2.7 min. read
This one is near and dear to my heart… I’ve made non-traditional Cheesesteaks before. But this is a new one, even on me. Behold – Philly Cheesesteak Pasta! And get ready for a totally new ‘casserole’ experience!
Welcome to the second in our week-long series of classic mashups. Classic in the sense that they com-bine dishes that are uber-compatible with each other in ways that amplify and elevate their best features!
The Cheesesteak phenomenon
The Philadelphia Cheesesteak (PCS) is known far and wide as the signature sammy of its eponymous city – maybe even the State of Pennsylvania.
We know for sure where the PCS came from. Wikipedia reports: “Philadelphians Pat and Harry Olivieri originally owned a hot dog stand, and on one occasion, decided to make a new sandwich using chop-ped beef and grilled onions. While Pat was eating the sandwich, a cab driver stopped by and was in-terested in it, so he requested one for himself. After eating it, the cab driver suggested that Olivieri quit making hot dogs and instead focus on the new sandwich.”
The PCS has been copies countless times, and has been acknowledges as the jumping-off point for development of many other sub/hoagie/PCS-style sandwiches.
But this is the first time I’ve sever seen it reverse-engineered into a casserole!
What it is
The PCS Pasta is not even a true casserole. It’s an even-easier one-pot-meal! You can put it in a cas-serole dish if you want to. And top it with your fave crumbs or whatever. Plus an additional layer of cheese, of course!
How PCS Pasta came to be
Recipe contributor Brook Caison is a New York City Resident who, her bio states, “can be found […] running around Prospect Park with her husky Juneau.” The rest of the time she is deeply immersed in all things food. One of her most believed dishes is the classic PCS. But she claims there is no spot convenient to her in NYC that makes a decent one. So she decided to try tossing all the stuff that makes a PCS amazing into a high-sided frying pan – and go to it!
“To create this cozy mashup, I first combined tender skirt steak (cooked and seasoned to perfection) with sautéed peppers, onions, mushrooms, and creamy provolone,” Caison relates.
However… “The real one-pan magic happens when the pasta is simmered in beef broth and half-and-half, soaking up all those rich flavors. Once the cavatappi reaches al dente perfection, the dish is fin-ished with melty provolone, turning it into the ultimate savory skillet dinner.”
My mouth is watering as I type this…
PCS Pasta’s mashup pedigree…
It’s obvious that some or all of the main ingredients in this dish can be found in many different pasta recipes. As well as many different sandwiches. Instant mashup potential.
The finished dish is, in all material respects, a classic example of a pasta bowl. And it has all the charm and flavour moxy of a comfy Lasagne or an ultra-elevated Mac & Cheese!
Now… As a thought experiment… Try reverse imagin-eering PCS Pasta into a sandwich… Take a couple of big spoonfuls and stuff them into a sub roll… You’ll get something that looks very like a San Diego Torpasta. Or a Neapolitan Cuzzetiello.
This mashup works forwards and backwards!
Non sequiturs…
1. The main ingredients in this dish are also – eerily – similar to those in Tex-Mex Fajitas. I can’t wait to try this stuff rolled up in a big, fat, juicy burrito!
2. I am immediately put in mind of the Arby’s Chicken Cheesesteak we spotlighted in the most recent edition of Fast Food Week… There’s another excellent example of a one-pan supper that might start as a classic Chicken à la King and mash-up directly into a superior sandwich!
My take
The ‘mashup mentality’ is not nearly as crazy as I thought it was, when I first encountered it a few years back. In fact, I’ve come to think of it as a legitimate culinary ‘way of seeing’…
Join us tomorrow in this space for another stunning classic mashup!
~ Maggie J.