The Ultimate Chopped Cheese Sandwich

4.99 from 65 votes

The ultimate chopped cheese sandwich served on a toasted hoagie roll and topped with sliced juicy tomatoes and shredded lettuce.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time20

Course: dinner, lunch

Cuisine: American

Servings: sandwiches

Calories: 1000kcal

Dice yellow onion, slice tomatoes, and shred lettuce. Set aside until needed.
Spread ½ tablespoon of butter on the inside of each hoagie roll. Grill in a large skillet until golden brown. Plate until needed.
Divide the meat into four 6-ounce portions and shape each portion into an oval. Season generously on both sides with salt and pepper. Place one portion into a hot cast-iron skillet and smash with the back of a spatula (similar to smash burgers). Cook over medium high heat for a few minutes.
Flip the flattened patty to the other side and top with a quarter of the diced onions. Now begin chopping the burger patty as you mix in the onions. Continue doing this for a few minutes until the meat has crispy edges and the onions are grilled.
Top meat with 2 American cheese slices. Turn off the heat and allow the cheese to melt.
Slather mayo and ketchup on the toasted hoagy roll. Add the patty and top with shredded lettuce and sliced tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

If you prefer, you can sauté the diced onion first until caramelized and move them to the side of the pan while you fry the patty, then mix them in with the chopped meat.
Most chopped cheese recipes call for iceberg lettuce, but I prefer to use romaine lettuce which is more nutritious. We need all the nutrition we can get with this high calorie sandwich.
To make the sandwich spicier, you can either add sliced serranos or hot sauce. Another option is to mix the hot sauce in the mayo, or use cayenne to season the ground beef instead.
You can either mix the cheese in with the meat and onion mixture, or allow it to melt over the meat. Some insist that the cheese needs to be chopped in, while others say to allow the cheese melt on top. I tried it both ways and I prefer to melt the cheese on top.
Wrapping the chopped cheese sandwich in foil or sandwich deli paper not only gives the sandwich a more authentic look, but also forms the shape of the sandwich and helps to keep the sloppy ingredients from falling out.