Pastrami sandwich (Langer's #19)
Photo: HaJunkiyada · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

Al and Jean Langer opened Langer's on Alvarado at Westlake as a 12-seat lunch counter in June 1947, and the family has not closed since. Al created the #19, which layers hot pastrami with coleslaw, Russian dressing and Swiss on Langer's house double-baked rye; the bread method, crisping each loaf twice, is the structural choice that lets the sandwich hold the moisture without sogging. Son Norm took over the kitchen in the early 1990s and full ownership in 2007. Nora Ephron called it the finest hot pastrami sandwich in the world in a 2002 New Yorker piece; Jonathan Gold likewise rated it the best pastrami sandwich in America.

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Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Egg

Make it at home

Yield 2Hands-on 20 minTotal 30 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 350g hot pastrami, hand-sliced thin
  • 4 slices seeded rye bread, cut 1.5cm thick
  • 60g Swiss cheese, sliced
  • 120g crisp coleslaw, well-drained
  • 4 tablespoons Russian dressing (mayo, ketchup, pickle relish, smoked paprika)
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • Yellow mustard, to serve
  • Half-sour pickles, to serve

Method

  1. Butter one face of each slice of rye lightly. Heat a wide heavy pan or griddle over medium heat.
  2. Place all 4 slices butter-side down. Toast 2 minutes until light gold, then flip onto a board.
  3. Lay Swiss cheese on two of the slices. Return them to the pan, butter-side down again, to melt the cheese for 1 minute.
  4. Steam the pastrami briefly in a covered pan with a splash of water until heated through, about 90 seconds.
  5. Spread Russian dressing on the cheese side. Pile half the pastrami on each.
  6. Top with coleslaw, then the remaining rye slices, butter side out.
  7. Press lightly, cut on the diagonal, and serve with yellow mustard and a half-sour pickle.

Tip from the editors. Twice-baked rye is the structural trick: fresh rye sogs under the dressing and steam from the meat, but a second short bake before slicing crisps the crumb just enough to hold.

Where to eat pastrami sandwich (langer's #19)

Pastrami sandwich (Langer's #19) in Los Angeles

Langer's Delicatessen ★ 4.8

$ Russian

Langer's Delicatessen on Alvarado, Westlake, Los Angeles has hand-sliced pastrami since 1947. The #19 with Russian dressing, coleslaw and Swiss is the order.

TryHand-sliced pastrami #19 sandwich

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