A sandwich is a quick and tasty way to make a meal. It can make a great lunch or breakfast, and can either be served either hot or cold. Below you'll find a general primer on how sandwiches work, as well as recipes and ideas for assembling your own.
Total time: 5-20 minutes
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Part 1 of 2: Sandwich Basics
Make a Sandwich Step 1 preview
1
Choose a bread. There are lots of different styles of bread that contain "whole grain" instead of "multi grain." These are the best ones to choose if you're trying to eat healthy, since multi grain has no nutritional benefits beyond normal bread. You can consider some of the following types of breads:
Sliced breads are the norm in most Western grocery stores and these are what is used to make most "standard" sandwiches, like peanut butter and jelly. You can get this bread made from many different ingredients (rye, potato, white, wheat, etc), and the different flavors will go better with some sandwiches than others.
Loaf breads are basically sliced breads that haven't been cut yet, but get used in much the same way. This bread is usually fresher and cut thicker than normal sliced bread.
Buns are small round or oval loaves that get cut in half to make the sandwich. This is common with hamburgers or Brioche sandwiches, but you can also use things like pretzel buns.
Raised flat breads include breads like focaccia bread or panini. These have a similar texture to pizza dough or true flat breads but are thicker, which means they can be sliced to create a true sandwich.
Flat breads include things like pita bread, naan, and tortillas. These do not make a true sandwich but instead make wraps or are cut in half and stuffed between the natural bread layers.
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Make a Sandwich Step 2 preview
2
Choose your condiments. Condiments are meant to make the bread more moist. They aren't required, but they can really add to the flavor and texture of the food. When placed on the bread, the condiment should be spread as close to the edge of the bread as possible, making sure the bread is fully covered. Some condiments include:
Butter
Mayo
Mustard
Ketchup
Pesto
Barbecue Sauce
Hollandaise
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3
Choose your fillings. Different sandwiches will include different things between the bread layers. This is where you can really get creative! Usually what's inside the sandwich determines which meal it's "appropriate" for, but don't let this stop you: if you want a bacon-and-egg sandwich for dinner, go for it! Fillings come in a few categories:
Meats like deli meat, sausage patties, loose meat (usually ground and in a sauce), or chicken breast.
Vegetables like salad leaves, stir-fry vegetables, sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, etc.
Cheese, which is generally always sliced for ease of use, though some cheese may be crumbled (like blue cheese). Good sandwich cheeses include swiss, muenster, brie, gouda, pepperjack, or cheddar.
Other items like egg salad, fried eggs, chili, peanut butter, jelly, marmite, and nutella.
Make a Sandwich Step 4 preview
4
Eat the sandwich cold. You can assemble the sandwich by layering the ingredients between the two pieces of bread and simply eating it cold, if you want to. This is common with lunch sandwiches.
5
Cook the sandwich. Cooking of sandwiches or hot sandwiches are more common with breakfast and dinner. You should never cook a sandwich in a microwave, as this will steam the bread and make it soggy. However, there are several good ways that you can cook a sandwich or heat it up:
You can use a frying pan or griddle. This is most common with sandwiches like grilled cheese. When doing it this way, you should cover the bread that will be touching the pan with butter or mayonnaise and then cook the sandwich over low heat until the cheese melts, switching to high heat towards the end to brown the bread if it is not already. Don't forget to flip it!
You can use a broiler, which most modern stoves have. This is the drawer under the stove and is usually turned on with a special knob. It gets very hot! Put the sandwich on a pan and place in under the pre-heated broiler for about 5 minutes a side. Check is frequently to make sure it doesn't burn. This is closest to how sandwich shops (like Subway) cook their sandwiches.
You can use a panini grill, which is basically just a George Foreman grill (for the American crowd). This grill gets sprayed with cooking spray and then the sandwich gets pressed between the layers of the grill for about 3 minutes.
You can use a BBQ to cook a sandwich. Aside from the obvious prep of a burger, you can also put other kinds of sandwiches on a grill whole. However, the flames will have to be low or you will likely burn your sandwich.
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Part 2 of 2: Sandwich Ideas
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1
Make breakfast sandwiches. Breakfast sandwiches are usually served hot, but don't feel like you can't eat them cold! Some breakfast sandwiches you can make include:
Fried egg and ham sandwich with butter
Sausage and egg sandwich with hollandaise
Bacon and cheese sandwich with mayo
Tomato and cheese sandwich with pesto
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2
Make lunch and dinner sandwiches. Lunch sandwiches are usually cold, while dinner sandwiches are usually hot, but you don't need to follow those rules! These include sandwiches like:
BLT, which is bacon, lettuce, and tomato with mayo
Reuben, which is sauerkraut, mustard or Russian dressing, corned beef, and swiss cheese
Sloppy Joe, which is ground beef mixed with tomato paste and seasoning
Italian sandwich, which is salami and similar meats, with mayo, lettuce and tomato
Meatball sub which is meatballs and red sauce, covered in Parmesan cheese.
Tunafish sandwich, which is canned tuna mixed with mayonnaise, mustard, onions and pickles
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3
Make unusual sandwiches. These include sandwiches like:
Sundried tomato, garlic, spinach, and pepperjack cheese on rye bread
Apple, chicken, and brie burrito
French toast, egg, and bacon sandwich, using the french toast as the bread.
Brie, raspberry, and Nutella on a brioche bun
Make a Sandwich Step 9 preview
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4
Make regional sandwiches. For the US, these include sandwiches like:
Po Boy, common in the South, which is made with fried shrimp or oysters, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and sauce
Avocado, cream cheese, and salmon are common sandwich ingredients in the Pacific Northwest and West Coast of the US
Pork Tenderloin sandwiches are common in the Midwest
Bagel and Lox sandwiches are common in the East
