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This Corned Beef Sandwich is an incredible meal if you want leftover corned beef recipes or ideas (like our Corned Beef Hash). Simply prepared with some sauerkraut and mustard, and a flavorful Au Jus made from corning spices and Guinness.
Check out our Smoked Corned Beef Brisket recipe if you want a creative way to make corned beef for the sandwich. Or if you made a Smoked Corned Beef Round for St. Patrick’s Day or other cut, any work for this recipe. We like to enhance this sandwich it with a fantastic Guinness Au Jus dipping sauce made from Guinness, Worcestershire, and corning or pickling spices.
Table of Contents
Main Ingredients + Substitutions for Corned Beef Sandwiches
We have two parts to this recipe: the sandwich and the au jus dipping sauce.
Sandwich
- Bread – We like classic rye bread for the flavor. You can sub with any of your favorite breads.
- Corned Beef – You can buy already cooked and corned beef, or use your leftovers from St. Patrick’s Day. Each sandwich uses 1/2 pound of meat.
- Sauerkraut – The added pickled flavor from the sauerkraut is the perfect balance to the flavorful meat.
- Mustard – We love Dijon mustard, alternatively you can use spicy mustard, yellow mustard, or a horseradish mustard. We do not recommend a sweet mustard.
- Pickles – We use whole pickles and cut them up, but we strongly recommend dill pickles.
Guinness Au Jus
- Shallots & Garlic – The shallots add a nice acidic bite to the au jus.
- Stout Beer – We like the Guinness brand but any dark stout beer works for the richer flavor.
- Beef Stock – The base to the au jus adds beefy flavor.
- Worcestershire – Adds a nice balance to the dipping sauce.
- (Optional) Pickling Spices – You can buy these in the spice section (labeled pickling spice), or reserve some if you made homemade corned beef. Use in the simmering liquid.
Preparing the Meat
Start by slicing a pre-corned and cooked beef cut like brisket or round. We use our smoked Corned Beef as the starting flavor.
Because the predominant flavor of the corned beef sandwich is the meat, this is an important flavor to have and a great use for corned beef leftovers.
Type of Bread For Corned Beef Sandwich
Rye is the best option IMO. Its unique, somewhat savory flavor is great and it holds up well. Since we’re dunking into a dip, having sturdy bread helps so it doesn’t get soggy and fall apart.
Making Guinness Au Jus
We love dipping sandwiches in Au Jus. In our French Dip Sandwich recipe with Homemade au Jus we walk through, in detail, how to make a delicious Au Jus (which is so easy to do). For this recipe, we’re making a Guinness Au Jus that is ready in 20 minutes and is perfect for this corned beef sandwich.
Ingredients include:
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Guinness Beer
- Beef Stock
- Worcestershire sauce
- Corning or Pickling Spices
In a skillet over a medium heat, add a little extra virgin olive oil and shallots. Sauté for a few minutes until shallots are soft and then add garlic. Stir for an additional minute and then add the Guinness, Beef Stock, Worcestershire, and pickling spices. Bring to a simmer and then simmer at the lowest heat for 20 minutes.
You can do this in advance, it’s great cold, or serve the Au Jus warm.
Making the Corned Beef Sandwich
- Slice up the corned beef leftovers into thin slices, but not too thin. Be sure to slice the corned beef against the grain.
- Warm up a grill pan.
- Butter the bread on one side.
- Construct the sandwich in layers starting with the Sauerkraut, then corned beef, then mustard, then a pickle.
- Grill each side of the sandwich, butter side out, for about 4 – 5 minutes so it’s crunchy.
- Serve with the Guinness Au Jus.
Sandwich Tip
If you want to make this a Reuben, add Russian dressing to the sandwich. That’s it!
Frequently Asked Questions
A Reuben is typically a grilled sandwich that is made of rye bread, Swiss cheese, Russian dressing, corned beef and a few other key ingredients. Corned beef is typically made by boiling the beef in some spices until done.
A Pastrami sandwich is made from pastrami, which is smoked corned beef that has been rubbed with spices and topped with similar ingredients (commonly mustard, sauerkraut, and others).
We don’t recommend a cheese for this sandwich, but if you want one, a Swiss, Gruyere, or a Comte is our recommendation.
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Other Great Sandwich Ideas
- Prime Rib Sandwich
- Porchetta Sandwich with Jalapeño Chimichurri
- Brisket Grilled Cheese
- Smoked Pork Tenderloin Sandwich
- Pulled Beef Sandwich in Red Wine Braise
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Corned Beef Sandwich Recipe with Guinness and Corning Spice Au Jus
Ingredients
Corned Beef Sandwich
- 8 slices rye bread
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 pounds leftover corned beef, sliced thin
- 1 cup sauerkraut, drained of liquid
- ¼ cup Dijon Mustard
- 2 whole dill pickles, sliced lengthwise into long thin strips
Guinness Au Jus
- ½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon diced shallots
- 1 clove garlic, diced
- 1 cup Guinness beer
- ¼ cup beef stock
- ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons corning or pickling spices, (Most packaged corned beef comes with additional pickling spices. If they don't, you can buy pre-made pickling spice blends.)
Instructions
Guinness Au Jus
- In a small sauce pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and shallots. Stir as the temperature rises. Saute in the pan for 6 minutes or until the shallots are soft, but not browned. Turn down the heat if the shallots are cooking too fast. Add the garlic and stir for 1 more minute.
- Add the remainder of the ingredients to the Au Jus and stir. Adjust heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. As the Au Jus comes to a simmer, lower the temperature again to the lowest heat that will still allow a simmer for 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat, strain the au jus into a bowl to remove pickling spices and chunks of shallots. You can make in advance, and store for up to a week and serve cold, or you can serve warm with the sandwiches.
Corned Beef Sandwich
- Preheat a grill pan to medium heat.
- Butter one side of each piece of bread and place on the grill pan for 3 minutes or until the bread is toasted. Remove from heat. On the side of one slice of the bread that is not toasted, add the sauerkraut, then about a ½ pound of corned beef, then mustard, and top with sliced pickles. Add the top piece of bread and dunk in the Au Jus and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
