Description
Meat
The meat traditionally used is thinly sliced rib-eye or top round, although other cuts of beef are also used.On a lightly oiled griddle at medium temperature, the steak slices are quickly browned and then scrambled into smaller pieces with a flat spatula. Slices of cheese are then placed over the meat, letting it melt, and then the roll is placed on top of the cheese. The mixture is then scooped up with a spatula, pressed into the roll, and cut in half.
Common additions include sautéed onions, peppers, mushrooms, mayonnaise, hot sauce, salt, pepper and ketchup.
Bread
In Philadelphia, most cheesesteak places use Amoroso or Vilotti-Pisanelli rolls. One source writes that "a proper cheesesteak consists of provolone or Cheez Whiz slathered on an Amoroso roll and stuffed with thinly shaved grilled meat," while a reader's letter to an Indianapolis magazine, lamenting the unavailability of good cheesesteaks, wrote that "the mention of the Amoroso roll brought tears to my eyes." After commenting on the debates over types of cheese and "chopped steak or sliced," Risk and Insurance magazine declared "The only thing nearly everybody can agree on is that it all has to be piled onto a fresh, locally baked Amoroso roll."
Cheese
Cheez Whiz, provolone, and American cheese are the most commonly used cheeses.
White American cheese along with provolone cheese are the favorites due to the mild flavor and medium consistency of American cheese. Some places pre-melt the American cheese to achieve the creamy consistency, while others just put freshly cut slices over the meat, letting it melt slightly under the heat. Philadelphia Inquirer restaurant critic Craig LaBan says "Provolone is for aficionados, extra-sharp for the most discriminating among them." Geno's late owner, Joey Vento, said, "We always recommend the provolone. That's the real cheese."
Cheez Whiz, first marketed in 1952, was not yet available for the original 1930 version, but has spread in popularity. A 1986 New York Times article called Cheez Whiz "the sine qua non of cheesesteak connoisseurs."
Cliff Notes: Dao puts cheeze wiz on his Cheesesteakz
