Good Sandwich Recipe?

I'm in the mood for a really good sandwich. I know you guys have to have some great ideas. I don't want a pressed panini style one, but it doesn't have to be cold. And I'll have to get the ingredients from the regular grocery store so nothing that can only be bought at specialty places. Thanks!

Best sandwich ever is the muffuletta.

HI,

Here are some existing threads:

The Charm of the BLT

Taylor Street Cheesesteak

LTH recipe index

The index can be a way to locate a thread with more sandwich recipes not otherwise identifiable. One thing we do very well around here is go off in tangents within a thread! The title and original post may have one intent, though how the conversation drifts and evolves is a whole other story. It's what keeps this website interesting.

Regards,

My current sandwich obssession is Russian tsarskaya salami on Monastery rye with Greek Kefalotyri cheese, but good luck finding that at Jewel.


My favorite "normal" cold sandwich is smoked turkey, avocado and white cheddar on french bread. I usually add onions and dijon mustard. My favorite hot sandwich has to be a grilled Reuben (corned beef, swiss and sauerkraut) on rye with horseradish and a chilled dill pickle on the side.

As long as you're in the West Loop anyway, stop in at Jerry's on Madison and either treat yourself to one of their great sandwiches, or take some notes from the ingredient list on the wall-o-sandwiches that they have there.

I've got a few go-to sandwiches, here's one of my faves:

Turkey (probably smoked deli turkey, but thanksgiving leftovers are even better and none too far away), Green Goddess dressing, and swiss, on wheat toast, open face, melt the cheese under the broiler

It's really all about the condiments. I couldn't stand having a fridge without these essentials:
* at least four non-yellow mustards
* salad dressings such as thousand island, green goddess, orange-colored Kraft French
* hot giardinera -- I'm especially fond of the minced variety for putting on non-french-roll sandwiches
* Rick Bayless recipe for "Essential Smoky Chipotle Paste" -- fry dried chipotles with garlic, soak, process with brown sugar, then fry again -- you get an oily black napalm that a cup of which could power all the fast food chipotle mayo in the country for a month. I'm out of this stuff, and forbidden from making more until the range hood is installed in the new kitchen.

Remember: nothing exceeds like excess. You want to match strength for strength. One of my favorite sammys is Panera's roast beef: it's got horseradish sauce, red onion and smoked cheddar. Putting havarti on this would be like PDQ Bach's Concerto for Bagpipe and Lute: "You can't hear the lute. It's a nice lute. Think about the lute while you listen to the bagpipe." There's a place for butter and cucumber sandwiches, but chipotle and cucumber just won't work for me.
*

My favorite sammy is as follows (the only really vegan meal I ever eat):

Mesclun mix
Ripe Avocado slices
cilantro
EVOO, vinegar and salt
Sliced chewy french bread or ciabatta

Keep napkins handy!

I think what makes a good sandwich for me is simply excellent ingredients. The best bread you can find with the best meat you can find with the best cheese you can find with the tastiest condiments you can find.

That of course covers A LOT.

However, one of my favorite sandwiches harkens back to my first and only trip to Paris -- a fresh crusty baguette, slathered with good butter, layered with fabulous fragrant ham and maybe topped with good warmish creamy brie. You can substitute good mustard for the butter -- but in France, the butter ruled. Maybe add a juicy roma tomato slice or two.

Pristine...that's what I like in a sandwich. I sense i'm in the minority here...

Shannon

earthlydesire wrote:Pristine...that's what I like in a sandwich. I sense i'm in the minority here...

Nope. Not necessarily. For me it depends on the mood and the sandwich.

Rare Roasted lamb
Goat Cheese
Red Pepper Pesto
Argula
Toasted Ciabatta

or

Grilled Chicken Breast Marinated in Pesto
Bacon
Slow Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing
Toasted Ciabatta
(from Milk and Honey on Division)

A very eggy bread, cut thick. Hot but not too crunchy

Top with home made guacamole, and top that with roasted veggies (cook in oven, in slices - eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, red onion, others to taste) cover with favorite chedder cheese, broil briefly so cheese melts. Eat open faced.

Slice a loaf of French bread lengthwise, and lightly toast it.

Spread refried beans on the toasted French bread (only one side..this is an open faced sandwich), and top with sliced, precooked Kielbasa. Top with a grated sharp Cheddar, and put it under broiler until the cheese melts.

Eat!

Pristine? How about Spartan? Elemental, even. Pure. Essential. Primal.

I was just listening to some Louis Primal last night....

Anyway....

Finding the key ingredients for this sandwich may take a little searching in Chicago -- not necessarily to a specialty shop, but to more than one (but no more than two, I promise) smaller, neighborhood delicatessens and/or bakeries (which, if we're talking serious sandwiches, should be the default purveyors regardless.)

The Mister Dithers Sandwich

1) Ca. 1/4 # Boar's Head Roast Beef, (Top Round, Cap Off variety, not the Londonport seasoned roast beef), in uniform, extremely thin slices. If the deli guy/gal breathes the word "shaved" at any point during the preparation of the roast beef order, give your spot in line to the sweet, little old lady waiting behind you and find a deli guy/gal who knows how to slice cold cuts. Boar's Head is available at several non-supermarket purveyors in Chicago, but that's only half the battle. Worst case scenario, buy the roast beef as a single, 1/4-3/8 # slab, bring it to Meyer Delicatessen, and politely ask them to slice it for you. A bit of tact will be required to accomplish this task, but done casually and within the context of purchasing a few grocery items (a refreshing Orangina, perhaps, or a bottle or three of a crisp German Bier, to be consumed alongside the finished sandwich), the request will be handled accordingly. Explaining that the meat came from, say, a friend's dinner party, should also serve to avoid injury to Teutonic pride.

2) A sufficient piece of crusty Italian bread. Granted, the bakery section of a Jewel/Dominick's might feature a house brand baguette or even a decent looking hard roll, probably stuffed into a bag. Not the worst you can do, but I specifically said a piece of crusty Italian bread. The best bread of this ilk is usually made by a crusty Italian. Masi, D'Amato's, Sicilia, etc. should fit the bill nicely. And hey, there's nothing wrong with a pound of raspberry-filled, chocolate-dipped butter cookies while you're at it. Nope, nothing wrong at all.

3) Hellmann's mayonnaise, to taste. (A schmear on both sides of the bread, plus maybe a touch more in the interior of the sandwich filling will let the Hellman's sing in harmony with the Boar's Head but will not overwhelm it. Use your best judgment here.)

4) Black pepper and salt, to taste. (A very light touch with the salt, applied directly to the meat, and a decent amount of pepper, freshly ground onto the spread mayonnaise, should suffice.)


Slice crusty Italian bread. Do not toast or heat. Spread Hellman's on both sides of the bread's interior. Twist the black pepper onto the mayonnaise so that the surface is, perhaps, 10% black. Pile the roast beef evenly and loosely on one side of the bread. Salt to taste. Close sandwich. Put on plate. Open aforementioned Orangina or dunkles to have at the ready. Accompaniments not necessary, but something simple and crunchy (a Snyder's sourdough pretzel or some Terra Chips, perhaps) if you must have it. Take a bite. Savor. Bread and meat in pure form with Hellman's getting the assist. Remind yourself of the meaning of the word "recipe." Smile. Write Hungryrabbi a thank you note.

-- Reb

I haven't made one for a while, but I love three-cheese grilled cheese sandwiches on a strong black bread (the one that Paradise Pup uses, for example, would be appropriate).

I usually use equal parts of
- A blue of some kind, often a Maytag from Iowa
- Ideally a mizithra... but in a pinch a romano
- Something blander that melts very well, next time I'm going to try a Chihuahua

Brown a little bit of onion in butter, not too much or you'll overwhelm the sandwich. (Actually, brown a lot of onion, but save the rest for something else!) Reserve the onion, use the remaining carmelized butter to brown the bread. Turn the bread over, add the cheese, and cook on medium-low until the cheese melts.

threadkiller wrote:I haven't made one for a while, but I love three-cheese grilled cheese sandwiches on a strong black bread (the one that Paradise Pup uses, for example, would be appropriate).

I usually use equal parts of
- A blue of some kind, often a Maytag from Iowa
- Ideally a mizithra... but in a pinch a romano
- Something blander that melts very well, next time I'm going to try a Chihuahua

Brown a little bit of onion in butter, not too much or you'll overwhelm the sandwich. (Actually, brown a lot of onion, but save the rest for something else!) Reserve the onion, use the remaining carmelized butter to brown the bread. Turn the bread over, add the cheese, and cook on medium-low until the cheese melts.

You forgot the giardinara!

Thanks for all the ideas and tips guys and girls! Before there were so many replies, I saw a reuben mentioned, and it sounded really good. I've never thought of trying it at home(my sandwiches usually consist of turkey, tomato, and lettuce on Wonder- borrrrring). I meant to get the Breadsmith brand rye but accidentally ended up with the french loaf. I also used smoked turkey instead of corned beef. It was okay but I put wayyy too much sauerkraut. Are they usually toasted? Anyway my next one will be better and more creative, thanks to u guys. I'm about to go to the store to get more stuff, and I'll let u know what I end up making

JoelF wrote:
It's really all about the condiments.

I've been slowly coming around to a different position: it's mostly about the bread. In too many sandwiches I've made in the past, the bread is just something to enclose as much stuff as I can pile on.

Of course, as in all things, it's a matter of balance, but lately I have been piling on fewer and fewer meats and condiments. Earthlydesire and I share a similar preference. My favorite is made with a small, recently-baked, but cool, baguette slathered with the richest sweet butter, a few paper-thin slices of serrano ham, and a thin slice of cheese like emmenthaler. Each bite is mostly bread with the other flavors and textures in the background. A little wine doesn't hurt. I could eat these every day.

Bill/SFNM

Bill/SFNM wrote:...but lately I have been piling on fewer and fewer meats and condiments. Earthlydesire and I share a similar preference. My favorite is made with a small, recently-baked, but cool, baguette slathered with the richest sweet butter, a few paper-thin slices of serrano ham, and a thin slice of cheese like emmenthaler. Each bite is mostly bread with the other flavors and textures in the background. A little wine doesn't hurt. I could eat these every day.

Yes, my favorite sandwiches are similar, e.g.:
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=50684#50684



Antonius

When we were having work done on our house, I used to privately drool over the carpenters' sandwiches, which looked very much like those above. The guys were straight from Poland (didn't speak English at all) so I wasn't able to determine their sources.....