In the upper Midwest, hot beef means something other than roast beef that happens to be hot. It is the centerpiece meal of countless town cafes, as well as a respected entree at wedding banquets, silver anniversaries, and church suppers. The beef must be a pot-roast tender jumble of dark chunks and shreds, the mashed potatoes and gravy freshly made.
Eating a portion of hot beef demands some dexterity with knife and fork. The traditional way to do it (assuming you are right handed) is to grasp a fork vertically in the right hand, tines curved upward, just the way you’d grip a bicycle’s handlebar, and hold a piece of soft white bread gently folded in the left. Slide the fork under a heap of beef like a shovel and use the bread to push the right amount of meat into balance on the fork. About every three bites, the leading edge of the bread has become so soaked with gravy that the fork is used to sever the moistened part and add it to the next forkload of beef. Hot beef often is served as a sandwich, but experienced eaters know to ask for extra bread to aid in pushing the meal around on the plate.