Let’s celebrate the sandwich

As Filipinos, rice has become such a staple in our lives that it’s not entirely inconceivable to have rice for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even as a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack.

I personally love rice as much as the next Pinoy, but I have to admit, I do love sandwiches as well. Making a proper sandwich is more than just putting your favorite ingredient in between two pieces of bread. There’s a little bit of science to it and so I think we should celebrate the sandwich. Here are just some that you could try at home.  

Cheezborger! Cheezborger! Cheezborger!

There’s a famous Saturday Night Live skit called “Olympia Café,” inspired by the Billy Goat Tavern in Chicago, where whenever anyone hesitates or tries to order anything else, the owner will shout, “Cheezborger! Cheezborger! Cheezborger!” at them. Let’s face it. If a place makes a really good cheeseburger, should you even consider ordering anything else?

Speaking of a really good cheeseburger, Burger Beast PH (via Grab or Food Panda) gives you one delivered straight into your home. While they have other great burgers like the Frenchie and the Veggie Burger, my heart still yearns for just a simple but solid burger.

If you’re anything like me, that’s their Umami burger — a delicious burger patty with just the right amount of fat content, yellow cheddar cheese and an umami sauce. That’s it: just three ingredients in between buns that are soft but hold their integrity. What else do you need?

This bird is on fire

My favorite restaurant in Boracay has a stall in Power Plant Mall’s The Grid and while I always enjoy their Piri Piri Chicken Platter (they’re one of the few who cook chicken breast right), I have room in my heart (and my stomach) for their Piri Piri Grilled Chicken Sandwich as well. 

Sandwiched in between a soft brioche bun, which they bake in-house, are a beautifully grilled chicken thigh, crisp vegetables, garlic yogurt dressing and their piri-piri sauce.

Contrasting textures and flavors really make this sandwich a complete experience, but if you want to take the experience a little close to the edge, you can try the sandwich with their Firebird sauce.

I consider myself the master of eating spicy food, but even I had to take some milk when I put two tablespoons of the Firebird sauce on my sandwich. I really recommend just one tablespoon. Either way, though, the sauce was lovely. It contained a lot of flavor and not just heat, which makes it a perfect complement to the smoky chicken and the crisp vegetables.

Have that glass of milk ready, though. I think it enhances the experience.

Slide into my DMs

If you’re the type who just likes a few bites of one sandwich before turning your attention to another, then a slider sampler is just the answer for you. Under the Kraver’s Canteen brand is a joint called Burger Jack, which sells multiple slider sets in case you’re having a difficult time choosing.

I particularly like their Pulled Pork Slider, which of course includes some tender pork strands bathed in barbecue sauce atop the mini burger patty with some fried onion strings. I’m also partial to the Morning Chick Slider, which has a fried chicken patty paired with a fried egg.

Let’s face it: every sandwich gets better with a fried egg in it. They apparently have a bleu cheese slider as well and that will probably be my next order.

Fruity delicious

Of course, I almost always would want some form of meat in my sandwich, but all these days I spent at home watching Japanese and Korean shows has led me to a new discovery, which the Japanese call “Fruit Sando.” Now, if the prospect of putting fruit in between two pieces of white bread freaks you out, give me a chance to show you. 

Here’s a recipe for a melon sandwich I recently developed.

Ingredients:

You’ll need 1/4 of a small cantaloupe or honeydew melon, 4 slices of white bread, 1 pack all-purpose cream (chilled) and that’s it.

Instructions:

First, slice of the edges off the white bread. You can use any discarded bread edges to make a bread pudding or even croutons next time. Then, spread a thick layer of the chilled cream over two slices of bread. Slice the melon into 1-inch-thick pieces and lay them on each of the bread slices with the cream in them in an X pattern. Cover with the rest of the cream. Wrap the sandwich in plastic wrap and then slice diagonally. It’s best when you serve them chilled.

If you want to go a little bit fancier, you can mix in about 2 tablespoons of cream cheese into the chilled cream. You can also choose to drizzle some maple syrup or honey onto the melons. If you want to go completely experimental, you can add some chopped basil leaves into the sandwich and a touch of salt and cracked black pepper. I know that sounds absolutely bonkers, but it will work, I promise you.

Wichcraft

The longer I stay and work from home, the more I realize the things I miss that I typically would never talk about. This past month, it was a delicious, well-crafted sandwich and thankfully, there are so many options. Whether you call for delivery or make one at home, make sure you grab a beautiful sandwich, in between your rice meals, of course.