Wednesday 20 March 2013

Shooter's Sandwich

Shooter's Sandwich - a pressed samdwich filled with steaks and mushrooms


I love cooking but have to admit that one of my favourite meals is the humble sandwich.  When Mr Jones showed me a picture of what looked like a squashed loaf of bread I wasn't convinced until I took a closer look...yes, it's a squashed loaf of bread but it's what is squashed inside that makes this a beautiful sandwich - rare steak, sauteed mushrooms, onion (or shallots), garlic and a thin layer of horseradish.  Gorgeous!  Needless to say I made it the next day!

...And haven't made it since!  Why on earth is this eaten on a regular basis, you ask?  Well, although it sounds simple to make (and is!), the prep can take a while it needs to be weighed down for hours if not overnight to achieve pressed sandwich-y perfection so you have to kind of plan ahead.   Apparently this type of sandwich was made for the posh folk when they went out on shooting (or hunting) trips as it travels well and probably improved even more after being squashed in someone's saddle bag!  Alas I have no shooting trips planned but have got the week off work so what better time to make it?!







To begin with you need to make the mushroom mixture - I used half chestnut mushrooms and half white closed cup mushrooms, about 14 medium sized mushrooms in total.

Finely dice the mushrooms.


Lots of mushrooms [insert cheesy "not mush-room" joke here]

I don't think it matters whether you use onions or shallots - shallots are a little more fiddly to peel and chop but I like the flavour.   I finely sliced 8 shallots and then softened them in a little butter and olive oil then added some very finely sliced garlic (3 cloves).




Once the shallots have softened, add the chopped mushrooms and cook the mixture down until and excess liquid has cooked away.  If there is too much moisture left in the mushrooms the sandwich will become too soggy.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  I found that leaving the mushroom mix to stand allows any excess moisture to drain plus it allows you to get on with the rest of the steps!


Mushroom mixture before...
...and after

Slice a "lid" off the top of the bread and scoop out most of the bread inside.  If you get a little carried away with the scooping and feel there are any weak spots, you can patch it up with some of the bread you've taken out.





Now the steak!  Cook the steak as you would normally but without oil - I like mine still pink in the middle so cooked each piece of meat for about 3 minutes on each side plus sealed around the edges.  It doesn't really matter what sort of steak you choose for this sandwich but make sure it's decent quality.  I chose rump.

Once the steaks are cooked, tuck them straight into the bread shell.  Wait - don't I need to rest them, I hear you ask.  No!  You want all of those tasty juices to soak right into the bread.  Make sure that you tuck the meat right in around the edges.  I used one of my steaks as a "filler-in" steak so sliced smaller pieces off to fit in the gaps.







Now time for the mushroom mix.  You want to make sure any little gaps around the beef are filled in so  once you've spooned the mixture over the beef, push down with the back of a spoon and smooth the top.  Add the rest of the steak.




For added flavour, spread either a horseradish cream or some hot mustard to the "lid" (I used horseradish) then put the lid on top of the loaf, trying to make it match up with where it was cut from.






Wrap the whole loaf tightly in greaseproof paper (I used 2 sheets to prevent any leakages) like you would a present then tie securely with string.  Unfortunately I had no string to hand so had to stick the bits down with duct tape...




Time to squash!  Use a baking tray (or something else flat but strong) and load up with any weights you can find around you.  Not being a gym-goer I raided my cupboards for cans but you could use heavy books, dumbells, bricks....




This is the hard bit - you now have to leave the sandwich for hours and hours (5+ is the ideal time) or even worse - OVERNIGHT!  It's worth it though - promise!


After 5 hours


Slice into nice fat wedges and serve with whatever you like - fat steak chips, some relish or chutneys, a salad or just tuck in with no sides!


Shooter's Sandwich - a loaf of bread packed with steaks and mushrooms and then pressed is the perfect thing for picnics


Shooter's sandwich - a pressed sandwich filled with steak and mushrooms




Ingredients
1 large loaf of crusty bread
3 medium sized steaks
14 mushrooms, finely diced
8 shallots, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
a little butter and olive oil for frying mushroom mix
horseradish cream or hot mustard for spreading

(keep in mind you may need to increase or decrease some of these depending on the size of your steaks/bread)


9 comments:

  1. This looks amazing.....i will try it soon! Yummy!!! I found you on my daughter's site, Trendy TreeHouse....I would love to have you visit me at pinecreekstyle.blogspot.com
    Have a wonderful weekend, NeeCee

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for look, NeeCee! It's a proper "manwich" and after looking at your site, I reckon it'd go down a treat!

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  3. Wow! This looks tasty and hearty! Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friends Friday!

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  4. This recipe is just incredible, I have to say we have never seen anything like this sandwich before on Gourmandize! Thanks you for sharing this recipe on our website from your blog! Your photos really do illustrate it well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Please make sure you try it - it's SO delicious and very easy to make!

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  5. This looks wonderful! :) Let's try it after making some Gluten Free type loaves when I'm back! xxx

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  6. My mouth started to water around the second picture and by the end I couldn't read the words fast enough ... and I've just had breakfast! (Although it was not nearly as tasty as this looks - and sounds.)
    Another plus is that it's not fiddly and dainty - which my culinary efforts never are.
    Thank you, thank you,
    Janey
    janeyknitting AT yahoo DOT ca
    (Change caps to symbols and lose the spaces.)


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's not at all fiddly or dainty! Will you try it out? I'd love to hear from you if you do! If you're too hungry to wait until this one has pressed properly, I have got another post with a recipe for a pressed chicken sandwich that is a little more time and hungry belly friendly!

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  7. If you're a foodie looking for a new recipe to try, check out the delicious "Shooter's Sandwich"! And if you're in Edmonton and need foundation repair Edmonton services, we recommend reaching out to the experts. A strong foundation is essential to the stability of any building, and they can help you address any foundation issues to ensure your home or business stays on solid ground.

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