Francesinha

Ingredients

• 8 thick sliceswhite sandwich bread
• 4thin beef steaks — quickly seared
• 4fresh linguiça sausages — split and grilled
• 200 gsmoked ham — sliced
• 4 slicesmortadela
• 300 gflamengo cheese — thinly sliced
• 330 mllager beer — for the sauce
• 400 mltomato passata
• 50 mlport wine
• 2 tbspbutter
• 2 tbspall-purpose flour
• 1bay leaf
• 1piri-piri chili
• 4eggs — fried, one per plate
• 800 gpotatoes — cut into chips
• to tastefine sea salt and black pepper

Method

1. Start by making the sauce. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Once melted, add 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour and stir continuously with a wooden spoon until the mixture turns a light blond color, indicating a blond roux. Gradually whisk in 330 ml of lager beer, ensuring there are no lumps. Add 400 ml of tomato passata, 50 ml of port wine, 1 bay leaf, and 1 piri-piri chili. Simmer the mixture gently, stirring occasionally, until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Season with fine sea salt and black pepper to taste, then set aside, keeping it warm.
2. Prepare the meats. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Season 4 thin beef steaks with salt and pepper, then sear them quickly on each side until browned, about 1 minute per side, ensuring they remain juicy inside. Remove the steaks and keep them warm. In the same skillet, grill 4 fresh linguiça sausages until they are browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes, turning occasionally. Keep the sausages warm with the steaks.
3. Toast the bread. Lightly toast 8 thick slices of white sandwich bread in a toaster or under a broiler until just golden. This will help the bread hold up to the sauce and fillings without becoming soggy.
4. Assemble the sandwiches. Start with a slice of toasted bread as the base. Layer one seared steak, a portion of the 200 g smoked ham, a slice of mortadela, and one grilled linguiça sausage. Top with another slice of toasted bread. Repeat for all four sandwiches.
5. Wrap each sandwich completely with slices of 300 g flamengo cheese, ensuring no bread or filling is visible. This will create a melted cheese shell that holds the sandwich together.
6. Melt the cheese. Preheat your oven's grill (broiler) to high. Place the cheese-wrapped sandwiches on a baking tray and grill until the cheese is fully melted and begins to bubble, forming a golden crust, about 3-5 minutes. Keep a close eye to prevent burning.
7. While the cheese melts, fry 4 eggs sunny-side up in a non-stick pan with a little olive oil until the whites are set but the yolks remain runny. Season with a pinch of salt.
8. Serve the Francesinha. Place each sandwich on a plate and pour the hot sauce generously over and around it. Crown each sandwich with a fried egg. Serve immediately with freshly cooked chips, perfect for dipping into the sauce.