Kentucky Hot Brown-wich

A riff on the Kentucky hot brown open-faced sandwich. Except we close the face on this version and tuck it into a soft brioche bun.
YIELD
Makes 4 sandwiches
PREP TIME
schedule 20 minutes
COOK TIME
schedule 1 hour and 45 minutes
TOTAL TIME
schedule 2 hours and 5 minutes

Ingredients:

Roasted turkey
  • 2.5 to 3 pound boneless, skinless turkey breast
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon plus one teaspoon kosher salt
Mornay sauce
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 14 cup all-purpose flour
  • 12 cup milk
  • 12 cup heavy cream
  • 12 cup Pecorino Romano, grated (plus more for garnish)
  • pinch of ground nutmeg
  • ground black pepper
  • kosher salt
Sandwich assembly
  • 4 brioche buns
  • 8 tomato slices
  • 8 to 10 turkey slices (from above)
  • Mornay sauce (from above)
  • 8 bacon slices
  • paprika (for garnish)
  • parsley, finely chopped (for garnish)

Related blog post: Kentucky hot brown-wich

Directions:

Roasted turkey: Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 C).

Add olive oil to the outside of your turkey breast and rub it in with one hand. With your other hand (or wash hands first) sprinkle on your kosher salt and ground black pepper. Try to get even coverage all over the breast. 

Once coated with salt and pepper and the oven has finished pre-heating, place the turkey breast on a roasting pan or a rack in a sheet pan and add it to the oven. Roast the turkey breast for around 1.5 to 2 hours or until the turkey is between 155 and 160 F. Remove the turkey from the oven and allow it to rest and cool for 30 minutes before slicing.

Mornay sauce: In a medium pot over medium heat, add butter and flour. Stir and cook the butter and flour paste for 1 to 2 minutes. 

Add milk and heavy cream and whisk it into the butter and flour paste. Cook and whisk until the sauce is smooth and simmering.

After a minute or two of simmering, remove the pot from the heat and add the grated Pecorino Romano. Whisk the cheese into the sauce until the sauce is smooth. Add nutmeg and black pepper to the sauce and taste. If it seems like it could use some salt, add it. The cheese is fairly salty, so you might not want to add any. That's up to you.

Sandwich assembly: slice your buns and get them ready for sandwiching. Place each bun open on one sheet pan or baking pan.

Stack turkey and tomato slices on each bottom bun and cover with 2 or 3 spoonfuls of Mornay sauce. 

Place the pan with the buns in the oven with the broiler on high and broil for 3 minutes. Pay close attention to the top bun because it will brown quickly. 

Once the bun has started toasting and everything is all melty remove the pan from the oven. Top the Mornay sauce side of the bun with bacon and garnish with more Pecorino, paprika, and diced parsley. Top everything with the top bun and serve.

Have you made this recipe? Share on Bluesky or Instagram, tag @beerinator and let him know!



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