NYC Deli Sandwich Recipe

New York City Deli Style Turkey, Corned Beef & Pastrami Sandwich Recipe

Turkey, Corned Beef, & Pastrami with Havarti Cheese, Swiss cheese, spicy deli mustard, horseradish cream sauce, and sweet onion jam on a warmed Kaiser roll.  The ultimate NYC Deli Sandwich Recipe.

You don't always have to cook, to make a great meal.  Assembly is required for this one, but all you'll need is your toaster and pan to prepare this one.

NYC Deli Sandwich Recipe

It's a well known 'fact' that New York City delis boast the reputation for, "The Best Deli Sandwiches in the World."  Well, whether you agree with that or not, there's no argument about the number of deli institutions NYC has to offer.

Fortunately, not living too far away from NYC, I'm able to get there a few times a year.  While I typically save room for dinner, I always waste some belly space on an over-sized deli sandwich creation.  Whether it's Carnegie Deli (I know, it's closing, so sad!), Swartz's Deli, or some of the lesser knowns, it's a right-of-passage for any food lover out there.

Over the years I've managed to narrow down my favorites.  The problem is, I'm always stuck with three deli meats that I love, so picking a favorite is nearly impossible.  The solution?  Create my own three-meat sandwich; Turkey, Corned Beef, & Pastrami.  Add to that a freshly baked Kaiser roll, two cheeses, some of my favorite condiments, and I've got my little slice of NYC deli heaven at-home, and so can you!

New York City Deli Sandwich Recipe

Here are a few keys to making the best NYC style deli sandwich:

  • Fresh Meats are a must! Pick the best deli you can. Whether it's a grocery store or a small deli store, make sure they are selling fresh cuts of deli meat. For the turkey ask for oven roasted or rotisserie.
  • Fresh rolls! Grab rolls from your local bakery that were made today.  I like to use Kaiser Rolls, but you can use rye bread or any other fresh roll you can find.
  • Condiments: You don't have to reinvent the wheel here.  Sometimes store bought is better than what you can make at-home.  So find products you love to use, like Kelchner's Horseradish Cream Sauce, or Hebrew National Deli Mustard.

Here's the recipe (assembly):

New York City Deli Sandwich Recipe

Triple-Meat NYC Deli Sandwich Recipe (Makes 2 Sandwiches)

You don't always have to actually cook to make a great meal. Assembly is required for this one, but you won't need to do any major cooking to get it into eating shape.

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Total Time 15 mins

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine American

  • ½ lb Oven Roasted Turkey Breast
  • ½ lb Lean Corned Beef
  • ½ lb Pastrami
  • ¼ lb Havarti Cheese
  • ¼ lb Swiss Cheese
  • 2 tbsp Horseradish Cream Sauce
  • 2 tbsp Deli Mustard
  • 4 tbsp Sweet Onion Jam
  • 2 Kaiser Rolls

  • Warm a sauté pan over medium-low heat. Using a ¼ pound of each deli meat, create two stacks. Transfer those stacks to your sauté pan. Cook for 1 minute and then flip the stacks. Layer the Havarti cheese on top. Cover and let the cheese melt and the meats to warm-up.

  • Slice your rolls in half. Lay them in your toaster oven. Turn the toaster oven on for 30 seconds and then turn it off. You don't want to toast the rolls, just warm them up.

  • Remove the rolls from the toaster oven after 2 minutes. Slather with the horseradish cream sauce, deli mustard, and sweet onion jam. I like to do this on both halves of the roll. Place the Swiss cheese on the bottom half of the roll.

  • Remove the meats from the sauté pan and transfer them directly on top of the Swiss cheese. The cheese will melt from the residual heat. Place the other half on-top, slice in half, and enjoy!

You can find the Sweet Onion Jam recipe here.  Have your deli meats sliced to a thickness of your preference.