Subway has been the #1 selling sub shop in the nation for years and their success has put them near or at the top in all of fast food, ranking #3 in sales and #1 in the number of U.S.-based restaurants according to QSR Magazine.
The Top Dog in sub sandwiches has recently gone through a makeover however, revamping their menu and upgrading their ingredients in order to stay ahead of the competition, which has become VERY competitive the last two years. Subway's market share fell from 58% to 53% over that time frame.
The makeover has been successful, with their Subway Series® of sandwiches a big hit and generating record-breaking sales growth.
One of those big hit sandwiches is Subway #3, The Monster™.
The sandwich features steak, bacon, a double portion of shredded Monterey Cheddar Cheese, fresh green pepper, fresh red onion, dressed with Peppercorn Ranch and served on Subway's toasted Artisan Italian bread.
It's a good sandwich, worth doing a copycat version of! If you make it, just don't call it Subway #3, The Monster™, otherwise the Trademark police will be knocking on your door.
Here's my spin on Subway's sandwich. I used skirt steak, pre-cut Carne Asada style. Instead of red onion which can sometimes be a bit pungent, I used sweet Vidalia onion. I also swapped out the Monterey Cheddar Cheese and Peppercorn Ranch dressing with Pepper Jack Cheese and regular Ranch dressing.
The More Than A Monster Sandwich
Ingredients:
One Hoagie Style Roll
4-6 ounces of skirt steak (buy it pre-cut, Carne Asada style, but NOT seasoned)
3 slices of bacon
1/4 cup shredded Pepper Jack cheese
A few splashes of Worcestershire
A few dashes of Black pepper
A few dashes of garlic powder
A few dashes of onion powder
A few dashes of Cayenne Pepper (optional)
Sweet Vidalia Onion, sliced
Green pepper, sliced
One healthy spoonful of Garlic Mayonnaise
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the bacon (and yes, I know you're going to make more than 3 slices, c'mon, it's bacon!) on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper. Hit it with some black pepper and bake for about 20 minutes. If you are doing just three slices, watch your time, 3 slices will cook faster than 6 or more. I prefer the oven-bake method for bacon because it cooks more evenly, and the result is crispier bacon throughout. While the bacon is cooking, slice the green pepper and onion, and set aside. In a small bowl or Ramuken, stir in some black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder into that healthy spoonful of mayo, and set aside. When the bacon is done, place the bacon on some paper towels to drain and use that bacon fat! In a large skillet over medium heat, toast the hoagie roll in about a Tablespoon of bacon fat (you don't get THAT at Subway!), once toasted, set aside for assembly. Adding another tablespoon of that bacon fat to the skillet, saute the steak. Let it get all happy in the bacon fat and add the dashes of black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and optional Cayenne pepper. Stir to incorporate. Once the steak is browned, hit it with a few splashes of Worcestershire and top with the shredded cheese until melted. To assemble, dress the bottom bun with the garlic mayo. Put on the meat, apply the onion and green pepper slices, top with the bacon, and dress with the Ranch.
Tip: You may be tempted to saute the green pepper and onion with the steak and that would be tasty. But keeping them fresh balances out the richness of that bacon fat, also giving you that crisp veggie texture element to enjoy.
There you have it, the More Than a Monster Sandwich! Enjoy! I think you'll prefer it over what Subway offers and it's cheaper to make too. Subway's six-inch sandwich carries a suggested price of $6.39. Making your own more generously portioned six-inch sandwich at home will save you a couple of bucks, with plenty of ingredients left over to make more!
$pend Wisely My Friends...
~ Mike