“Signature” Philly Cheesesteak Bread Bowl Soup
This recipe is an original from the eccentric mind of Cousin Steve-O himself.
Equipment
- Medium-Large Stock Pot (4-6 quart)
Ingredients
- 1 lb Nebraska Star Beef® Prestige® Loin Tips sliced into approx. 1/2" strips
- 1-2 tbsp Nebraska Star Beef® Signature® Seasoning (season to suit personal taste)
- 1/4 stick Unsalted Butter (AA)
- 1 large Onion quartered and sliced into "strings" approx. 1/4" wide
- 1 large Green Bell Pepper sliced into "strips" approx. 1/4" wide
- 1 large Red Bell Pepper sliced into "strips" approx. 1/4" wide
- 4 stalks Green Onion finely chopped
- 6-10 Mushrooms halved
- 1 cup Beef Broth
- 4-6 oz Provolone Cheese (The sharp provolone pictured was powerful. If less cheese "intensity" is preferred, one might choose a more "conventional" provolone)
- 1 loaf Bread (Round) or 4 smaller loaves if preferred (picking a loaf with a slightly tough crust is a good idea, as it adds to the integrity of the "bowl")
Instructions
- Starting with a medium sized pot, pre-heat the pot on a low-medium stovetop and then add the butter. As soon as the butter is melted and begins to caramelize, add the sliced loin tips and Signature® Seasoning. Sauté until beef is golden brown and all juices have evaporated. Leaving the beef in the pot, add a small amount of beef broth to deglaze.
- Do not adjust heat. Add bell peppers, onions, green onions, mushrooms. Mix then cover. Stir every few minutes. Ingredients will cook down and juice from the vegetable ingredients will begin to fill the pan. (If you want a MEAN Philly Cheese Steak sandwich filling, this is where you stop) Add approximately 1 cup of beef broth. This will create more of a traditional “soup” consistency. Continue to cook uncovered until the mixture is boiling, and boil until the desired consistency is reached.
- Add 2-3 oz of provolone cheese and stir in lightly until it begins to melt.
- Remove from heat and let stand 3-5 minutes while prepping bread bowl(s).Cut the top center from the loaf/loaves of bread and remove the majority of the bread from inside the crust.
- Spoon the soup into the bowl(s) and add remaining sliced cheese toward the top of the fill.Shred more cheese on the top of the soup and replace the “lid” that was created when the top of the loaf was removed. Enjoy!!!
Notes
This recipe is off the hook. Easily one of my new favorite dishes. After making this recipe, there are a few little notes that I believe are worth sharing.
Nebraska Star® Beef “Signature® Seasoning” has a good amount of salt and pepper, so there’s no need to add additional salt or pepper. My recommendation for most would be to start with 1 tablespoon of “Signature® Seasoning” and adjust to taste. 1 tablespoon will be enough for most, but for really bold flavor using up to 2 tablespoons is likely okay, I personally wouldn’t go over 2 tablespoons as it can get a little salty.
Onions – the onion flavor in this recipe is intense. It may be too much for individuals who aren’t into onions. My preference is very strong onions, so I use large (mature) white onions which seem to have the strongest flavor. Yellow onions seem to be sweeter and if one gets smaller (less mature) onions, they seem to be even less intense. The recipe may be adjusted by using less onions, or going to smaller yellow onions to reduce the intensity of the onion element.
Bread – I picked a “French Bread Loaf” from HyVee bakery. It was fantastic. The main thing to remember with this recipe is getting bread that has enough crust that it will hold up to hot soup being spooned in and not just fall apart on the plate. Once the soup soaks into the bread a bit, the tough/chewy crust becomes more tender and really makes a nice accoutrement to the soup.
Beef Bone Broth – Regular dehydrated beef broth works just fine for both recipes. But, if you’re feeling froggy, and want to make fantastic Beef Broth from scratch, here’s how we do it. Swing by our website and pick up some “Osso Buco”. Get out the trusty “Insta-Pot” and add a 1/4 stick of AA unsalted butter. Sear 4-6 Osso Buco well, one at a time. Put them back in the Insta-Pot and add water to the “Max Fill” line. Pressure cook for 2 hours.
Release pressure safely.
Remove meat and bones. Discard bones. Enjoy the meat on a hot beef sandwich*, etc…
Set Instant Pot to “Sauté” and boil broth. Add salt to achieve the desired taste.
This will yield a very, very rich and tasty “beef bone broth” that will take pretty much any soup to the next level.
Save remaining broth in Mason jars in the refrigerator.