Look, I'm gonna level with y'all. I've been here a little over 24 hours and yet to find out what anyone's preferred sandwich is. As is known, sandwiches are the glue holding our society together, so this sad state cannot be allowed to continue.
In a short time, the juiciest of tomatoes will begin to drop off the vine here in the US, and the first, the finest, the primordial sandwich, the BLT proper, will grace us with its presence.
But until then, what are we to do? Slap undressed turkey on wheat? Like cavemen?? Tell me about your sandwiches. Inspire your fellow... fediverse...ians?
Not a sandwich but I had Thanksgiving leftover waffles for the first time last year, and that was yummy and fun! Just take a plate full of the usual leftover elements and smash it into a waffle iron!
Just make stuffing, whatever recipe or prepackaged mix you like, allow to cool slightly and mix in lightly beaten eggs. About one egg per pound of stuffing and waffle it! Maximum crispy edges.
My favorite was invented by a friend of mine as far as I know. It's a modified cheesesteak. Like a Tex Mex cheesesteak I guess.
Start by smoking a prime rib. The method is outside the scope of this discussion but I'll happily share another time. Slice it super thin, season with SPG and cumin. We don't smoke a prime rib just for the sandwiches, but we always have them when we have leftovers.
Separately, make some smoked queso. Again, this is outside the scope but don't just do Velveeta and Rotel, make a bechamel sauce add your cheeses, and use fresh tomatoes and peppers, then pop the pan on the smoker to get the smokey flavors infused.
Pop some butter, onions, bell pepper, jalapeno, garlic, and mushrooms in a pan to saute. Once they've softened add the thin slices of smoked rib roast and cook for another minute or two.
Put the mixture on a toasted hoagie roll and cover liberally with smoked queso and a sprinkle of grated Oaxacan cheese. Enjoy your delicious heart attack.
Note: this can be done the poor man's way with cheaper or easier cuts of beef (try it with a chuck eye steak which is several dollars per pound cheaper) or chicken, and can be done with Velveeta and Rotel queso that more people are familiar with. You'll get no judgement from me. I just love it a specific way and wanted to share.
Damn. I haven't had a muffaletta in ages. Now I'm hungry for one and no idea where to buy one. Sandwiches are always best when someone else makes them.
If you're going to mess around with sandwiches, the best sandwich I've had is the Monte Cristo. If cooking isn't out of the question then, take some shredded up cooked turkey, some medium thickness deli ham, black forest or honey ham.
You'll also need two slices of bread, slices of Swiss cheese or gouda, 1 egg beaten with a tablespoon of whipped cream.
It has to come together pretty fast, but the easiest way to do it is to toss the ham and turkey into the frying pan as it warms up while dipping your slices of bread in the egg mix on one side, when the turkey is getting warm and the ham is sizzling a bit. You know your pan is hot enough. Add some butter to the pan after you have removed the turkey and ham. Add the now warm turkey onto the non eggy side of the bread then a slice of cheese than the ham than the other slice of bread with egg on outside. Add it to the pan and fry both sides.
Since it cooks so fast, there isn't enough time to heat the turkey all the way through and by heating the meats first, they melt the cheese fast and you get a warm gooey inside and fried egg bread outside.
*I edited because I was so tired yesterday I didn't bother to grammar check.
Though I haven't had one in ages, "Cuban Sandwich" popped into mind first for some reason. Maybe because the next more exotic sandwich I'm aware of is a PB&J. Hopefully the ideas here will expand my world a bit.
A good Italian sub is the tastiest thing on the planet. Every place might do it a little differently but it's the basis on which I judge any sandwich shop.
Ya, but only if it's from a legit sub shop, not a chain. I can't even bother with subs unless I'm on the East Coast. Preferably south New Jersey. But surprisingly, the WaWa chain can make a pretty good sub, my only exception to the "no chain" rule.
Hungry on a Saturday morning at home? Long load times during WFH early in the day? This breakfast sandwich is an experience. It also takes practice, so don’t beat yourself up over something going wrong. It’s forgiving and can weather a few mistakes.
Take your English muffin—store bought is fine—and toast it lightly. We’re not done with it yet, so too much isn't good, but it does need to warm through. Be sure you split it the right way: with a fork and some careful peeling, NOT a knife. This relies on a craggy surface.
While that’s going, start your griddle and grate some potatoes and add them and a little oil onto the flat top. (Alternatively, use the store bought stuff here, too. This is a breakfast sandwich, so who has time for that in the morning.) season that lightly with salt and maybe garlic powder or parsley or something and let keep it going on medium for a while.
Next, slice a little red onion into thin ribbons and halve some cherry tomatoes. Lightly seasoned these, let them macerate (ma-SIR-ate—-or is that only with sugar?) a minute to release some juices and throw them on the flat top right when you should flip your hash browns. Your English muffin should be ready now too. Snag some butter or a little excess oil from one of the other ingredients and drop each half on the griddle.
Take a silver-dollar-sized ball of breakfast sausage and drop that on the griddle too. Take a wide spatula and press down hard and slide off to make the edges nice and lacy.
That should have been juuust enough time for the English muffins to get a little crisp on their crags, so pull them to a warm plate and we’ll start topping. They get some kind of creamy tangy sauce on the bottom muffin. I do Chick-fil-a sauce, but you could do a special sauce of any kind. Don’t do too much zing here and the tomatoes will carry the rest later.
Your hashbrowns should be just on the edge of too crispy, so you can pull that too, on top of the sauce.
Flip the sausage patty and,—once that’s crisped up, but not cooked through— drop the heat. Crack an egg onto the skillet and use a spatula to work that into an ungodly yolk/white mixture. Its fine. You won’t notice. Let it cook for a moment while you move the sausage on top of the hash browns. It should be the right size, crispy on the outside, and just cooked on the inside.
Flip the egg and top with a slice of cheese. I use a mild Colby Jack that melts well and gets out of the way more than American or something sharper. Let it melt as is or dash some water next to it and cover. The sandwich is forgiving.
We’re almost done and it’s all coming together. The tomatoes from earlier—no, I haven’t forgotten them—get spread on the top muffin. Spread because by now, they should be a jam of delicious, tangy, sweet, slightly charred onion and tomato. This is the secret. Do nothing else and put this on any bread with cheese and you’re still winning. But, do everything else and spread this concoction onto the top muffin and you will thank me.
Add the egg on top of the sausage, cheese up. Crown the sandwhich and…. Wait another minute. Wrapping this will help leakage, sure, but u/@hrimfaxi_work knows what they’re talking about. Wrapping in parchment paper or even foil lets everything come together. Unwrap after a short while and groan and satisfaction at every bite.
I make my own seitan, and the recipe is extensive so I won't list it here. But I do a thick layer of seitan on low-carb bread, a combination of vegan (violife provolone) and dairy (usually sharp cheddar, sometimes gouda or havarti) cheeses, and throw it open-face in an air fryer on the hottest fry setting like they do at subway. While eating it I add small dollops of a homemade sauce similar to chick-fil-a's.
It's basically all I need. The seitan I make is phenomenal, and everything else compliments it so well. You don't really notice the bread is low carb when it's part of a sandwich, but it's higher fiber content is both healthy and helps it maintain structure.
I love seitan but local stores in my area do not carry it. How much of a time commitment to make a batch? How long does it last? I started making my own bread because all the bread here is dismal, might as well make something delicious to top it with.
I’ve made it before and it’s really easy! The hardest part is kneading the dough which takes ~10 minutes. It lasts for about a week in the fridge but you can freeze it too. The simplest version is just vital wheat gluten+water but you can add all sorts of flavoring and seasonings. If you want some more complicated but amazing ones, check out Gaz Oakley (avant-garde vegan).
My style is a smash and grab for a wrap. I just fly through discounted salads that would make a great wrap and then hunt down fillers and sauces that appeal.
Favourite being a sprinkle of curry powder, mayonnaise, sun dried tomato strips, artichoke heart strips, shredded lettuce, and a salad mix all drizzled in lemon and sweet chilli sauce. For the kids I add some thinly sliced nuggets.
This morning I was grabbing some groceries and I thought am I lazy today? and answered yes, of course, so I grabbed a good looking salad mix on sale.
Lunch came, I smashed it into a wrap with some dressing and a lil hot sauce (and leftover grilled chicken), and I can say 100% I approve of this technique! A little more forethought on my part and maybe it can be even tastier.
So I can certainly make a better sandwich if I sit down to it, but this is hard to beat on speed and cost.