Homemade Reuben Sandwiches

Corned beef, sauerkraut, swiss cheese, and Russian dressing are combined with a rye and pumpernickel bread for a classic Reuben Sandwich.

Turn corned beef brisket into Homemade Corned Beef easily with an Instant Pot to make delicious Reuben Sandwiches.

Course Main Course, Sandwiches

Cuisine American, Irish

Keyword brisket, corned beef, irish, Reuben Sandwich, st patricks day, St. Paddy's Day

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1 45

Total Time 2 15

Servings sandwiches

Calories 599kcal

Author Barb

Equipment

Instant Pot Pressure Cooker

Ingredients

For the Corned Beef

3 pounds beef brisket packaged uncooked including its seasoning packet for corned beef
2 bay leaves
4 cloves garlic peeled and left whole
12 ounces lager-style beer or pale ale
2 cups beef broth

For The Russian Dressing (Or used prepared Thousand Island Dressing - I like the Marie's brand).

1 ½ cups yogurt
½ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons grated onion
½ teaspoon ground dry mustard
4 drops hot sauce
½ teaspoon horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon heavy cream

Ingredients to Make the Sandwich:

2 slices light rye bread my grocery had a bread that was swirled rye and pumpernickel and I loved it
1 tablespoon butter
4 slices Swiss cheese
2 slices Corned beef
¼ cup Sauerkraut
1 tablespoon Russian dressing see recipe or I suggest Marie's

Instructions

To Make the Corned Beef

Unwrap and drain corned beef. Using sharp knife, carefully trim off excess fat. Rinse beef with cold running water. Put corned beef in cooking chamber of pressure cooker. Sprinkle with seasoning packet. Add bay leaves and garlic along the sides.
Pour in beer and broth.
Secure lid of pressure cooker, locking it in place following manufacturer’s instructions. Close pressure-release valve. Turn on pressure cooker. Set timer to cook under high pressure for 90 minutes.
At end of cooking time, turn off machine. Unplug it. Leave pressure release valve closed for about 10 minutes or until pressure has returned to normal.
Carefully unlock and remove lid. Transfer corned beef to cutting board and allow to cool enough to handle. Using sharp knife, cut meat across grain at an angle into thin slices.

To Make the Russian Dressing

In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt, ketchup, onion, mustard, hot sauce, horseradish, Worcestershire, and cream. Chill for at least 2 hours to have the ingredients meld.
Can also be used for salads, in egg salad, veggies or meat.

To Make the Sandwich

Spread some butter on one side of each of the bread slices. Layer in skillet in this order; one slice of bread with butter side placed down, Swiss cheese, corned beef, sauerkraut, Russian dressing, more cheese and top with 2nd slice of buttered bread, buttered side out.
Gently grill on medium heat until the bread starts to brown on the bottom and the cheese starts to melt (covering with a slice of aluminum foil helps).
Flip and grill 2nd side until brown and you can tell cheese has melted throughout. Remove from skillet and cut in half to serve.
If desired, serve with coleslaw and chips.

Notes

For Corned Beef and Cabbage in the Pressure Cooker:

1 medium head green or white cabbage, cored and cut into 8 wedges

4 medium Yukon gold or other yellow-fleshed potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half lengthwise

4 medium carrots, trimmed, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks

2 medium yellow onions, trimmed, peeled and cut into 4 quarters each

Put beef in pot and tuck garlic and bay leaves around meat and sprinkle with seasoning. Arrange cabbage wedges on their sides evenly around corned beef. Evenly place potato halves, carrot chunks, and onion quarters among cabbage wedges. Pour beer and broth over everything in pot and cook as directed above.

Cooking Corned Beef on the Stovetop, in the oven or in a slow cooker:

No pressure cooker? No problem. I found a post at AllRecipes.com that shows how to do all three!

Notes on Russian Dressing:

I did do a bit of research on Russian dressing and found that it originally was made with yogurt, not mayonnaise and contained caviar which is most likely where it got the Russian moniker. Some people add pickles or chopped eggs but that really takes it more to the world of Thousand Island so I tried to stay within some confines of the original but without the caviar.

Nutrition