What is the Ferdie po'boy?

The Ferdie Special is a po'boy from Mother's Restaurant in New Orleans, which has been open since 1938. The original combines roast beef, baked ham, and debris gravy on French bread dressed with lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mayo. It's one of the most iconic sandwiches in a city with no shortage of iconic sandwiches. T-Bone's version smokes the roast beef on the Traeger, pan-sears the ham to a crust, adds Swiss cheese, and builds the gravy from the Traeger drip pan drippings.

What cut of beef is best for thinly sliced roast beef po'boys?

Eye of round is the best cut for thinly sliced roast beef: it has a uniform grain direction that makes slicing against the grain straightforward, it's lean enough to hold together when cut thin, and it takes smoke well. Top round also works. Chuck roast has more marbling and flavor but starts to shred when sliced thin — it's better for pulled beef applications. The other key is temperature: smoke to 130-135°F (medium-rare) and refrigerate completely before slicing. Cold beef slices paper-thin. Warm beef tears.

How thin should roast beef be sliced for a po'boy?

As thin as you can get it — ideally near-deli-slice thickness, around 1/16 inch. The thinner the slice, the more tender the eating experience and the better the gravy soaks in. This is only achievable on cold, fully refrigerated beef. Slice with a sharp knife against the grain, or use a mandoline with a guard. The refrigerator is your most important slicing tool.

Why is the gravy thin instead of thick?

The function of the gravy on a roast beef po'boy is to juice the bread and the meat — not to coat a plate. A thick gravy makes the sandwich heavy and overpowers the beef and ham. A thin gravy (closer to an au jus) absorbs into the toasted French bread, soaks into the sliced beef, and runs through every bite without adding structural weight. The flour-to-stock ratio in this recipe is intentionally lower than a standard gravy.

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Smoked Roast Beef
& Ham Po’Boy
with Brown Gravy

Mother’s Restaurant in New Orleans has been making the Ferdie Special — roast beef, ham, and debris gravy — since 1938. This is T-Bone’s version: eye of round smoked at 225°F on oak, refrigerated overnight and sliced paper-thin, layered with pan-seared ham and melted Swiss, then finished with a thin brown gravy built from the Traeger drip pan.

The smoke on the beef changes the gravy. The drip pan collects smoke-flavored fat and juices over the course of the cook, and that goes straight into the sauce. The sandwich tastes like New Orleans and smells like a Saturday morning cook.

Total Time ~6 hrs (mostly inactive)

Active Time ~30 min

Heat Level Mild

Wood Oak

Cooker Traeger + Cast Iron

Serves 4–6

Ingredients

The Smoked Roast Beef

3–4 lb eye of round roast (or top round; see notes)
2 tbsp Smoke & Soul House Rub
1 tsp coarsely cracked black pepper
Oak wood pellets
Drip pan placed under the roast (to catch drippings for the gravy)

The Thin Brown Gravy

Drip pan juices from the roast (or 2 tbsp butter if minimal)
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups beef stock
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Cajun seasoning
½ tsp black pepper
Salt to taste

The Build

1–1½ lbs thick-cut deli ham or ham steak
8–12 slices Swiss cheese
1 loaf soft French po’boy bread, split lengthwise
2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
2 ripe tomatoes, sliced
Kosher dill pickle chips
Mayo or Cajun remoulade

Instructions

Smoke the roast beef. Coat the eye of round on all sides with House Rub and cracked black pepper. Set the Traeger to 225°F with oak pellets. Place the roast on the grate with a drip pan underneath — you want every drop of those juices for the gravy. Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 130–135°F. For a 3–4 lb roast that’s approximately 3 to 3.5 hours. Pull and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes, then move to the refrigerator uncovered until completely cold — minimum 2 hours, overnight is better. Don’t skip the refrigerator step.

Slice thin. Cold meat slices clean; warm meat shreds. Using a sharp slicing knife or mandoline, slice the roast against the grain as thin as you can manage. The goal is near-deli thickness — around 1/16 inch. At this thickness the beef is tender through and through, and it absorbs the gravy. Reserve the drip pan juices; refrigerate them alongside the roast if making the day before.

Build the thin brown gravy. In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the drip pan juices (skim off excess fat if needed, but leave some — that’s flavor). Add the flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes until a light tan roux forms. Whisk in the beef stock gradually, getting each addition smooth before adding more. Add Worcestershire, Cajun seasoning, and black pepper. Simmer 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally. The gravy should be thin and pourable — closer to a jus than a cream gravy. Taste and season with salt. Keep warm on low.

Warm the roast beef in the gravy. Add the sliced roast beef to the warm gravy and fold it gently through the liquid. Two minutes over low heat is enough. The beef soaks up the smoke-flavored gravy; the gravy picks up more flavor from the meat. Don’t simmer it hard — you don’t want to cook the beef further.

Pan-sear the ham and melt the cheese. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high. Add the ham in portions and sear 2–3 minutes per side. The edges should caramelize and pick up dark color. In the last 30 seconds, drape 2 slices of Swiss cheese over each portion. Cover the pan with a lid or foil just long enough to melt the cheese — about 45 seconds.

Toast the bread. Broil the split French bread cut-side up for 1–2 minutes until lightly golden. Watch it.

Build and serve. Spread remoulade or mayo generously on both cut sides. Layer lettuce on the bottom half, then sliced tomato, then pickle chips. Pile the gravy-soaked roast beef over the top — don’t be stingy. Lay the ham and melted Swiss on top of the beef. Before closing, spoon an extra ladle of thin gravy over everything. Press the top down. Cut in half. Serve immediately. Bring napkins.

Pitmaster Notes

Eye of round is the right cut. It has a uniform, predictable grain that makes slicing against it straightforward. It’s lean enough to hold together in thin slices and takes smoke well without getting overpowered. Top round also works. Chuck roast has great flavor but starts to shred when sliced thin — better for pulled beef, wrong for this application.
The refrigerator is your slicer. Cold beef slices paper-thin without tearing. Room-temperature or warm beef pulls apart. Smoke it the day before, refrigerate overnight, and slice cold right before you make the gravy. This is the step most people skip and then wonder why the slices are ragged.
130–135°F is non-negotiable. Medium-rare keeps the beef tender when sliced thin. 145°F and above produces slices that are tough at this thickness. The beef will heat through again when it goes into the warm gravy — it will not be served cold or underdone.
Thin gravy, not thick. The function of the gravy here is to juice the bread and the meat, not to coat a plate. A thick gravy makes the sandwich heavy and muddies the flavor of the beef and ham. This recipe intentionally uses less flour than a standard gravy. It should be pourable and run — when you spoon it over the built sandwich, it should soak into the toasted bread immediately.
The drip pan makes the gravy. Those smoke-flavored drippings are the reason the gravy tastes like it came from a restaurant. Don’t substitute with store-bought beef broth alone — use every drop from the pan. If the drippings are minimal, add butter as the fat base, but use the juices regardless.

The Ferdie Inspiration

Mother’s Restaurant, New Orleans. Open since 1938. The original Ferdie Special has been on the menu longer than most people’s grandparents have been alive.

The Original

Roast beef • Baked ham • Debris gravy

T-Bone’s Version

Smoked eye of round • Pan-seared ham • Melted Swiss • Thin gravy from Traeger drippings

The Smoke Difference

The Traeger drip pan collects smoke-flavored fat and beef juices over 3+ hours. That goes straight into the gravy. The original can’t do that.

The Slicing Cheat Sheet

Internal temp at pull 130–135°F

Refrigerator time before slicing 2 hrs min, overnight best

Slice direction Against the grain

Target thickness ~1/16″ (deli-thin)

Frequently Asked

What is the Ferdie po’boy? The Ferdie Special is from Mother’s Restaurant in New Orleans, open since 1938 — roast beef, baked ham, and debris gravy on French bread, dressed. T-Bone’s version smokes the beef on the Traeger, pan-sears the ham to a crust, adds Swiss cheese, and builds the gravy from the Traeger drip pan drippings.
What cut of beef works best? Eye of round. Uniform grain for clean slicing, lean enough to hold together at thin cuts, takes smoke well. Top round is a close second. Chuck roast shreds when sliced thin — not the right cut here.
Why must the beef be refrigerated before slicing? Cold beef slices paper-thin without tearing. Warm beef pulls and shreds. Refrigerate at least 2 hours after smoking, overnight if possible. Slice cold, then warm the slices in the gravy.
Why is the gravy thin? The gravy’s job is to soak into the bread and the beef, not to coat a plate. Thin and pourable means it penetrates every layer of the sandwich. Thick gravy sits on top and makes everything heavy.

Smoked Roast Beef& Ham Po’Boywith Brown Gravy