Italian Beef Sandwiches

Italian Beef Sandwiches

Photograph by Scott Peterson

SERVES 10 to 12
TIME About 4 hours


Ingredients
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion (8 oz.), coarsely chopped
3 carrots (8 oz. total), coarsely chopped
3 stalks celery (4 oz. total), coarsely chopped
4 lbs. boned beef chuck eye roast (also called boneless chuck fillet or roll), rinsed
1 tsp. black peppercorns
About 2 tsp. salt
3 to 5 tbsp. Asian chili oil
10 to 12 crusty sandwich rolls, sliced open
Salsa Verde (recipe follows)


Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 300°. Pour oil into a large ovenproof pot over medium-high heat; when hot, add onion, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring often, until onion is limp, 6 to 8 minutes. Add 3 qts. water and the beef, peppercorns, and 2 tsp. salt. Cover pan, increase heat to high, and bring mixture to a boil.

2. Transfer pan, tightly covered, to oven. Bake, turning meat over after 2 hours, until very tender when pierced, about 3 1/2 hours.

3. Lift beef from broth and set on a large, rimmed dish. If meat is tied, cut and remove strings. With 2 forks, tear meat into large shreds, discarding any large pockets of fat. Skim and discard fat from juices in pan; add salt to taste.

4. Brush chili oil lightly over cut sides of rolls to taste. Mound meat on roll bottoms and drizzle each sandwich with 2 to 3 tsp. Salsa Verde; offer remaining sauce to add to taste. Ladle broth into small bowls to dip sandwiches into.

PER SERVING 493 cal., 31% (153 cal.) from fat; 42 g protein; 17 g fat (4.8 g sat.); 44 g carbo (2.8 g fiber); 911 mg sodium; 91 mg chol. ?

Salsa Verde

In a blender, whirl 1 cup coarsely chopped parsley, 1/2 cup olive oil, 3 drained canned anchovy fillets, 2 tbsp. drained capers, 11/2 tsp. grated lemon peel, and 1 peeled garlic clove until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Makes 3/4 cup.

PER TBSP. 85 cal., 96% (82 cal.) from fat; 0.4 g protein; 9.1 g fat (1.2 g sat.); ?0.6 g carbo (0.2 g fiber); 102 mg sodium; 0.6 mg chol.

Serve With Goose Ridge "g3" Red Blend 2007 (Columbia Valley)