Ground Philly Cheesesteak Grilled Cheese made with bell peppers, onions and American or Provolone Cheese.
Ground Philly Cheesesteak Grilled Cheese is my second favorite grilled cheese behind the Fig and Pig Grilled Cheese from yesterday. And oh yeah, Happy National Grilled Cheese Day!
I’m a pretty big fan of grilled cheese sandwiches, as evidenced in these delicious versions:
I know I haven’t shared a version of my basic grilled cheese I make for the kids. It is pretty consistent if not dull-ish. I love using a nice creamy white bread for it, usually with a mix of a strong cheddar and a provolone. If I am making them for myself I use an English Cheddar, Red Leicester (which by the way is also totally amazing as a topping to a beautiful cast iron ribeye) and some deeply caramelized onions like the kind I make for my In-N-Out Copycat Fries and Double Double Cheeseburger.
Sometimes I make a variety of cream cheese grilled cheese sandwiches like the Carrot Cake Jam one. A favorite option is a pickled jalapeno, cherry jam and cream cheese, sort of a play on the Bronco Berry sauce Arby’s used to offer with jalapeno poppers.
I know, I know, English Cheddar vs Bronco Berry Sauce?! You’ll find most chefs have similar eating patterns. We love amazing quality ingredients and have serious soft spots for crazy processed foods that we grew up with.
I use two slices of the provolone in the sandwich to make protect the meat and hold the sandwich together. You can also (and I definitely do from time to time) use American Cheese. If you use one slice of cheese the bottom half of your sandwich won’t stay together, so don’t be afraid to add that second slice.
Looking for more Cheese Steak recipes? Look no further!
- Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes
- Philly Cheesesteak Hamburger Helper
- Philly Cheesesteak Meatloaf
- Slow Cooker Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches
- Philly Cheese Steak Burgers
- Pat’s Philly Cheese Steak (Copycat)
- Cheesesteak Egg Rolls
- Chicken Madness Philly Sub Sandwich
Want to go a bit more traditional? I dip this in pepper relish which is basically the best thing ever on a cheese steak. AND, it is totally valid, Pat’s offers it as a condiment.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 onion , chopped
- 1/2 green bell pepper , chopped
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 slices American or Provolone Cheese
- 8 slices white bread
- 4 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Start by browning the beef in the skillet. Try to brown without breaking up the meat too much. Get a nice brown sear on the beef, then break apart as little as possible. You want the meat to resemble a pea in size [you want to avoid taco meat consistency]. Add the salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Stir gently, then remove from pan.
- Add 2 tbsp. of butter in the pan and add the chopped onions and green bell pepper, cooking until browned and caramelized. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you like mushrooms in your cheesesteaks, go ahead and add some chopped mushrooms here too. Once browned, add the meat back in and combine together.
- Spread the butter on one side of each of the 8 slices of bread.
- Butter side down on the cutting board.
- Add a slice of provolone to each of the slices.
- Top four slices with the meat mixture and close the sandwiches pressing down lightly.
- In a cast iron pan or griddle on medium high add the sandwiches and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side.
Video
Nutrition
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Thanks for posting this! I was craving a cheesesteak but didn’t have all the ingredients, and was able to make this just with stuff I had at home. So delicious!!!!!!!!!!! 😀
The ingredients in this recipe are NOT authentic to an actual cheesesteak.
Sharon Smith…it doesn’t claim to be an actual cheesesteak. It claims to be a “Ground Philly Cheesesteak Grilled Cheese”. It is s delicious recipe. Grow up!
We love , love this recipe! Thank yo its awesome
We have made this
My husband said whoever came up with this recipe is a genius!
Omg!!! Absolutely AMAZING!!!! Cooking the meat whole and the way it develops the crispy edges and pieces is delicious! We will be making this on a regular basis. Thank you so much for sharing this!!!
So glad you enjoyed it Traci!
I made this last night for my husband and he loved it! Will definitely make again, so quick and easy, thanks!
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it!
I used carne asada meat in place of the ground beef and the sandwiches were delicious. I followed the recipe to the letter otherwise
Can you use ground chicken instead?
Of course! Sounds delicious!
I have yet to understand why people butter the bread and then turn it butter side down on the cutting board/plate. I don’t like to waste my butter on the cutting board or have to clean up the mess. I build my sandwich on the board, butter the outside of the top slice of bread, put that side down in the frying pan/on the grill and then butter the outside of the piece of bread that is on top prior to turning it to brown. It is so simple and a lot less messy.
This one hit the trifecta for me! Quick, easy and tasty. Thank you for sharing your recipes with us!
Thanks Jim!
I found this recipe because I was searching for something new to make with the ground beef in my fridge. SO AWESOME!!! My whole family gobbled them up and I will be making this again. Thank you!!
It makes me so happy to hear the the whole family loved it! I’d call that a winner for sure!
Do you know how well this holds up in the refrigerator overnight? I always have to make double batches for lunches the next day? And they get packed at night because there is too much going on in the mornings.
I’m not really sure how this would hold up. The best part about a grilled cheese is the crunch of the bread and the melty cheese and I’m not sure you’d get the same effect from reheating it all put together in a microwave. Are you able to reheat in a toaster oven possibly? Maybe wrapping it in foil and popping it into a toaster oven might help. Let me know if you decided to try it and how it turned out.
Made this sandwich for the first time yesterday for my son’s bday dinner…his request was meatball subs, deviled eggs and this sandwich that he saw i had posted on my page…..we both loved it…will not be waiting for bday dinners in the future 😀
Aww, how sweet! I feel so honored that he requested my sandwich!! Hope he had a happy birthday!
Thank you so much! I like the bacon cheeseburger recipe too. I think we may have stumbled onto something that my kids will eat! Yay!!!
Both are definitely kid approved!
Hi i was looking at the recipe for this sandwich and saw a spot for where a link for philly cheesesteak sloppy joes was supposed to be but the link is missing for it. Can you direct me to that page? My kids are super picky and i can’t get them to eat sloppy joes at all but this…they might eat.
Sorry Julie, sometimes the system the blog is made on doesn’t save the link even though I add the code to link it!
Here are some sloppy joes recipes for you:
Philly Sloppy Joes: https://dinnerthendessert.com/philly-cheese-steak-sloppy-joes/
Bacon Cheeseburger Sloppy Joes: https://dinnerthendessert.com/bacon-cheeseburger-sloppy-joes/
Just a heads up, tomorrow I’m doing a pepperoni pizza sloppy joe too!
I find it much easier to melt the butter i the pan then buttering the bread and trying to handle it. I then throw another pat in before turning it over. Just made them for dinner and everyone was quiet! Too busy eating. Always a sign of a great meal. Thanks!
Ahhh, the sound of silence at dinnertime….Yes, that’s a good sign!! Glad you all enjoyed it!
Literally just made this, it was delicious!!! Will be a regular meal!! Thank you!!
Glad you loved it Evita!
This is amazingly good! I used gluten free bread and added mushrooms instead of bell peppers. My whole family is in love!
Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and let me know how much your whole family loved it Crystal!
This is a great recipe and it’s nice to see people who can appreciate a classic, but help make it more accessible to the home cook in a way that’s fast, easy and inexpensive. So many people are on a budget (financially or time-wise) and this helps with both! It’s a great tasting meal that doesn’t aim to REPLACE a true Philly cheese-steak, but sure hits the spot in a pinch! Thanks!
Yes, exactly Marla! Thank you so much!! So glad you enjoyed it.
Absolutely delicious will add it to my monthly rotation of great meals. We added romaine lettuce and brown jasmine rice as our base instead of bread because we are a gluten free household. I placed the ground philly cheesesteak mixture on top. It was fabulous. Especially since the cheese was melted over the ground beef mixture. Super delicious.
Wow, that’s sounds like a great sounding base for the cheesesteak! I’m so happy that you all enjoyed it and it’s now part of your rotation. That’s a huge compliment in my book!
Very Good! Peppers and extra mushrooms made it perfect. Used Better Than Bouillon since I was out of an ingredient. Nice to have when I need a quick dinner!!
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know 🙂
This is honestly one of the best tasting foods I have ever made!! My husband and kids want this everyday!! Thank you for putting this recipe online!!
What a great compliment, thanks!
What a delicious looking recipe! Can I ask what the fat content is in the beef you use? 8/20, 93/7, etc.? I am dreaming of making these with some nice fresh grainy bread and perhaps even adding a touch of mustard. Great recipe!
Sounds perfect! I use 85/15 🙂
I use 93/7 ground beef because we like the taste and I have problems with my fingers holding a pan with weak fingers (due to age) ?
These are soooo good and just like our favorite sandwich shop, we used multigrain bread. So much better than white bread and so much better for you…JUST SAYIN !! My hubs favorite sandwich. Making me hungry just talking about it.
They’re really are sooo good! Now you have me dreaming about one, haha!
Made the ground Philly cheesesteak grilled cheese sandwiches tonight.The kids loved them, I thought they were pretty good also. LOL !! I will definitely make them again.
Fantastic! So glad everyone loved them! Thanks for coming back to let me know!
Did you drain the grease? Or leave it?
I drained just about all of it.
Made this for dinner last night. Quick, easy, & yummy. I regret not adding salt as directed and would do it next time to up the flavor factor. Great addition to our winter recipe rotation! Thanks.
Thank you so much for coming back to let me know how much you loved it!! It’s such an easy dish that really pulls the flavors together perfectly!
I love my classic Philly cheesesteaks, but those can be expensive and require some time that I just don’t always have. This recipe was so beyond easy and replicated the taste perfectly. I will definitely add these to my “go to” meals! Thanks for the recipe!!!!
I totally agree! Perfect for when you want to satisfy the craving without a massive amount of work. Thank you coming back to let me know how much you loved it!
This might be a dumb question, but should I drain the meat before adding the Worcestershire, salt and pepper? I’m assuming I do, just making sure the fat isn’t supposed to be used to sauté the peppers and onions
Yes, I drain it.
I’m gonna try this tonight with brioche. Hoping my EXTREMELY picky 18 month old will eat it up. I know I will, anyway!
Hopefully your 18 month old will surprise you! If not, more for you right?!? haha!
I just made these for dinner and they were awesome!! My whole family loved them and they want me to make it at least twice a month. Thank you for the recipe.
That’s a huge compliment when the whole family loves it! Thank you so much for coming back to let me know!
I can’t wait to try this tomorrow. I’m going to use Hellmans instead of butter. I’ve found it makes a better crisp to the crust.
I’ll have to try that! Thanks for the tip!
I’ve used Hellman’s b4 great idea if you’re out of butter, also another great idea is after smooth on Hellman’s/ butter sprinkle on garlic salt, gives great extra crunch and added flavor too.
Great recipe! Thanks! Definitely will use this again. I only had American cheese this time so I can’t wait to see how it tastes with provolone!
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it!
I just made these last night for dinner and again today for lunch! They were amazing!! ? And taste just like the real thing! Thanks for making me feel like a rock star cook making these for the family! Would you mind if I also shared this on my (new) blog soon linking to your recipe!? Thanks again!
So glad you enjoyed it! As long as it’s your photography and you link back to my site, you can share it to your site.
I pinned these last night and cooked them tonight. Thanks. All I can say is wow they were AWESOME, WONDERFUL, DELICIOUS.
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it! This is one of our favorite recipes at home. 🙂
I pinned these last night and cooked them tonight. All I can say is…WONDERFUL AWESOME DELICIOUS!!!!!
Sabrina,
I have made this recipe twice now, & it is SCRUMPTIOUS! I have shared it with several of my family members & friends & they all LOVE it!
Great idea! Great recipe!
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Donna! I’m glad it was a hit!
You saved me! Had no idea what to make then I found this recipe. Ignore the dummies who have nothing good to say. Just like the person who thought she was the only one who made the best Mexican rice…..not. I did however had to make it with poblanos but only because bell peppers no longer like me. It still tasted awesome! Thanks!!
I’m so glad you liked it, Cyndi!
This recipe was delicious! Made it tonight for dinner and the kids and I loved it! Thanks for sharing! ????
This was absolutely amazing and really, really easy, too. All those delicious flavors of a cheese steak sandwich happily tucked into a grilled cheese sandwich – cheap, easy, darn good. Its exactly what your title said it would be and even better than I dreamed. This is a keeper I’ll make again and again.
Yay! So glad you enjoyed it! We love this sandwich too!
Omg, I made these tonight with a side of steak fries w/ brown gravy… PHENOMENAL! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Thanks for the report! I’m glad they went over well!
Anxious to try this. I make Patty Melts this way using frozen hamburger patties.
Any suggestions for a different kind of bread to use besides white bread? I’m seriously a pathetic cook and don’t know what kinds of bread toast better than others.
Sorry this comment took so long to get to, it ended up in my spam filter somehow! Sorry I just found a huge number of comments over the last three months that was snared in the spam filter and I am trying to follow up with each one now even though in your case I am way too late to help. Potato bread or any other mild flavored bread would work. I love buttermilk bread too for this recipe.
This is a great idea for a Grilled cheese sandwich. Some people just need to be nice.
This looks delish . I am now a plant based eater and looking forward to modifying this to fit my needs . I’m finding most receipes can be converted . Can’t wait til lunch . Thanks
I made this last weekend and it tasted exactly like a Philly steak, but way easier to make with hamburger. Absolutely recommend anyone to make this!
Thanks for coming back to let us know, Amber!
A “Philly” cheese steak does not contain ground meat. We use shaved beef (very thinly sliced beef). Please don’t insult a classic
Believe me, I know how a classic cheesesteak is made, and it was not my intention to imply that an actual cheesesteak would be made with ground beef. I’m just trying to replicate those flavors in a grilled cheese sandwich, where the strips of meat wouldn’t work very well. I still think it’s delicious!
OMG Susan Groves…..get a life. The title says GROUND….. get serious about something really important. Great recipe sabrina! TY.
Wow, Susan. Was that necessary? It’s the exact same meat, (beef) just ground, not shaved. It’s her take in a grilled cheese, she says ALL of those things. I guess you missed the lesson “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it.” Really, life is too short for that kind of negativity. Thank you Sabrina for publishing your recipes. Obviously you can’t please everyone but I certainly appreciate your efforts.
Excellent idea …some people need to learn respect. AND think about someone besides themselves
How rude!! This is exactly the way I would prefer a Philly Cheesesteak “Grilled Cheese.” If you didn’t like the recipe, why not just leave and do it your own way, without insulting the author of said recipe????
I am with you Sabrina, this sounds and looks absolutely delicious!! Will be trying very soon and I thank you for the recipe.
Nit picky butthead, Susan Grove, gees . Get real. So what, some one, made an easy home version with ground beef, who cares. Your Snob ass opinion doesn’t matter. Maybe not everyone can always afford steak to use either, or people just want a quick grilled cheese with added flavor that is like a philly cheese steak. It is after all a frickin grilled cheese sandwich.. stupid people always find something stupid to bitch about…
Your dumb susan
Keep it classy, Susan! Just like Philadelphia. We know what a real philly cheese steak is, genius. This sounds delicious, and I can’t wait to try it.
Susan Grove, don’t be so petty. It’s just a recipe. The recipe name is Ground Philly Cheesesteak Grilled Cheese. It’s not trying tyo be a Philly Cheesesteak. So get over it. It’s a delicious sandwich!
Susan, you totally over reacted with your comments. This recipe is meant to be an alternative sandwich. She didn’t indicate that this was a replacement or improvement to the classic philly cheese steak sandwich. Your comments are hateful.
Geez, before critizing try the recipe —- it’s a sloopy Joe that taste like a cheesesteak sandwich!
My question: how in the world do you “try not to break the meat up too much” and end up with pea sized crumbles?? Makes no sense to me.
I let it brown in larger pieces and at end I break it apart a bit more to make the size of the meat pieces smaller. I find when you break up the meat too much in the beginning you won’t get that great sear on the meat you would by leaving the pieces larger at first (maybe because it covers less of the pan and doesn’t let the meat steam too much).
I have just recently added this recipe in my weekly meal rotation, I don’t usually leave comments for recipes but I just HAD to leave one for this one! I have made this recipe twice now and it is seriously soooo delicious!
I’m so glad you stopped by to let me know about it! I love when I’m able to give people a new recipe they really enjoy!
This sounds like a great new recipe that my family will enjoy…excited to give it a try! Thank you, Sabrina!
Sabrina…back when I was a meat eater…this would have rocked my world!!! LOOOOVE philly cheese steaks! YUM!
Thanks, Mila!
I made these for dinner last night, delicious!!! I used smoked gouda cheese on some and provolone on some….both were sooo good! I wish I would have taken a pic and posted it. Thank you for the recipe!!! <3
You’re welcome! So glad you enjoyed it!!
Does anyone know the nutritional value like calories?
Sorry I don’t have the nutritional facts for recipes on the site but I know there are a lot of free resources on the internet from when I’ve cooked for clients with low calorie diets.
Hi Sabrina , I want to say Thank You so much for your recipe. My kids loved it !!
Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know!
You could probably substitute mushrooms for the beef and use veg Worcestershire sauce.