In this Feed Your Fire podcast episode, we gather around the table with the Berzatto family. We dig into meaty topics from the show—quite literally, both the storylines that speak to us and Chicago Italian Beef sandwiches inspired by The Bear. Come join us.
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Feed Your Fire Podcast episode transcript below:
Hello, and welcome to Feed Your Fire. I'm your host, Kim Baker. I'll give you one guess to figure out what today's episode is inspired by…. That's right, at long last, we're talking about The Bear. So it would only be appropriate that we wore our chef white as we explore some highlights of the season and prepare the one and only Chicago Italian beef sandwich.
Ah, The Bear, we love it. It's madness, it's authenticity, the absolute delicious Jeremy Allen White. And because Feed Your Fire is all about food and connection, what better catalyst for this conversation?
Having worked in restaurants so much of my life, I can actually feel that chaos when I watch the show. The time pressure of working on the line, the hours of prep, the relationships that are established. I had the good fortune of working under Chef Dunlap during my externship. That was an extremely professional, well-run kitchen.
And I've worked in some insane kitchens. One summer, my friend Sarah and I worked in this restaurant out in Long Island. It was run by this husband and wife team. He was the chef and ran the back of the house and she ran the front. He had one of those long handlebar mustaches that kind of curl up at the end. The back of his calf had this giant chunk taken out of it. I think he used to say it was a shark attack, but we all thought it was a motorcycle accident. And at the end of the night, him and the sous chef would light up a joint and smoke it under the fume hood. When it got really busy, he wouldn't let anyone in the kitchen, but he would tell me that I was allowed because I was a butterfly and I took shallow breaths. And it was just the most insane yet unforgettable experience.
The Bear is kind of the combination of those two dichotomies. The vision and precision of a very talented chef, the chaos and characters that often come along with restaurant life.
My favorite part of this season was seeing Richie develop. And maybe because I'm in a divorced family and been a parent, and sort of navigating, sharing a child in two households, I could really connect with his story.
And of course, there's Carmy, who we all love, trying to figure out who he is and how to get out of his own way. Sydney learning her potential, and the realness of the struggle, choosing between your head and your heart. Natalie's beautiful transition into motherhood, and all of these life experiences happening on a backdrop of grief. And the raw honesty of what it looks like to move through that.
And it really got me thinking about what it means when we say that we need to do the work. Because when I look at these characters, I see them doing that very thing. And maybe that's because it was grief that brought me to culinary school. And much like them, I work through that pain and the physical environment of the kitchen.
We can all probably relate to some element of the Berzatto family. Maybe it's the roles we can take on in our families. Or a parent, sibling, or friend with an addiction. Loss, conflict, repressed emotion.
And the reason the Berzatto stand out is because they have all of it. But if I had to guess, all of us have some of it. And the Bear allows us to connect with whatever part of that story resonates. And that could be in its flaws or its redemption.
Now, I'm not from Chicago, so I really have no authority on the Italian beef sandwich. But I did a ton of research to understand what it is that makes this sandwich unique.
Special shout out to the Chicago's Very Own Eats Podcast, providing a lot of local knowledge. I'm not sure that our sandwich is going to beat Duke's Drive-In, who won their tournament this year. Congratulations, by the way.
But we're going to do our best to make a sandwich that can hold its own. I imagined the Chicago beef sandwich to be similar to a Philly cheesesteak. If you've ever had an Italian beef sandwich, you know that the topping is essentially pickled vegetables.
Now, you can go ahead and buy a giardiniera at a grocery store. But you must know by now that I'm a nerd, and so I'm going to make my own.
We're going to start by making a vinegar solution. I used about three-quarter cup white vinegar and a quarter cup of apple cider vinegar. And I'm going to put that in a saucepan with a cup of water. I'm going to add “n about a teaspoon of salt and a tablespoon of sugar. Now I'm going to add in some aromatics, a little bit of garlic, some rosemary, bay leaf, and peppercorns. Let that come up to just a light boil, and then I'm going to turn off the heat.
While that was heating up, I just prepped the veggies that were going to pickle. I used a couple kinds of peppers, including a yellow hot, along with some onions, some celery, and some carrots. Feel free to add some other veggies if you'd like. So then I take that hot vinegar solution and I'm going to pour it over the vegetables and put it in a jar, stored in the refrigerator. I left the veggies in pretty large pieces. I did not chop them up. And that just makes it easier to separate from the peppercorns and everything when it's ready.
Now, while those veggies are pickling, we're going to prepare our beef. It's best to do this with beef that sits out at room temperature for a bit, so it's not super cold. Now, I'm using a nice hunk of top round sirloin, and I'm going to really generously season it using salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and fennel seeds that I'm going to grind up. I'm going to coat both sides of that steak really well with the seasoning.
Then I'm going to sear it in a hot skillet with some avocado oil. I'm going to let it brown on both sides before I transfer it to a preheated oven at 400 degrees to allow that meat to cook through.
While it's in the oven, I'm going to turn it over at least once so that it cooks evenly. Once the meat comes to about 155 degrees, I'm going to want you to take it out of the oven. And then you're going to let it rest.
To let it rest properly, grab a sheet pan and put a rack on top of it. And then put your meat on top of that rack. The juices will drip through and they'll be caught by the pan and the rack will allow air to circulate.
While that's resting, we're going to make the jus. Whatever you do, do not forget that the handle of your skillet is very hot from being in the oven. Trust me, that's a mistake you remember. Take that same skillet and put it back on the stove. Add a little bit of olive oil, let it heat, and then add in some minced shallots. Let that cook up a little bit. If you want it to have a little bit of spice, feel free to add some red pepper flakes. Then I like to add in about a tablespoon of tomato paste. Let that get incorporated for about 30 seconds, and then add in about a quarter cup of red wine.
Let that reduce down, the alcohol will burn off, and then add in about a cup and a half of really good quality beef stock. I usually like to get mine at the butcher, but I didn't have time, so I got a bone broth from the grocery store and it worked really well. Add in a bay leaf and a sprig of rosemary. And just let that cook for about 15 minutes, letting it reduce down and pop in a pat of butter. Add any drippings from the resting meat and then go ahead and taste it. It should be amazing.
We're going to go ahead and let that cool while we slice our meat. So grab the beef and slice it very thinly against the grain. Put the sliced beef back in the pan with the cooled jus and let it get nice and juicy and saucy.
Then it's time to assemble. You're going to want to pile the beef on the best possible French bread you can find. In all honesty, that was the weakest link here for me.
Grab the giardiniera that we made and chop up the peppers, the onions, the celery and some carrots and then drizzle that veggie mixture with some olive oil. And we're going to top our beef with it. Then dip the sandwich in the remaining jus. And it really is quite fantastic.
And I think it's fair to say that we have now officially earned the title of The Bear. Perhaps not in a Michelin-starred restaurant, but certainly as the main character in our own life, taking charge and overcoming whatever holds us back. Leaning in to the love that's made us who we are. The love that steadies us through the chaos.
In The Bear, the beef was Mikey's creation. It was the thread that connected everyone. And even in his absence, it held them all together. And it's very possible that in your life, you too have a Mikey. I know I do. So let this be the thread that connects us. And though life has its ups and downs, we can all relate to the fact that every second counts. And with that, my friends, I say so long.
Feed Your Fire, where food nourishes growth.