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iL Divo
May 17, 2012 10:55 AM
back in the day, another city, another town, a different house and different friends a girlfriend and I used to go out to lunch about 2 times a week for our lunch hour. there were a few choices but she'd always get the same thing and my eyes would roll. not sure why as I love tomatoes as much as the next guy but she'd always order a 1/2 tomato sandwich. I didn't get it, oh, on wheat bread. I found myself thinking how boring. I'd get tuna or turkey or roast beef or pastrami or corned beef or a huge ole salad, there she was with her 1/2 a boring tomato sandwich.
boy was I ever wrong, honestly nothing better......................
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re: mamachef
Perilagu Khan
May 17, 2012 10:27 AM
"Just thinking about it makes my eyes roll back and my toes curl."
A tot of turpentine will produce similar results.
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Rachael5000
May 15, 2012 03:05 PM
My perfect Sandwich is hard, because I love all things handheld ;)
So here are my top:
A Panini on foccacia w/Burrata, Bacon, Carmelized Onion and Avocado.
A Med-Rare 1/2lb Burger w/ 'shrooms, mozarella, and a fried egg
A Carnitas Torta w/all the fixins -
Uncle Bob
May 15, 2012 02:33 PM
"D'mater sammich". ~~ Home grown on fresh white bread...Slathered with Dukes mayonnaise...S & P
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re: iL Divo
ericthered
May 17, 2012 05:47 AM
Yep, it's all about the wheck with the kosher salt and the caraway seeds and the thin sliced beef but the au jus brings it togather. A close relative and just as good is the Maryland Pit beef.
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re: ericthered
iL Divo
May 17, 2012 10:51 AM
hey eric, where is the wheck beef sandwich. I know they wear only white outfits, seen it on television but not remembering where it is. Boston, New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire Maine? oh, there's really nothing as delightful as caraway seeds, love 'em
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re: ericthered
monkeyrotica
May 22, 2012 03:51 AM
Oh, lord. Maryland Pit Beef is indeed epic. Rare on a kaiser roll with raw onion and horseradish.
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split a decent 10' presano or country loaf in half width-wise and pull out some of the inside leaving a 1" shell. spead a cup of home-made olive salad on one of the halves, and then layer with, roasted red peppers, hard boiled eggs, greens, chopped scallions, cucumber and sliced tomatoes. put top on, wrap whole sandwich in plastic wrap, then tinfoil, put a plate on top and weight with several pounds of anything and leave for a couple of hours. unwrap and cut into 6 wedges, right through the plastic to keep together. bask in the glory of freinds who will love this sandwich.
actually while hitchhiking near kitsatchie national forest in the late 70's, i happened across a dumpy shack on the bank of a river. inside the owner made me a fully dressed fried chicken skin po' boy. i ate outside at a picnic table in the shade with a couple of cold dixie beers.
deep fried chicken skin, remoulade, lettuce, bread, beer, louisiana heat, no internet or chattering phones or even televisions. quite simply of the best things i have ever eaten.
almost 40 years ago and i still think about it.
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re: hyde
Gio
May 13, 2012 05:37 AM
A 10' loaf of Paesano? Wow. That wouldn't fit in my oven when I make my Paesano pizzas. The loaf sliced in half horizontally and toasted in the oven a couple of minutes. Both slices smeared with marinara, topped with roasted vegetables: cubed eggplant, sliced zucchini, sliced onions, sliced garlic, grated pecorino Romano over top. Back into the 400F oven to bake till cheese melts.
(Actually any country loaf of bread will do and any combination of veggies...)But, my favorite/perfect sandwich is summer sweet tomato, fresh Genoa salami, aged provolone, on Italian bread dripping with EVOO and red wine vinegar with a scattering of shredded basil or fresh oregano. Second best is lobster between 2 slices of lightly toasted white bread smeared with Hellman's.
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Perilagu Khan
May 12, 2012 12:51 PM
I like a split croissant, one side buttered, one side spread with Dijon mustard, ham, dilled havarti and minced chives, wrapped in foil and baked until the cheese melts.
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biondanonima
May 12, 2012 11:24 AM
So many delicious options, so little time.
For breakfast, a fried egg sandwich on whole wheat toast, dripping with melted cheese and butter.
Any other time of day: a muffaletta with extra olives; a Chicago Italian beef, dripping juice; a patty melt on rye with blue cheese dressing instead of thousand island; a gooey, buttery grilled cheese; a short rib and caramelized onion panino; a BLT made with oven roasted tomatoes; Schawarma with extra toum; gyro with extra tzaziki; and finally, any sandwich involving my homemade bacon jam.
How is it possible that I just had dinner but I want to go make myself a sandwich? ;)
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re: biondanonima
little big al
May 12, 2012 11:49 AM
I just finished eating it. A porchetta sandwich from Roli Roti (a truck)in San Francisco. A whole pork loin is coated in salt and herbs and spices then wrapped in a whole pork belly and cooked on a rotisserie until the skin turns into cracklin's then sliced warm and served on a ciabatta roll with arugula or cress and sweet onion relish $9.50 and worth every penny.
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MGZ
May 12, 2012 07:24 AM
Ahh, the perfect sandwich - I so love this topic. I recently waxed on a new entry to consider in the sandwich universe - pan fried mortadella: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/847014
Then, there's also the glory of a soft shell crab, crispy fried and placed on toasted sourdough bread, a slice or two of still warm from the sun summer tomato, a crisp leaf of lettuce (or, as suggested by another 'hound, a few blades of arugula), some freshly concocted tartar, oh, and, I know it might be total blasphemy, but let me suggest a slice of Swiss cheese (I know, your mind thinks "yuck," but then your belly chimes in "I don't know . . .").
Oh, and then there's the glorious potential of egg and bread and cheese and whatever else you may crave as the proper way to start a Sunday (especially a Sunday morning following a gin-soaked Saturday night)? I mean, here on the NJ shores of the Atlantic, pork roll is the meat of choice for such a breakfast sandwich, but having lived in various spots along the Eastern Seaboard, I learned to love the beauty that is scrapple or a fine ground and seasoned butcher's sausage. Hell, man, give me six or seven crispy slices of thick bacon and a runny egg with some melted sharp cheddar on a croissant and I'll gladly mow your lawn or weed your garden, or climb on the roof and clean your gutters . . . . (you get the idea) later in the day.
Oh, yeah, the Perfect Sandwich . . . . .
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jw615
May 12, 2012 12:43 AM
I'm probably unusual in that I really prefer to only eat hot foods, so I don't do cold sandwiches unless I have to.
My two favorites:
Grilled ham and cheese on sourdough - Ham, swiss and cheddar, some garlic and caramelized onions.Probably going to get blasted for this, but my time working at summer camp has instilled a deep love for the chicken patty sandwich in me, dressed up with camp salad bar fixings. So - cheap chicken patty, covered with Franks hot sauce, on a bun with Swiss cheese, ranch dressing, and some french fried onions from the can.
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The BLT is not only the best sandwich of all, it is the Food of the Gods. Of course I make it myself, it's much tastier than in any eatery.
The great pork banh mi with extra jalapenos at Ba Le on San Pablo Avenue.
Grilled cheese...
Bacon breakfast hoagie...
Bacon cheeseburger...
NY pastrami on rye...
Cream cheese and black olives...
Egg salad...
Etc, etc etc...
And is not the sublime Eggs Benedict merely an open-face sandwich?
So many great sandwiches out there!
PS As an addendum to the nearby Guilty Pleasures thread, I'll add a marvelous Chicken Carbonara sandwich I once had at Quizmo's in Oakland -- about 3,000 calories, and decadent in all the very best and worst ways. I just love carbonara, anytime!
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Sandwiches: my favorite "food". Something so amazingly satisfying about quality ingredients housed between two slices of warm quality bread (I almost always toast my sandwiches).
Summer ripe tomatoes with just some salt n pepper, Best Foods mayo, and maybe a few chopped basil leaves on white bread.
Chopped hard-boiled eggs (at lease two) with Dijon mustard and capers on dark rye.
Avocado and monterey jack cheese, s&p, mayo and dijon on whole wheat.
TUNAMELTS!!! (I have an unalterable tuna salad recipe) on potato bread fried in butter with a mild cheese like jack, havarti, etc..
My favorite c/burger: medium rare with swiss, avocado, caramelized onions, mushrooms sauteed in butter/evoo/thyme/lemon. I almost LOVE what is known as a "pattymelt".
Grilled cheese!!!!!! But never using the processed cheese squares. Needs to be quality cheese, on quality bread, both slices buttered and sprinkled with smoked paprika before "grilling" (or frying). I like to add a thick tomato slice and sometimes caramelized onions.
Salami, arugula, provolone, sliced olives and jalapenos, mayo on a nice sub roll.
Falafels in pita pockets with tahini sauce. Tzatziki is also wonderful.
Flour quesadillas with nothing other than grated cheddar, diced tomatoes, and minimal avocado. Maybe a few drops of tabasco.
Rare roast beef on a french roll au jus with spicy mustard and horseradish.
Black forest ham, muenster, with lettuce, tomato, pickle, sprouts, the works.
Fresh wild sockeye salmon, cream cheese, red onion, tomato, capers, dash of s&p&lemon on toasted plain bagel.
Bratwurst (on a sub roll) with sauerkraut, raw white onion, and beer mustard
Classic 'Thanksgiving' sando - turkey, avocado, cranberry sauce, stuffing, etc.
Grilled eggplant and portabella mushroom
BLT
Chicken tarragon salad
Egg salad
AB (almond butter /peanut is good also) and J
AB, honey, banana
I could add a ton more but I'll stop here
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re: cstout
Sorry I missed this but here it is:
I buy Tonnino Tuna Ventresca (the best) in olive oil. Add 1 part sour cream to 2 parts mayo; never overdo this mix, just enough to bind the tuna together. Then add a LITTLE salt and a liberal amount of ground black pepper. THEN: chopped part of a celery stalk that includes the celery leaf, minced red onion, chopped italian parsley, chopped pimento stuffed (spanish) green olives, 1 or 2 chopped artichoke heart segments, small amount of chopped fresh dill (dried is fine too), a dash of sweet Hungarian paprika, a sprinkle of celery seed (not celery salt), and very minimal amount of lemon, really no more than 4 or 5 drops. Then you must take two slices of store-bought Milton's Potato Bread (found at Trader Joe's); on one slice you spread a thin layer of mayo (on the inside of what will be the bottommost slice of bread (the piece that connects with your tongue when you bite into the sandwich)) and on the other slice of bread, spread the inside with good Dijon mustard. Take the slice with the mayo on it and put a nice thick chunk of Iceberg lettuce on it follow by a healthy portion of the tuna mix. Then grate Monterey Jack cheese over this. Finish sculpting the sandwich by adding the slice of bread with the mustard on. Butter the outsides of both slices of bread (just like you were preparing for a grilled cheese) and sprinkle the buttered outsides with more sweet Hungarian paprika. Then fry in a skillet, making sure to cover when both sides are frying. <My unalterable tunamelt recipe.
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re: circustance
Rachael5000
Jun 5, 2012 04:43 PM
How long did it take you to perfect this tunamelt recipe circustance?
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re: Rachael5000
The tunamelt, I've decided, is my favorite sando. Probably one of the first sandwiches I was made by my folks as a youngin' so I've had 'em all my life, all the while experimenting with different ingredients and their ratios. So you can say it's taken me most of my life to achieve this perfection. I might add: for maximum flavor, leave the tuna mixture in the fridge for some hours (or overnight) so the flavors of all the individual ingredients blend well. derrr. lol
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re: circustance
as a tip i heard recently (probably chowhound) i have begun to coat the exterior of sandwiches that will be grilled with a thin layer of mayonaise rather than butter ( it is, after all, just oil and egg) it gives a beautiful golden crust and crunch and i have not burned one yet. try sometime.
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re: hyde
Just did this last night for my dinner with a grilled cheese and was left disappointed. The bread ended up being soggy (did I spread too much?) and I felt the mayo sorta detracted from the flavor of the super sharp cheddar I was using (Barbers 1833). Did I do something I should have done differently? Maybe grill the bread for too short of a time (although I can't imagine that's the problem, as all my buttered grilled cheeses come out perfectly and I'm no novice at making one).
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re: circustance
Rachael5000
Jun 6, 2012 11:23 AM
First there need to be a light schmear of mayo, not to heavy. Also the pan needs to be pretty warm to create that initial brownness on the bread. The key to synchronizing the cheese melting and the bread browning is to make sure you use shredded cheese not sliced, a lid and in some cases a tid bit of water to create some steam. This is my strategy for a great grilled cheese as well.
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Will Owen
May 11, 2012 05:01 PM
I cannot possibly pick ONE as the always-and-forever favorite/best possible sandwich. As Pogo's buddy Churchy Turtle used to say, "whatever's there is perty fav'rite to me!" It has been garlic bologna with lettuce, mustard and Hellman's on homemade white, or braunschweiger, sliced egg and swiss done the same way. I make meatloaf primarily for sandwiches, have been known to cook corned beef or a pork roast for the same end. A freshly fried pork chop can make a dandy sandwich. The concoction of olive oil, mortadella, salami, another salumi I can never remember the name of and provolone on crusty Italian roll at the Roma deli down the street, or the baguette with butter, cheese and saucisse de Toulouse at the Nice airport café. A kickass patty melt on grilled sourdough, sorry all you purists. There's no end; so many combinations, so little time …
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jmcarthur8
May 11, 2012 03:04 PM
A little hippie dive here in town makes my favorite restaurant sandwich - the Jellyfish. It has grilled chicken, bacon, sweet onion, Monterey jack, tomatoes , cream cheese on home made foccacia.
Can't bring myself to order anything else, even though everything is wonderful there! -
Perilagu Khan
May 11, 2012 02:34 PM
A local resto makes a sandwich they call the Smokin' Mad Jack. It consists of thinly sliced smoked ham, crisp bacon, pepper Jack cheese, thinly sliced red onion, sliced pickled jalapenos and BBQ sauce on a toasted onion bun. I make this sandwich at home with my own personal BBQ sauce.
Don't know if it's my ideal sandwich, but it's sho' 'nuff right up there.
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I have to pick one? Oh, I can't!
An oyster po' boy, dressed of course
Chicago style Italian Beef, with both gardinara and mozzarella.
Day after thanksgiving, oh so good.
But I think the best of all may be what my local deli calls a "Smokey Joe". Challah, cream cheese, fresh ripe wonderful tomato, whitefish salad, and lox. Oh it is delicious. The cold sandwich along with a hot potato knish is enough to make me want to swoon.
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ocshooter
Mar 20, 2012 12:59 PM
One word, lamb. I don't make it enough at home, and very rarely in quantities that would give me left over sandwich meat. There is a place near Pasadena that makes a fantastic lamb sandwich, with garlic aoili, caramelized onions and avocado. I love the food there, but almost never get anything else.
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re: ocshooter
Baccala Mantecato (spreadable salt cod mixed with olive oil), thinly sliced spanish chorizo, and olive salad on toasted country bread.
Red wine Braised Shortrib, Taleggio cheese,roasted red peppers, on toasted bread slathered with garlic butter.
Cinghiale Piccante (spicy salami), goatcheese on a toasted small roll with a glass of italian red.
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melpy
Mar 19, 2012 10:06 AM
Broccoli rabe and hot Italian sausage sprinkled with Parm cheese on crusty bread.
Half an Attman's corned beef and half a pastrami.
Leftover med rare steak at room temp sliced on a baguette with a little mayo and salad of sliced romaine and diced tomato with oil/vinegar and Italian seasoning.
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Found in the Dolomites of Italy.
A round 1 kilo loaf of dense bread. Cut in half with the insides scooped out. Saturate the bread with olive oil and salt. On the bottom half a layer of giant bay leaves, then thin sliced peppery salami, thin sliced fairly hard yellowy cheese, another layer of bay leaves, and a sprinkle of balsamic vinegar. Wrap in plastic and let sit for a day on the counter.
Sold on the ski slopes cut into wedges with a large plastic glass of red wine. It positively dripped olive oil.
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The day after Thanksgiving sandwich.
Toasted whole wheat bread spread with Best Foods mayo; crisp iceberg lettuce leaf; cranberry sauce (the jellied ocean spray slice works great); a mound of my leftover stuffing; sliced dark meat turkey ~~ crisp bacon and/or avocado can be included; other slice of toast spread (very lightly with Best Foods). cut in half.
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re: melpy
Unfortunately, our Thanksgiving tradition has not inluded spinach, but that sounds
great. Otherwise, my sandwich is basically the same except that I splurge for Duke's
mayo for the occasion, and I doctor my whole berry cranberry sauce with a little grated
orange rind and chopped walnutsOther favorite sandwiches include just about anything with corned beef and/or
pastrami and a crab melt (variation on tuna).
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monkeyrotica
Mar 19, 2012 03:44 AM
Torta ahogada: fresh birote bread, fried pork. raw onions, avocado, swimming in chile sauce.
A fried oyster po boy from Johnny's Po Boys.
A muffaletta from Central Grocer.
A rare pit beef sandwich on a kaiser roll with raw onion, horseradish sauce, and cracked black pepper.
Roast pork, broccoli rabe, sharp provo from DiNic's.
My pulled/chopped pork butt, smoked for 18 hours over apple wood, slathered in pepper vinegar slaw.
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MGZ
Mar 19, 2012 02:34 AM
My perfect sandwich is a lifequest - an ongoing, ever growing, often all consuming crusade for greatness. My perfect sandwich is my raison d'etre. At night, I don't count sheep, I imagine how I can fill bread with the most delicious combinations known to humanity.
Yesterday, I spent 8 hours barbecuing a corned beef brisket before slicing it, placing it on an hours old baguette smeared with grainy dijon, melting emmenthaler over the meat, and gilding the lily with some creamy-sour slaw. My new take on the reuben was fantastic, and I ate it in rapt silence. As I finished, I thought, "that was truly awesome." Moments later I began to wonder, "How could I make it better? Thousand Islands? Hot peppers?"
Last summer, I spent over 14 hours tending to the barbecue, overseeing the leg of lamb, pork shoulder, and beef brisket that would be the main attraction before the Independence Day fireworks. The sliced lamb, brushed with spicy-sweet sauce and decorated with sliced onions was terrific on thick slices of sourdough. The 12 ounce rare cheeseburger covered with tender shreds of smoky brisket, raw onion, and ketchup on a Jersey hard roll was amazing. Then there was the classic pulled pork. Yet, all the while, through every joyous bite, I kept thinking, "I can get better."
Then, there was that dry aged ribeye that set the stage for the perfect cheesesteak . . . .
The perfect sandwich, like the golden fleece, like the lost ark, may exist. I will continue to strive to encounter it, to satisfy the jones, to get the fix. I will drag myself across the county for just the right cut of meat, the perfect cheese, the proper roll. I will spend three days creating condiments. I will stumble out of bed while the sun is still hours from emerging from the Atlantic.
Ahhh, yes, thank god for the perfect sandwich. Towards nirvana I go on.
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re: MGZ
I shall join you in the crusade for a perfect sandwich. Remember the song, "Searching for a Heart of Gold?" That is the haunting melody that plays in my mind as I click on one more web site that may contain just one more slice of heaven. Folks can have all the fancy dishes in the world, just let me taste one more bite of that perfect combination!
In the mean time, I content myself with a perfect hamburger. Your words rolled around in my mouth & the flavors were bursting forth as I read the next line of perfection. Word candy to tempt the soul!
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RealMenJulienne
Mar 19, 2012 01:40 AM
Chicago Italian beef. Thin shaved round roast dripping with beef juice piled into a chewy Italian roll, when an extra ladle of the oregano-scented juice ladeled into it so it's incredibly soggy on the inside but still crusty on the outside. Just a bit of hot giardinera on top and there it is, your perfect sandwich. It tastes even better if you eat it standing up or leaning over a lunch counter.
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re: RealMenJulienne
jmcarthur8
May 11, 2012 01:35 PM
The same Chicago Italian beef, but no giardinera. Add mozzarella. Yes to the dip.
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re: jmcarthur8
RealMenJulienne
May 12, 2012 01:19 AM
Cheese on a Beef? Yikes. Where have you had something like that?
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re: RealMenJulienne
jmcarthur8
May 14, 2012 04:54 PM
Believe it or not, Michigan City, Indiana, my hometown, where Italian Beef is not quite as sacred as it is downtown Chicago.
Now, I could put cheese on a concrete post at the pier and call it delicious, so you'll have to forgive me, that's just how I like it!.Down here in Georgia, I have to make my own Italian Beef. And it is excellent. And I always have it with mozzarella. Hubby has it with hot giardinera, but that's just too hot for me.
I am a purist on the Chicago dogs, though! Does that earn me some points back?!
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re: jmcarthur8
RealMenJulienne
May 15, 2012 08:26 AM
Another Indiana boy here. I would give the cheese-beef at least one try if given the chance. If you are ever in Indianapolis, Big City Grill and Lemonade at 38th and Meridian has an OK Italian Beef, the best I have found in the city anyway.
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re: shell22
RealMenJulienne
May 15, 2012 08:24 AM
I like Johnnie's, they are a 10 out of 10 when they are on their game. Unfortunately they sometimes produce a mediocre Beef, which is a risk I can't take when I'm in Chicago so seldom these days. I kind of hate to say this but Portillo's is my go-to Beef place. They turn out a solid 9 out of 10 every time.
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re: RealMenJulienne
I have had always had a "10" experience myself - I frequent the Arlington Heights location. Portillo's on the other hand, while the gravy is very tasty, they can get real stingy with the beef portions and the cost is substantially higher. The ultra-efficient lines at Johnnies also makes for a stress free lunch hour.
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re: Veggo
All good selections mentioned here thus far....the BLT , Po boy and Italian Pork with Broccoli Rabe....I would add the Classic Cubano and Italian Cold Cut to the list aw well, but for Veggo's...
Warm pastrami with chopped liver on seeded rye...
I would further enhance it with Beef Tongue.
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iluvcookies
Mar 18, 2012 03:29 PM
Pastrami on rye from Katz's. Sandwich nirvana.
Smoked meat from Schwartz's in Montreal and Italian Pork from DiNic's in Philly are closely tied for 2nd place. -
tim irvine
Mar 18, 2012 03:03 PM
Two slices of sour rye with caraway seeds, a little sauerkraut, some Pommery mustard, and about three inches of really juicy pastrami.
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Rocky Road
Mar 18, 2012 12:15 PM
For making at home, my go-to sandwich(s) are: BLT, I usually add red onions and/or avocado when I have it, and grilled cheese, which I add onions, tomato and any leftover meat I might have.
When dining out, Reuben or banh mi.
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An oyster po' boy. Probably because I don't get to have them that often.
I can't even begin to guess how many hamburgers I've eaten in my 51 years and I never get tired of them. If I had to pick one thing that I had to eat every meal for eternity, it would definitely be a hamburger.
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