Fit Fare

I have vivid food memories of eating roast beef poor boys.

There was a place in New Orleans that my dad would bring me to every so often. I remember sitting on a stool near the counter while we waited for our poor boys to be made. They would be brought to us wrapped in foil and I would have to sit with the warm sandwiches on my lap for the ride home. If I close my eyes I can still smell the fantastic aromas. As soon as we’d get into the house I would unwrap my sandwich and immediately start to eat it. With each bite the gravy would go everywhere — on your face, down your arms, and all over your hands. My dad had a name for this — a drippy roast beef sandwich.

My entire life all other sandwiches have been measured against this one of my youth. I think I have finally found a recipe that comes close. It qualifies as Fit Fare because it can be made with lean beef and no other added fats. You can dress it with lots of veggies and serve it on whole grain rolls or french bread for added fiber. The recipe makes quite a bit so it is great for family gatherings or to serve for a party crowd.

I found the recipe in the new cookbook, Tom Fitzmorris’s New Orleans Food. Tom is a Louisiana restaurant reviewer who is helping to revitalize the New Orleans food and restaurant scene. Don’t be intimidated by the length of the recipe, most of the time it is cooking in the oven and making your house smell nice. It is well worth all the steps.

Roast Beef Poor Boys
yields 12-18 poor boys

4-6 pounds, inside round of beef trimmed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
1 large yellow onion, quartered
1 whole garlic bulb, outer papery skin removed and bulb cut in half
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/4 tsp black peppercorns
1-3 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
6 loaves French bread, cut lengthwise into sections 6-8 inches long
1 head lettuce, shredded coarsely
8 tomatoes, thinly sliced
Mayonnaise
Dill pickle slices

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Put it in a dutch oven or kettle filled about a third the way up with water. Add the celery, carrots, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, marjoram, and black peppercorns. Roast, uncovered, for 4-6 hours, turning the roast and adding water every hour or so. The water level should slowly drop, but don’t let it get less than about 2 inches deep. The beef is ready when a meat thermometer inserted into the center reads 160 degrees.

Remove the roast from the pan and place in a pan that will catch all the juices that come out as it cools. If you’re cooking a day ahead (recommended), wrap the beef and refrigerate it as soon as it is cooled to room temperature. If making it the same day, wait at least an hour before slicing.

Skim off fat from the stock in the pot. Use a coarse sieve to strain the stock into a bowl, then return the stock to the pot. Add any juices that come off the roast as it rests. Bring the stock to a simmer. Skim off any fat that rises to the surface. Cook to a thin gravy consistency. (This also benefits from being made a day ahead and cooling in the refrigerator.)

When you’re ready to make sandwiches, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bring the gravy to a simmer and whisk in the flour (but only if the gravy appears to need thickening). Add the worcestershire sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Slice the roast beef as thin as possible. Collect all the crumbs and slivers that fall off as you do this (the debris) and add them to the gravy. Stack as much sliced roast beef as you want on a length of French bread. Garnish with lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise, and dill pickles. Spoon on as much gravy as the sandwich can hold. Bake the assembled sandwiches for about a minutes to toast the bread.