Chopped Cheese: Not Cheesesteak
There will always be debate about the true creator of the chopped cheese (or chop cheese), but it’s popular across sections of New York City’s boroughs in bodegas and small shops, each having its own twist and variation. I don’t exactly want to wade into the debate between NYC’s chopped cheese and Philly’s cheesesteak. I’m an equal opportunity sandwich man and will take whichever cheesy delicious sandwich is presented to me. For starters, chopped cheese sandwiches use ground beef while cheesesteaks use slivered steak. This difference means that chopped cheese is easier to make at home. We’ve already worked on the cheesesteak so let’s turn to the chopped cheese and see if we can make a decent homemade version! The cheese on a chopped cheese will likely be sliced American cheese, not the Cheez Whiz seen on some Philly cheesesteaks. While cheesesteaks only have cooked vegetables, chopped cheese usually has some fresh tomato and lettuce on the sandwich.
Use 80/20 Beef for a Chopped Cheese
The best way to cook this sandwich is on a large griddle. Since few home cooks have one, this recipe makes modifications using a pot and a cast iron skillet. In a bodega, a chopped cheese often starts off with one or two pre-formed hamburger patties. At home, I like to start with an 80/20 mix of ground beef so there is plenty of fat in the filling. If you go with something leaner, you might want to add a drizzle of oil to the pot before cooking (at home you’ll likely be using a skillet instead of the flat top griddle used in a bodega). If you use an 80/20 blend though, just add the ground beef to a pot over medium-low heat and let the beef slowly cook, rendering out the fat. Stir regularly as the beef browns. After the beef is browned, add the onions and garlic, and stir (or “chop”) them into the beef. They will essentially cook in the rendered fat from the ground beef. After 4-5 minutes, they will be softened. Season the beef filling with salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. The filling is now ready to use in your chopped cheese sandwiches.
Use a Griddle or Skillet
Add a portion of the cooked beef filling to your griddle or skillet over medium heat and allow it to warm up. Then add the cheese, let it melt, and use a spatula to “chop” the cheese into the filling. Place a toasted roll (with a smear of mayo on it) on top of the beef filling and let sit for 30 seconds. Use a spatula to scoop up the sandwich and scrape up any extra filling and add to the roll. Garnish each sandwich with tomato and lettuce and serve immediately!
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Most sources point to East Harlem’s Blue Sky Deli as the birthplace of the sandwich. Some tellings posit that its free-form meat filling could have been broken up on a griddle in order to better fit on a long hoagie roll than a pre-formed burger patty would. As for the “chopped” part, it could trace to the action of chopping ingredients as they cook to mix them up, a cooking technique familiar to the Yemeni immigrants who run many bodegas in New York. The seasoning for the beef can range from seasoned salt to Dominican adobo seasoning to chicken bouillon granules–anything readily available and convenient. Chopped cheese owes a huge chunk of its renown outside of NYC to affectionate name drops in hip hop culture, along with an Anthony Bourdain mention in Parts Unknown. In the mid-2010s, a small handful of chefs created upscale takes on chopped cheese, provoking accusations of culturally appropriating what many New Yorkers intimate with the sandwich would call a specialty of the hood. If you don’t have a corner bodega to dart into for a chopped cheese fix, make this recipe and become part of its still-unfolding story. Add shredded lettuce and sliced tomato to the sandwich. Cut in half and serve immediately. Leftover chopped cheese filling can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days. You can add the filling straight from the fridge to a griddle to make a sandwich. Only make as many sandwiches as you need to, but if you have leftover filling, that’s great! Any chopped cheese fans out there? Leave a comment!
