Uruguayan Chivito ala Spring Branch

For two-

1 large, thick-cut, ribeye steak (as you will need to slice in two)
2 slices of Black Forest ham
4 strips of bacon
Mozzarella (2 large slices)
Green olives (6 to 8)
Eggs (2)
Sour dough bread (4 large thick slices)
Mayonnaise
Olive oil
Lettuce
Tomato
Onion
Red bell peppers
Red wine or Pilsner beer

This is a calories bomb, but perhaps the tastiest and most popular steak sandwich you will ever make or taste.

  Some idiots on the web are saying to use ketchup...this is sheer madness and it shows how pathetically culturally colonized some Uruguayans have become...This is one of Uruguay's most popular fast food specialties served with many different variants, but adding ketchup is out of the question!

You can indeed tweak any of the traditional ingredients, take some out add some. The Spring Branch version is with "the works". The addition of sour dough bread is due to the poor quality of most hard crust white breads in the US, if you can find them. Sour dough making takes a bit of care and art, so you often get a good product. Besides, I feel it is an awesome flavor variant. I also specified Black Forest ham as the US ham, which in flavor, is closest to Uruguayan ham.

Preparation:

Timing is everything. Everything needs to be placed in the sandwich just right. Don't let your guests ruin all your work by failing to eat when you serve this...it is not something that takes screwing around with cell phones before dinner very well...Make sure you tell everyone this before hand, so you wont seem like some sandwich nazi freak when they fuck up...

1-Wash and dry all vegetables. Slice tomatoes, peppers, onions and olives. Hard boil eggs and slice (place in oven on lowest possible setting to keep warm)  Using a sharp, long bladed knife, slice rib eye horizontally in half to make two thin steaks out of it and put back in the fridge.

2-Sautee the sliced onions and red bell peppers in olive oil and salt to taste until well done and set aside.

3- Cook Bacon. Cook it thoroughly but not too crispy, as it over bitters the flavor. Dry and put in the oven with the eggs to keep warm.

4-Slightly brown white side of bread in some olive oil or butter in a large non stick frying pan. Place in oven with the rest of the stuff.

5-You can choose to brown the ham a bit or serve it uncooked. If served uncooked, take out of the fridge to allow it to warm to room temp bedore serving.

6- You are ready to cook the steak now. Preferably on a cast iron skillet with a few drops of olive oil and also put the salt onto the skillet and not onto the meat. If no iron skillet use a good nonstick pan on high heat.

7-Remember, the meat is very thin. It wont take long to cook. You want to get both sides seared quickly on high heat, and that's about all you will need to do to cook it.

8- Remove the meat and place in the oven, Lower heat on skillet, let cool some, and place the mozzarella on it to melt it and mix with the juices released by the meat. It could be tricky to keep from sticking and to spatula out, but the flavor is worth it.

9- While the cheese is melting remove the bread and spread the mayo onto one slice. Place the meat on top of the other slice. Put the melted cheese on top of the steak and the warmed up onion and peppers mix onto the cheese. Place the bacon and ham on this side. On the other slice with the mayo place the lettuce, tomatoes, sliced hard boiled eggs and olives...

10- Close the sandwich and slice into two triangles. Damn it! Eat it before it gets cold, I told you!!!!

11-Serve with vino or cerveza like I said. No bitter ales...Also if you're up to it, serve it with some home fries...a bit too much work though. Not worth risking the serving perfectness of the sandwich worrying about some fucking fries coming out right...

12-Have sex.