Transport yourself to the streets of New York City with this easy Chopped Cheese recipe. These classic ground beef heroes are deliciously cheesy and an easy dinner for busy weeknights!
The key to these crave-worthy sandwiches is well seasoned ground beef, plenty of melty American cheese, and toasting the buns with the sauce already on it!
If you enjoyed this recipe, you’ll also want to try our Ground Beef Sliders and Big Mac Sloppy Joes.
What is a New York Chopped Cheese Sandwich?
The chopped cheese, or chop cheese, as it’s sometimes called, is a sandwich made famous in the bodegas of Harlem in New York City. The chopped cheese is like the happy child of a burger and a philly cheesesteak, combining ground beef with sauteed onions, lettuce, tomato, and melty American cheese on a hoagie or hero roll.
Since its inception in the 1990s, the chop cheese has gained popularity throughout New York City and beyond, even finding its way onto the menus of upscale restaurants. But at its heart, chopped cheese is still the food of New York’s streets, an affordable way to get an absolutely delicious and filling meal.
Lucky for all of us, this sandwich is easy to make at home. Ready in less than 30 minutes, the chopped cheese is a mouthwatering sandwich to make when you’re short on time.
Chopped Cheese Ingredients
- Ground beef- We recommend using between 80/20-90/10 lean ground beef.
- Onion- A sweet yellow onion works best for this recipe.
- Lawry’s Seasoned Salt- New York’s chopped cheese has special seasonings, which tend to vary slightly from place to place. Here, we’ve used a combination of Lawry’s and other seasonings to get a mix that’s full of flavor.
- Other seasonings- We add garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper. Some recipes call for Goya’s adobo seasoning, which could be used in placed of these additional seasonings.
- Sub buns- New Yorkers call it a hero, you might call it a hoagie or a sub or something else entirely. What you’re looking for is a soft, white bun that's between 6-8 inches long to sandwich all the goodness.
- Mayonnaise and Ketchup- It might not be a “secret” sauce, but it’s all you need for these sandwiches.
- American cheese- American cheese is the standard for chopped cheese, and we don’t recommend substituting for something else. It’s got just the right amount of melt and flavor. We HIGHLY suggest getting American cheese sliced at your local deli rather than using the pre-packaged singles.
- Lettuce and Tomato- Finish the sandwich with piles of fresh, crunchy iceberg lettuce (we like A LOT of lettuce!) and thinly sliced tomato.
How to Make Chopped Cheese Sandwiches
Step 1: Make the beef filling. Saute the ground beef, onion, and seasonings until onions are softened and beef is browned on all sides.
Step 2: Prepare the buns. Spread mayonnaise and ketchup on both sides of the hero rolls.
Step 3: Fill the sandwiches. Top the bottom of each sandwich with the ground beef mixture, then add two slices of cheese.
Step 4: Bake. Bake the rolls, open face, until the cheese is melty and the bread is warmed through.
Step 5: Top and serve. Top the cheese with tomato slices and lettuce, sandwich together, wrap and serve.
Time saving tip: You don't have to measure the mayonnaise and ketchup! Just make sure both sides of the buns are well covered in mayonnaise and slightly less ketchup.
How to Wrap a Hero Sandwich
Because this sandwich is packed FULL of tasty ingredients, it’s helpful to wrap it and serve it in the wrapping.
To do this, cut a piece of parchment paper about 14 x 16 inches long. Place your sandwich in a corner of the paper. Pull the corner over the top of the sandwich, so it covers it all the way to the bottom of the other side. Pull tight, then roll the sandwich over so it’s completely covered. Tuck in the edges, then finish rolling. Here’s a great video tutorial if you need a visual for the process!
Use a sharp knife to slice directly through the parchment paper, then tear it back to eat. All the mess will be contained, and you’ll keep all those yummy fillings inside your sandwich!
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
These sandwiches are best served fresh, but if you’d like to make them ahead of time, we’ve found a couple of tricks to help them last.
The ground beef filling can be made up to two days in advance and stored in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave before filling and baking the sandwiches.
You can also prepare the whole sandwich in advance, leaving off the lettuce and tomato. Wrap the baked sandwiches in foil and store in the fridge for up to two days. Reheat in the oven or air fryer (our preferred method), then top with lettuce and tomato as usual.
More Ground Beef Sandwich Recipes to Enjoy
Hamburgers are, of course, the gold standard of ground beef sandwiches, and we’ve got plenty of them for you to try! From Mozzarella Burgers to Goat Cheese Burgers to Ranch Burgers, we’ve got a burger recipe you’ll love!
If you’re looking for a loose meat sandwich similar to this one, give our Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes and Sloppy Joe Sliders a try.
Fancy a sub? Our Meatball Subs are out of this world!
📖 Recipe
Chopped Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil (to coat)
- 1 lb. 80/20 lean ground beef
- 1 small yellow onion (diced)
- 1 teaspoon Lawry’s seasoned salt
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 4 sub buns or hero rolls
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- 3 Tablespoons ketchup
- 8 slices American cheese
- 8 thin slices tomato
- 2 cups shredded lettuce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat the oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the ground beef, onion, Lawry’s, pepper, garlic powder, oregano, and salt. Stir to combine, then allow to cook, undisturbed, for several minutes to get some good browning. Stir and continue to cook until the meat is browned on all sides and most of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat.
- On a large sheet pan, open the sub buns and spread both sides with mayonnaise and ketchup. Divide the ground beef mixture evenly over the bottom half of each bun. Top with two slices of cheese. Bake for 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
- Place each sandwich on a large square of parchment paper. On top of the cheese, add two slices of tomato and a lot of lettuce. Sandwich with the top bun. It’ll be messy, just do your best to keep as much of the filling inside as possible.
- Starting from a corner, wrap the parchment over the top of the sandwich, so the corner touches the other side. Roll the sandwich over once, and tuck the ends under, then finish rolling. Use a knife to cut through the center of the sandwiches, including the paper, and eat by peeling the paper back as you go.
Notes
- Here's a short video tutorial to show you how to wrap the sandwich.
- Time saving tip: no need to measure the mayo and ketchup, just make sure each side of the bread is well slathered in mayo and slightly less ketchup.
- The ground beef mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
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