A Turkey Reuben Breakfast Sandwich is layered with Thousand Islands dressing, sauerkraut, turkey bacon, eggs and cheese! If you like a traditional turkey Reuben sandwich, then you'll LOVE this breakfast Reuben twist! It's served open-face and topped with fresh arugula.

Open face turkey Rueben breakfast sandwich on a round grey plate, topped with arugula, TI dressing on the side and slices of bread and sauerkraut in the upper corners of the image.

A traditional Reuben sandwich is made with corned beef, swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Russian dressing. I've never been a fan of corned beef, so I've always opted for the turkey style Reuben, also known as "the Rachel."

My recipe for a Turkey Reuben breakfast sandwich takes the traditional components of a turkey Reuben and puts a breakfast spin on them. I swap out the fresh sliced turkey for turkey bacon, add some fried eggs and top it with fresh, bright green arugula.

If you're like me and love a turkey Reuben sandwich, then I know that you'll love this breakfast style Reuben too! It's just as easy to cook and assemble as a regular breakfast sandwich, with minimal prep and cook time! The sauerkraut adds some extra fiber and you get a double-dose of protein from the eggs and the turkey bacon.

Jump to:

Ingredients
Equipment needed
How to make
Delicious add-ins
Recipe variations
Storage and reheating
You might also like
📖 Recipe

Ingredients

Rye bread - Rye bread is bread made with rye flour and caraway seeds. The caraway give the bread it's distinct flavor. I used a light rye for this recipe. You can also find dark rye, marbled rye and pumpernickel bread varieties.
Thousand Islands dressing - Thousand Islands dressing is a creamy, slightly sweet dressing made with pickle relish. Russian dressing is similar to TI dressing, but instead of being slightly sweet, is slightly spicy from the addition of horseradish. Fun Fact: I currently live in the exact town in the Thousand Islands region where Thousand Islands dressing was invented! This certainly makes me partial to TI dressing, which is why I chose it for this recipe.
Sauerkraut - Sauerkraut is thinly sliced cabbage that has been fermented by lactic acid bacteria. Sauerkraut is incredibly nutritious. It has a tangy flavor and lots of crunch.
Turkey bacon - Turkey bacon is low-fat, low-calorie alternative to pork bacon. It cooks up much faster than pork bacon, only requiring a few minutes of heating on the stove-top.
Cheddar cheese - Most Reuben sandwiches use swiss cheese. I'm not a huge fan of swiss so I chose to swap the swiss for cheddar.
Arugula - Arugula is a leafy salad green with a slight peppery flavor. Some people find arugula to be bitter. If you aren't a fan of arugula then substitute in spinach instead.
Eggs

Equipment needed

Medium-sized frying pan
Oven
Small parchment lined baking sheet

How to make

Step 1

Toast your slices of rye bread and smear each slice with a dollop of Thousand Islands dressing.

Slice of rye bread on a white plate with thousand islands dressing smeared on the bread. — Rye bread with TI dressing.

Step 2

Top each slice of bread with the sauerkraut.

Slice of rye bread on a white plate topped with sauerkraut. — Sauerkraut on bread.

Step 3

Lay slices of cooked turkey bacon on top of the sauerkraut.

Slice of rye bread on a white plate topped with turkey bacon. — Turkey bacon on the breakfast sandwich.

Step 4

Top the turkey bacon on each sandwich with two cooked, over-medium eggs.

Turkey Rueben breakfast sandwich on a white plate topped with turkey bacon and 2 over easy eggs. — Fried eggs added to the turkey breakfast sandwich.

Step 5

Add your final topping, 2 slices of cheddar cheese. Transfer the breakfast sandwiches to a parchment lined baking sheet. Place the turkey breakfast sandwiches into the oven and broil for 1-2 minutes to melt the cheese.

Two turkey Reuben breakfast sandwiches on a parchment lined sheet pan ready to go in the oven. — Ready to broil.

Step 6

Remove the breakfast Ruebens from the oven, top each sandwich with fresh arugula and serve them open-face. This recipe makes two, open-faced sandwiches.

Delicious add-ins

Avocado - Avocado adds an extra dose of creaminess.

Hot sauce - If you like some spice, drizzle the finished sandwich with some sriracha sauce!

Sliced tomatoes - Tomatoes would add another serving of vegetables to this sandwich!

Recipe variations

Meat - If you don't care for turkey bacon then you could swap out the turkey bacon for pork based bacon. This would significantly change the cook time and flavor of the sandwich though. A vegetarian alternative would be tempeh bacon.
Dressing - The TI dressing could be substituted with Russian dressing.
Greens - Alternatives to the arugula include spinach and leaf lettuce.
Cheese - Swap the cheddar for swiss cheese or muenster cheese.
Bread - If you don't want to use rye bread then change it out for white or wheat bread, a bagel or an English muffin.

Storage and reheating

Make ahead - If you want to make this egg, turkey and cheese breakfast sandwich in advance, then I would suggest adding the sauerkraut when you are ready to eat it. Sauerkraut can be a wet ingredient that could make your bread soggy. I wouldn't make this more than 24 hours in advance.

Reheating - Wrap the breakfast sandwich in a paper towel and reheat it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.

Leftovers - If you have a leftover turkey breakfast sandwich, store it in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.

📖 Recipe