Sandwiches have likely been around for as long as there have been
bread and meat. However, the marriage of the two didn’t become known as “a
sandwich” until the 1760s, according to legend, when John Montagu, the Earl of
Sandwich, requested meat between two slices of toast to be eaten at the game
table. NPR’s Ian Chillag reports that the sandwich the Earl ate consisted of
salt beef (corned beef) on toast.
Whenever I have leftover corned beef from a New England
boiled dinner, I like to make grilled corned beef sandwiches with sauerkraut
and Swiss cheese. The reuben sandwich is admittedly more New York deli than New
England Yankee, but it’s delicious, so who’s complaining? I substitute honey
mustard for the traditional Russian or Thousand Island dressing.
Corned beef sandwich
Leftover cooked corned beefPumpernickel or rye bread
Honey mustard
Canned sauerkraut, drained
Sliced swiss cheese
Spread mustard on one side of each slice of bread. Atop one
slice of bread, mustard side up, layer corned beef, sauerkraut and a slice of
swiss cheese, folded. Top with another slice of bread, mustard side down, and grill the
sandwich on both sides until the cheese melts.
