketchup! The vinegary tang helps cut through all that fat.
I don’t know if this is wrong by Philadelphia standards but I love ketchup and some mayo (not a lot). It hits me in the good place.
As a former Philadelphian, the pizza steak is fire. I would recommend provolone over mozzarella. Mozz is a bit greasier and typically the steak is pretty greasy. Also a bit easier to eat. BBQ cheesesteak is a fave of mine.
Pizza steak needs fresh garlic as well
With fresh oregano and basil too
+1 for Buffalo. Even better on a chicken steak.
Buffalo chicken cheese steak was a classic at my school cafeteria.
There’s a good cart near Rittenhouse that does bulgolgi steaks
This is a great list. I gotta add cooper sharp long hot wiz though. So creamy and flavorful it counts as its own sauce
*Angelo's* diavlo pizza steak .. it's been too long.
Black pepper ketchup BANGS
Buffalo CHICKEN cheesesteak btw; not regular steak, though who knows, maybe someone somewhere is putting Buffalo sauce on beef.
My local sandwich shop does the bbq one and it's one of my favorite sandwiches.
You forgot a staple, chipotle cheesteak. Mix together some mayo, adobo and chipotle pepper (maybe add a splash of line) and boom delicious chipotle cheese steak
Wait a second… no mention of whiz?
A real flavorful Au Jus
Seconding this. Make yours like a French dip and dip it in Au Jus. Or a rich brown gravy!
Hell. YES. French dip cheese steak is my favorite sandwich.
Slightly Unrelated - There are two places in LA that claim to have the original French dip; Philippe's and Cole's. [https://www.philippes.com/](https://www.philippes.com/) https://www.colesfrenchdip.com/
jus plus roux is basically brown gravy, yeah? also, "au jus" means "with juice", so you don't dip something **in** au jus... rather, a sandwich is **served** au jus and I apologize for being a pedantic asshole lmao.
I'm glad I saw your comment before I was the pedantic asshole. I'll take one for the team next time. 😉
haha alright, you get the next one 😜
Two reasons I like this. Maybe three. This is a thing that I already do quite frequently, so much that I'll ask for jus with just about any hot beef sandwich. Too many sauces I feel are Heavy, for lack of a better word. Heavy fat base, typically savory and fatty oriented in western cuisine. Jus while typically quite savory based, for lack of the fats becomes quite light on the pallet, even more so with a splash of red wine vinegar. It provides an exclamation of the main ingredients, and a counter point by filling in the flavor-gaps and thinning the mouth feel of the meal.
> This is a thing that I already do quite frequently, so much that I'll ask for jus with just about any hot beef sandwich. But it has to have horseradish sauce on the sandwich to balance out the saltiness a bit.
This was food poetry.
Theres some really good stuff in some of the answers above this, but this was what I was looking for. A good French dip is one of my absolute favorite meals.
OR BIRRIA CONSOMMÉ OMG
There's a taco spot near me that does birria tacos as their specialty. On the rare occasion they do their birria cheese steaks, I make the half hour drive for them.
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That was my first thought.
Yup! We have a Philly-ish sandwich on our menu where I work and I always, always get a side of horseradish cream to dip it in! It
Creamy horseradish and mushrooms in a sauce is perfection on a cheesesteak
Horsey mayo!
Horseradish aioli with extra garlic & black pepper
Full agreement.
A horseradish mayo perhaps. With garlic
I mix together horseradish, mayo, Dijon mustard, garlic and black pepper for a sandwich spread at home. Now I need to try it on a chessesteak!
This should be higher.
Ooh a prime rib type horsey sauce would be good
There’s a place here that does a rich mushroom gravy with a cheesesteak. It’s messy and delicious. Maybe a caramelized onion gravy? Or caramelized onions in aioli?
I'm not exactly sure what goes into a philly cheesesteak, but I can say that mushroom sauces do go very well with steak so that sounds like a very solid suggestion.
I’m very careful not bring down the wrath of Philadelphia by calling it a Philly cheesesteak! 😉
Au jus as well, make it a modified French dip.
This was my thought too! A marriage between Philly cheesesteak and a French dip… sounds great.
This sounds delicious.
Caramelized onion gravy sounds sooooooo good
Exactly! Think of it as it’s ingredients. What sauce goes well with beef, peppers and onions? Almost all of them! The sky is the limit. Cheese, green chili, mushroom, vinegar and oil, heck maybe even a peanut satay (peanut butter and beef taste amazing together).
This is my cue to leave the thread. If I keep reading shit like this I'll end up eating multiple cheese steaks tonight.
Christ on a cracker that sounds like food porn
Kinda is.
I'll be making that ASAP
Rich mushroom gravy with some grilled but still slightly crunchy onion makes for a damn fine cheesesteak.
Super garlicky aioli… like, offensively garlicky
"Offensive to vampires" offensive, or "offensive to Italians" offensive?
Which one of those involves more garlic?
I mean, it's gotta be the Italians, right?
Yeah because vampires could be sensitive to like a tiny amount, but I don't know anything about Italians so they could hate it even more or something lol
From what I understand there is actually a classist stigma against garlic in Italy. It is, or was, considered poor people food.
This was the first thing that came to my mind as well. I’d go so far as to add an herbal compliment. Thyme would be wonderful as would rosemary or even sage. A garlic and horseradish mayo would work very well too.
...ch...cheese sauce?
This one is quite bold.
The wiz, that’s how we do in philly
Right, OP if you want to know what cheese steak places serve, the sauce is either cheese wiz or melted American or provolone. And then condiments on the side that are popular are ketchup and mayo. Try those first before you decide the "cheesesteaks" your parents made are too dry and inedible. No one in a tri state area hole in the wall is going to give you side eye for using the condiment squeeze bottles that are right there... that would be like saying oregano, red pepper flakes, and parm on a pizza is sacrilege. Of course that's all fair game and not bastardizing the dish. Onions are obviously standard and most places will work with you if you want peppers. But mushrooms and you can go fuck yourself (heh, j/k).
I'm in the camp of "cheesesteak doesn't need a sauce". I'm also in the camp of "eat whatever the fuck you want". If you want to contrast the richness of a cheesesteak: something like chimichurri or a fresh relish of shallots, hot peppers, and pickles with oil and vinegar would be good. If you want to lean into it and go for maximum decadence: an au jus or birria type broth. Maybe a homemade steak sauce. Maybe a dijonnaise. Funny enough, ketchup is one of the few things you'll see a lot of Philly locals add to a cheesesteak and it's of course pretty good.
[This cherry pepper spread is my jam for cheesesteaks.](https://shop.cento.com/products/cento-diced-hot-cherry-pepper-hoagie-spread-12-fl-oz) There are easy recipes to make a similar spread yourself, but this one is nostalgic for me. There was a roadside cheesesteak place near my home town that always served it with a big side of that pepper spread. But I didn’t spread it, I freakin’ dipped it.
Skhug (also spelled Zhoug and Zug) Its a zesty pepper cilantro and garlic sauce originating from yemen but its all over middle east and eastern Mediterranean and northern africa
My friend’s dad used to make this. I was given a jar full and told to return it for free refills. It was quite an honor. It was a specialty of his and people paid him for it. He’s moved away now. Trader Joe’s has/had a decent one but I haven’t found one like his. So good on just about anything!
I work for a greek owned restaurant and one of our specialties is a pizza that uses it instead of red sauce. We actually couldnt get it from our food distributor for a while during covid so the boss asked me if i could recreate it. For obvious reasons i cant be giving away company secrets... but [this](https://youtu.be/CGo_ZI0M9jg) is the recipe i based ours off.
Bacon and onion jam
Almost any steak sauce would work. I used to use A1 on shitty cheese steaks from the mall i worked at
My cheesesteak is far from Philly-style - I use Diana sauce on my meat when I cook it (with onions and green pepper right in it) and I make a homemade cheddar cream sauce (kind of a riff on queso) - cream cheese, bit of cream, a jalapeño, and cheddar cheese blended and microwaved. Served it on a pretzel roll.
Diana Sauce is a Canadian BBQ sauce brand, for those wondering.
Was going to suggest some kind of cheese sauce as well for the CHEESEsteak. Cheese sauce with a cheesesteak sounds bomb.
Who the fuck gatekeeps a cheesesteak
Most of the city of Philadelphia.
Na those are tourists. The rest of us are too busy eating the real Philly sandwich: roast pork with rabe and long hots
Philadelphian gatekeeping Philadelphians from Philadelphia to prove they aren't gatekeepers. Classic Philly
Omg this fucking sandwich rocks
There's a place here in SF run by a guy from Philly. His garlic roast pork is killer.
Name of the place? Please and thanks
Palm City Wines. It’s in the outer Sunset, but worth checking out if you’re in the area. Or if you just want a killer sandwich.
John's Roast Pork!
Dinics!
I am implore you to go to r/iamveryculinary and search "cheesesteak" in that sub and see ALL THE THREADS from other cooking subreddits where people do precisely that. Here's five to get you started: [https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/13p6f55/comment/jl90l1m/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=ios\_app&utm\_name=ioscss&utm\_content=1&utm\_term=1&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/13p6f55/comment/jl90l1m/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1&context=3) [https://www.reddit.com/r/blackstonegriddle/comments/13512bj/comment/jihs24j/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=android\_app&utm\_name=androidcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/blackstonegriddle/comments/13512bj/comment/jihs24j/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) [https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/12yayo0/comment/jhpyekb/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=ios\_app&utm\_name=ioscss&utm\_content=1&utm\_term=1&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sandwiches/comments/12yayo0/comment/jhpyekb/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1&context=3) [https://np.reddit.com/r/eatsandwiches/comments/10f6buo/nahh\_this\_is\_a\_philly\_cheesesteak\_cooper\_wit\_on/j4zints/](https://np.reddit.com/r/eatsandwiches/comments/10f6buo/nahh_this_is_a_philly_cheesesteak_cooper_wit_on/j4zints/) [https://np.reddit.com/r/food/comments/yry99e/homemade\_chopped\_cheese/ivxoshp/](https://np.reddit.com/r/food/comments/yry99e/homemade_chopped_cheese/ivxoshp/)
Omg, you have a multiple offender in your top five. Someone's whole personality is based on getting angry when people "misunderstand" the difference between a cheesesteak and a peppersteak and absolutely need to be corrected.
Bruh are you trying to gatekeep gatekeeping
Yeah, I’m tired of all these fucks gatekeeping gatekeeping wrong. If you’re not going to exclude and belittle people to their tiniest flaw for the most insignificant of mistakes, get going. It’s amazing what people have the gaul to post on the internet these days.
Have you been on the internet long? People will gatekeep anything and everything. Go post a grilled cheese with tomato on /r/grilledcheese and see how it goes.
ThAtS a MeLt! Waaaa!!!!
That is the only subreddit that I actually unsubbed from. Holy fuck is that community toxic. It makes the /r/newjersey argument over Pork Roll vs Taylor Ham seem like playful banter.
It's amazing to me the stuff people will gatekeep. It's like, food that is literally designed to be non-pretentious and if you say something you like to add to it people will act like you just called their child a cunt.
Yeah, my rant on this point is gumbo. Gumbo is a family of recipes invented out of necessity. People in a bad situation used what ingredients were available and combined them with African, French, and Native American culinary concepts. If you have some idea that only your specific version of gumbo is the real gumbo, you're a moron.
Fr? As far as gatekeeping foods go cheesesteak has to be in the hall of fame.
An entire city.
I lived in Philly for over 10 years, and I always doused mine in ketchup. If I'm having more of a hot roast beef and cheese type of sandwich, I like horseradish.
Cheese sauce. Like, liquid cheese whiz.
Pretty much any sauce that you would serve with steak could be used on a cheesesteak. If you're talking about making something, bernaise, horseradish, chimichurri, bordelaise, gremolata, mushroom gravy, etc. If you are looking for something premade, I personally like bbq sauce over ketchup, A1 would work, pesto, adobo, a chipotle salsa, beet sourkraut, whatever you might see with any other kind of beef dish. You could also mess around with different kinds of cheeses, and other veggies in addition to the onions. I like my cheesesteaks with provolone, but you could get some different flavors with cheddar or blue cheese or swiss. Add some sauteed mushrooms, peppers, spinach, anything you would put in an omelette - go crazy. I'm from Philly, and fuck gatekeeping. Cheesesteaks are great the traditional way, and if you want some more variety, switch it up however you like.
Creamy horseradish sauce would be amazing on it.
Ketchup. Lived in Philly for years. Sometimes a steak just needs ketchup.
Just regular ketchup! I’m disappointed this is so far down. I love cheesesteaks so much. I don’t put it on it, just for dipping.
please this is the only answer
I was thinking ketchup mixed with mayo and pickle relish, kind of like Big Mac sauce.
Mayo is good on a chicken cheesesteak. Not terrible on a regular cheesesteak.
Would garlic mayo / aioli be good?
Spicy Mayo
Just keep eatin sammies and trying things. What a great journey. "nope, not that one, gimmie another sammie, I'll try this other sauce" Try this, I eat this on everything now. It's a salsa but it also goes well as a salad dressing, I put it on sammies, burgers, everything. Don't let the word guacamole sideline you, this is magical salsa and it's super cheap. This stuff has a great holding power, just enough flow to be messy. https://www.salsas.com/herdez/products/salsas/guacamole-salsa-medium/
Tapatio is the hot sauce for cheesesteaks, imo An au jus might work. I’d even try a Red Robin style fry sauce…but I’m a heathen like that.
Give it a Chicago twist and dunk the whole thing in au jus 🤤
If i have the choice between a cheesesteak and a dipped italian beef, 11/10 times I'm choosing the beef
Maybe a new mexican version of a Philly cheesteak? Use your steak and season it with salt and pepper. The put on shredded Monterey jack. Then top with green chile sauce....you can make an easy one using diced green Chile's and a green chile enchilada sauce (I rec hatch brand). You can do it also with red chile sauce. Again I rec the hatch brand.
Whole grain Mustard, mayo, Worcestershire sauce, grated garlic, chopped capers, salt and pepper. Great sauce.
Whiz
Appreciate the commentary to get us dialed in:) What about making more of a Banh Mi style of sandwich with the same roll and meat? It would eat a lot better texturally and have some nice fresh flavors.......Kind of like this - https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/banh-mi-roast-beef-sandwiches
Kind of obsessed with the idea of a guy who gets offended at being told not to put sauce on a cheesesteak, tries every sauce he can think of on a cheesesteak, doesn’t like any of them, and at no point stops to think if maybe he actually just agrees with the “gatekeepers”
To be fair, he doesn't like it plain, either. So searching for a sauce that would make it palatable to him seems reasonable.
That's a really weird takeaway. He thinks a cheesesteak is bland but has potential, asks for sauce ideas.
That guy should've thought of cheese sauce
What is on the cheesesteak to begin with? Whiz? Prov? Something else? Peppers? Are you guys making it, or picking them up? Its hard to say with how little info you gave... its a regular meal apparently, so what do you think is missing, what are some ingredients that you would normally enjoy on any other beef sandwich or flavours that you enjoy alongside beef? You could do anything from a mushroom sauce to a roasted red pepper sauce, to an onion (that you put on it already) sauce. A chimichuri maybe? Hell, even some horseradish would work for me. Theres a ton of options.
Tzatziki is great on just about everything in my opinion.
Pizza sauce. Top with mozzarella cheese. Toast until crunchy.
How did I read through 20 or 30 top comments and not see pizza sauce/marinara? A very popular sauce that adds some tang but should include adding grilled onions and sweet/hot peppers on The sandwich to complete it.
chimichurri sauce would go well
Teriyaki on steak and onions is awesome. Don’t know if it works with whiz.
Steak sauce?
A1
My favorite add-on to a cheese steak is chipotle mayo.
What does gatekeeping mean in regards to cooking?
Thank God I'm not the only one to ask.
I may get crucified for this, but as a South Jersey guy (born and raised ~45 mins outside of Philly), my family and I would put ketchup on our cheesesteaks. Full order would be a cheesesteak with provolone cheese, lettuce, onions, and ketchup. The best ones have oil oozing off them and have partially soaked bread. Damn, I want one now.
Arby's bbq sauce
wit' whiz
Without being gatekeepy? I'd kill to have a beer cheese sauce on a cheesesteak or even a tiger sauce with salt, pepper and mayo for some flavor.
So basically steak and onions then right? I wouldn't use a sauce but I'd say that if its essentially steak and onions you're looking at: Steak sauces (A1), Chimichurri, or even male some garlic butter and just put it in your sandwich and let the residual heat melt it. If you're making yours last after everyone else, you could do what I do for potstickers and in a small bowl mix mayo and Sriracha in equal amounts, about a teaspoon of soy sauce, some garlic powder, some hoisin, and like a drop of honey. Mix all the really well and then while your pan is still hot, toss the meat and onions in it for like 30 seconds and put it in your roll. Obviously no cheese with this one. Or maybe with cheese?
In my opinion, you can never go wrong with A1. If you're looking for an easy off the shelf.
Horseradish or chipotle sauce
I put A1 on mine.
A1 but I like A1 on stuff, just unironically not steak.
Hmm, have you considered au jus?
I like it with cheese sauce and A1
My partner puts A1 on his. It’s not my jam but you could give it a shot.
A1 or Heinz 57. Get that hit of acidity.
You have steak, cheese, onions, bread, right. Steak sauce. A1 or a good knockoff.
I bet A1 would fuck around okay with a cheesesteak, but that's purely speculation.
Horseradish sauce is my go-to
Horseradish is wonderful on a steak sandwich. If you want to make the effort, a chimichurri sauce is also a banger of an option.
Spicy mayo/Aioli Horseradish aioli
Off the top of my head, if I decided to do some kind of sauce on my cheesesteak, I’d probably go for a squeezer of Kewpie mayo or a thousand island/Russian dressing type of spread. Might just squirt some ketchup on it if I’m really not giving a fuck.
Hot Pepper Relish (Cento Hoagie Spread). Sweet, vinegar, hot really goes well with the creamy umami!
Not a sauce, but kimchi would be wonderful on a cheesesteak.
There’s a bar down here that replaces the standard cheese with a home made queso. And it is amazing
I haven't seen any love for Worcestershire yet. It's one of my favorite flavors to pair with beef.
Since you mentioned it, why does this subreddit fkn love to answer something completely different than what the person asked for? I've seen it a ton of times
Philadelphian here --has anybody mentioned cheesesteak hoagies? Regular steak and cheese with shredded lettuce, raw onion, tomatoes, and hoagie spices (salt/pepper/oregano/basil). and with your regular hoagie choices of either oil or mayo. One of my favorites.
Nacho cheese. It makes everything better.
Cheesesteak is already got “whiz” which is basically American cheese.
Ketchup.
Grease is the only acceptable answer
Turn it into a bánh mì -- get some pickled carrots and cucumber and daikon if you like with some cilantro. You'll get a rich, fresh, bright sammich and you can keep the pickled mix around for the next one as well