The platonic ideal of sandwich

March 3, 11:36 PMBoston Cooking ExaminerErik Wunderlich

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Photo courtesy of Erik Wunderlich

In culinary school, there are many classes (all of which are important), but for me the class that stands out most in my head was breakfast and lunch cookery. In this class, we learned the theory and practice of making food that most people take for granted. The day that I learned that there was an actual technique for making a delicious sandwich, I was hooked.

This day at 2:30am we watched a parade of power-point slide which detailed the ideal for a sandwich. During this time, we learned about all of the important ingredients: bread (toasted or non), spread (mayo, mustard, "dressing"), fillings (dry and wet), accoutrements (other fillings), and accompaniments (chips, salads etc). Each component has a value which leads to making an ideal sandwich (depending on the temperament of the beholder).

So for me, when making the platonic ideal sandwich, I like to start with a good base: home made sourdough bread (but in a pinch, I do make do with plain white bread, it takes me back to grade school): I make 2# country style boules which tend to last a while. Depending on how old it is I will toast it or not (the older it is, the less I toast). After that I add mayonnaise or dijonnaise (mayo with mustard in it), roasted bell peppers, salt and pepper, some cheese, lettuce (or something like it, such as arugala or fresh spinach) and meat of choice (though I tend to let plain roast beef and pastrami pictured be alone with just a hint of horseradish mayonnaise home made of course). When possible, I like to roast my chicken, turkey or pork for sandwiches and thinly slice them (though I never can slice it as thin as at the deli, I love that part).

To finish, sometimes it is better to have no chips, salad or even pickles if the sandwich is good enough, but sometimes a nice green salad is the perfect accompaniment to finish the plate off. Remember, the more you make yourself, the better it is (usually)! Enjoy!

Cheers,

Erik