Watch Duce make it
- Prep
- 30 minutes
- Cook
- 6.5 hours
- Total
- 14.5 hours
BBQ Like a Boss
The Flavor Starts Here
Cook it with Duce.
The Method
Cooking Method
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Season the chuck. Pat the chuck roast dry. Coat all sides with olive oil, then apply 1/4 cup Duce's Wild Texas Rub evenly. Rest at room temperature for 30 minutes while the smoker preheats.
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Preheat the Weber Searwood. Fill the hopper with Royal Oak 100% Charcoal & Hickory Blended Pellets. Preheat the Weber Searwood to 250 degrees F for 20 minutes.
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Smoke for bark. Place the chuck directly on the center grate. Smoke at 250 degrees F for 3-4 hours, until the exterior has a deep bark and the center reaches 160-165 degrees F.
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Build the jus. In a deep foil roasting pan, combine the beef stock, water, onion, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon Texas Rub, oregano, basil, fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, bay leaves and the 2 tablespoons reserved Mauro Provisions giardiniera oil.
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Finish covered. Set the smoked chuck into the jus and cover the pan tightly with heavy-duty foil. Raise the Searwood to 300 degrees F. Cook for 2-3 hours, until the center reaches 195-200 degrees F and a probe enters with light resistance. The roast should be tender but still hold together for slicing.
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Rest in the jus. Remove the covered pan from the Searwood and rest for 30 minutes. Transfer the chuck to a clean pan. Strain the jus, press the liquid from the onions and garlic, then discard the solids and bay leaves.
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Chill overnight. Cool the beef and jus separately, cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours. Remove and discard the solid fat from the chilled jus before reheating.
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Slice paper-thin. Slice the cold chuck across the grain into 1/8-inch slices with a meat slicer or long sharp knife. Keep the slices loose so they fold naturally in the sandwich.
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Set the Kettle finishing station. Light a half chimney of Royal Oak 100% All Natural Hardwood Charcoal Briquets. Arrange a two-zone fire in the Weber Kettle. Place the Dutch oven on the indirect side, add the strained jus and heat it to 180-190 degrees F.
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Charcoal-grill the Italian sausage. Place the Italian sausage links over the direct side of the Weber Kettle. Grill for 2-3 minutes per side, turning to brown every surface and moving the links away from flare-ups. Transfer them to the indirect side, close the lid and cook for 8-12 minutes, until the centers reach 160 degrees F. Hold warm on the indirect side.
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Warm the beef and Turano rolls. Add the sliced beef to the hot jus in batches and warm for 5-8 minutes without boiling. Place the closed Turano rolls on the indirect side of the Kettle for 1 minute, just until warm and flexible.
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Build it juicy, combo and hot. Nest one charcoal-grilled Italian sausage in each Turano roll. Add 4 ounces of juicy sliced beef and 2 tablespoons Mauro Provisions Hot Giardiniera. Grip the sandwich at both ends with long tongs, submerge it completely in the jus for 2 seconds, lift, drain for 1 second and serve immediately.
Italian beef is more than a sandwich around Chicago. It is a language. Dry, wet, dipped. Sweet, hot or both. Everybody has an order, and everybody knows exactly how they want it.
My go-to order at Johnnie's Beef is a juicy combo, hot. That means thin Italian beef paired with an Italian sausage, topped with hot giardiniera and soaked with enough jus that every bite delivers. It is beefy, smoky, spicy, messy and completely worth it.
For this BBQ Like a Boss version, we respect that Chicago combination while bringing two kinds of backyard fire into the process. The chuck roast builds bark on the Weber Searwood, and the Italian sausage gets its color and snap directly over Royal Oak charcoal on the Weber Kettle.
The finished combo goes into a 5 1/2-6-inch Turano roll with Mauro Provisions Hot Giardiniera. Then the entire sandwich takes a two-second dip in the jus. That is what turns beef and sausage into a juicy combo, hot.
The Cook in Pictures
Every angle.
Bring Competition Flavor Home
BBQ Like a Boss
Season it, smoke it, glaze it. Duce's Wild takes it from there.
