Philly Cheesesteak Sliders

It is the last stretch of August in Kansas City, which means the mornings are suddenly rushed again and the afternoons still feel like standing inside a hair dryer. Everyone in my house is tired in that very specific back to school way, and nobody, including me, wants to answer the question of what is for dinner.

These are the nights that made me a slider pan person. One dish, about twenty five minutes in the oven, and the whole tray comes out looking like you planned something. These Philly cheesesteak sliders are the ones my people go quiet for, which in this house is the highest possible review.

Heads up, a couple of the links below are affiliate links, which just means I get a tiny commission at no cost to you.

Why you will love these

• It is one pan and one slab of rolls, so cleanup is basically nothing.
• Shaved steak cooks in about five minutes, no marinating, no thinking.
• They feed twelve people or four people twice, and they hold beautifully on a counter while everyone wanders in.
• Chiefs season is right around the corner and these travel to a tailgate better than almost anything else I make.

Ingredients

Nothing weird here. If your store sells shaved steak near the fajita meat, grab it. If not, ask the butcher to shave a ribeye thin, or freeze a ribeye for twenty minutes and slice it yourself.

• 12 Hawaiian sweet rolls, one 12 count slab
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms, optional
• 1.5 pounds shaved steak or thinly sliced ribeye
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 12 slices provolone cheese

For the garlic butter topping: 4 tablespoons melted salted butter, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, and 1 teaspoon sesame seeds if you want them to look bakery fancy.

The only gear that matters is a 9×13 baking dish and a big skillet. I use my 12 inch cast iron because it gets the peppers and onions properly browned instead of just steamy.

How to make Philly cheesesteak sliders

1. Heat the oven to 350F and lightly grease your baking dish.
2. Heat the olive oil over medium high. Cook the onion, pepper and mushrooms 6 to 8 minutes, until soft with browned edges.
3. Add the shaved steak and cook 4 to 5 minutes, breaking it up as it browns. Stir in the Worcestershire, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Drain off any extra liquid, this is the step people skip and then wonder why the bottom is soggy.
4. Slice the whole slab of rolls in half horizontally, keeping it in one piece. Set the bottom in the dish.
5. Layer 6 slices of provolone down, spread the steak mixture over it, then the other 6 slices on top. Put the roll tops back on.
6. Whisk the butter topping together and brush it over the tops.
7. Cover with foil, bake 15 minutes, then uncover and bake 8 to 10 more until golden and melty.
8. Rest 5 minutes, cut along the seams, serve warm.

Tips, swaps, and make ahead notes

Provolone is the classic and it melts like a dream, but white American from the deli counter is the creamiest option if you want that cheesesteak stand texture. Skip pre shredded, it never gets that pull.

Not a mushroom household? Leave them out, nobody will notice. Want heat? A handful of sliced pepperoncini or banana peppers stirred into the steak is very good and very underrated.

To make ahead, build the whole pan up to the butter step, cover, and refrigerate up to a day. Brush the butter on right before baking and add about 5 minutes to the covered time. I have also done this with leftover steak from the grill and it was arguably better.

One small thing that makes this easier: a silicone pastry brush. Spooning butter over rolls works but you always end up with three soaked ones and nine dry ones.

Quick recipe details

• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 25 minutes
• Total time: 40 minutes
• Servings: 12 sliders
• Storage: Covered in the fridge up to 3 days. Reheat wrapped in foil at 300F for about 12 minutes so the rolls stay soft instead of turning into croutons.

Philly Cheesesteak Sliders

Melty provolone, peppers and shaved steak baked into a pan of Hawaiian rolls with garlic butter on top. One dish, about 40 minutes, and everybody comes running.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Servings: 12 sliders

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 12 Hawaiian sweet rolls (one 12 count slab)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms optional
• 1.5 pounds shaved steak or thinly sliced ribeye
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
• 12 slices provolone cheese

For the garlic butter topping

• 4 tablespoons salted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds optional

Method

 

1. Heat the oven to 350F and lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and mushrooms and cook 6 to 8 minutes, until soft and starting to brown at the edges.
3. Add the shaved steak and cook 4 to 5 minutes, breaking it up as it browns. Stir in the Worcestershire, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Drain off any extra liquid so the rolls do not get soggy.
4. Slice the whole slab of rolls in half horizontally, keeping it in one piece. Set the bottom half in the baking dish.
5. Layer 6 slices of provolone on the bottom, spread the steak mixture evenly over it, then top with the remaining 6 slices of provolone. Add the top half of the rolls.
6. Whisk the melted butter, garlic powder, Worcestershire, parsley and sesame seeds together and brush it over the tops.
7. Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes. Uncover and bake 8 to 10 more minutes, until the tops are golden and the cheese is melted.
8. Let the pan rest 5 minutes, then cut along the seams and serve warm.

Notes

Store leftovers covered in the fridge up to 3 days. Reheat wrapped in foil at 300F for about 12 minutes so the rolls stay soft.

The takeaway

Some weeks dinner needs to be an event and some weeks it needs to be a pan you pull out of the oven while somebody is still looking for a permission slip. This one is the second kind, and honestly it might be the more useful kind.

If you make these, tell me what cheese you went with, I am always looking for a reason to argue about provolone versus American in the comments. So glad you are here.

xo, Pam