Philly Cheesesteak Tortellini

Cheese tortellini and thin-sliced ribeye get tossed with peppers, onions, and mushrooms in a creamy provolone and American cheese sauce. Then it's topped with butter-toasted panko and baked until bubbly. We cooked ours entirely outside on the Char-Broil 3-in-1 gas grill, but you can make it indoors in a skillet by cooking in batches. It's a comforting, kid-friendly weeknight dinner that brings everyone to the table.

Prep Time10

Cook Time45

Total Time55

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cheesesteak tortellini, cheesesteak tortellini recipe, Philly cheesesteak tortellini

Servings: people

Calories: 885kcal

Author: Neal Williams

Ingredients

For the cheese sauce:

1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish optional
6 oz sliced white American cheese from the deli counter
6 slices provolone cheese

For the bake

20 oz refrigerated cheese tortellini
1 lb ribeye steak sliced thin against the grain (see notes)
1 bell pepper chopped
1 onion chopped
6 oz mushrooms sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter for buttering the skillet

For the topping

¼ cup butter plus more for greasing the skillet
1 cup panko breadcrumbs

Instructions

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the heavy cream until it's just below a simmer. Do not let it boil. Then add the Worcestershire sauce and optional horseradish.
Add the American cheese a few slices at a time, stirring until melted. Then add the provolone and stir until smooth. The sauce should be loose and pourable. Remove it from the heat.
Boil the tortellini in salted water until just al dente, about 1-2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain.
Heat the griddle or a large skillet to medium-high. Add the reserved ribeye fat and let it render. (If your ribeye did not have large chunks of fat, add about 1/2 tablespoon oil to the griddle or skillet.) Add the peppers, onions, and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until tender with a light char. Move them to a cooler zone, or remove them if you're using a skillet.
Add the sliced steak to the hot surface and cook quickly, until it's almost done to your liking. Do not overcook the steak - it will continue to cook a bit in the skillet with the other ingredients. Season the steak lightly with salt and pepper at the end, then combine with the vegetables.
Melt ¼ cup butter in a small pan. Stir in the panko until it's evenly coated, then set aside.
In a large bowl, fold together the al dente tortellini, steak, and vegetables with most of the cheese sauce. Reserve a little sauce for the top.
Butter a cast iron skillet or casserole dish. Add the tortellini mixture, drizzle with the reserved sauce, and sprinkle the buttered panko evenly over the top.
To bake on the grill: Set one side of the grill to off and the other to medium-low, aiming for about 350°F with the lid closed. Place the skillet over indirect heat. To bake indoors: Bake at 350°F.
Bake 15–20 minutes, rotating the skillet halfway through on the grill, until the sauce is bubbly and the panko is golden. Let it rest a few minutes before serving.

Notes

For the ribeye: Partially freezing the ribeye for about 35–45 minutes, until semi-firm, makes it much easier to slice thin. Be sure to slice against the grain. If there are any large chunks of fat on your ribeye, you can trim them and melt them down in the skillet or on the griddle for natural tallow to sauté the vegetables in.
Sauce thickness: Keep the sauce on the thin side. It thickens as it bakes.
Customize it: Skip the mushrooms if you're a cheesesteak purist, or add hot cherry peppers for heat.
Indoor method: Make the cheese sauce and boil the tortellini on the stovetop. Then use a large skillet for the rest, working in batches: render the fat and cook the vegetables first, remove them, then sear the steak in the same pan. Crowding the pan steams the meat instead of searing it, so don't rush it. Assemble in a buttered oven-safe skillet and bake at 350°F for 15–20 minutes, until bubbly and golden on top.

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