Tips and Tricks for building the Perfect Sandwich

No More Sad Sandwiches: Overcoming Common Sandwich Shortcomings for Tastier Creations.

Fall is sandwich season. And what makes a sandwich a sandwich? Full-flavored Tillamook cheese, of course. Layering on bold sliced cheddar cheese, whole milk mozzarella cheese slices or rich cream cheese is a delicious start, but if you’re looking for how to make the best sandwich, there are a few more tips you should know.

As simple as it might seem to throw a handful of ingredients between a couple slices of bread, there are a lot of ways a sandwich can go wrong. Fortunately, there are also a lot of ways that it can go very, very right, elevating the humble lunchtime staple to new heights. Our very own culinary expert, Executive Chef, JJosh Archibald, offers some of his top tips on how to layer a sandwich and other easy sandwich ideas and upgrades to overcome common shortcomings and take your sandwich game to the next level.

ADD FLAVOR

• Wake up the flavor. A sprinkle of sea salt on the bread and a drizzle of olive oil, or a spread of butter can help bring the entire experience to life.

• Make it a melt. Try melting the cheese to release some aromas and bring more cohesion with the other ingredients.

• Pair wisely. Ensure the ingredients play well together and aren’t clashing or competing with each other. Relatedly, check your ingredients. This should go without saying, but that 8-year-old jar of stone ground mustard in your fridge is not doing you any flavor favors.

• Let it rest. You may know that some foods need to “rest” to get the best texture and flavor and this can be true with sandwiches as well. It’s amazing how the flavors can come together after just a few minutes. Give some extra time to let the spread penetrate the bread and the ingredients to relax before diving in.

• Don’t sleep on dips. Think about how a sauce on the side could elevate the experience. A turkey sandwich dipped in pesto is a game changer, or a hero dipped in a simple dressing or vinaigrette, or a hot steak sandwich dipped in a roasted garlic aioli.

• Sauce it up. Think about soy sauce, hot sauce, hot oil, chili crunch, mustard, relish, spreads, horseradish—things that you probably have a fridge full of—to take a sandwich that could be average to another level.

• Stay on season. Tomatoes in December don’t taste like tomatoes in August, so think of workarounds like substituting that out of season tomato with a sun-dried tomato, a drizzle of tomato sauce or a schmear of toasted tomato paste.

• Caramelize your veggies. Zucchini, peppers, mushrooms and onions bring more depth of flavor when they have been roasted, sautéed or grilled and are great served either as a cold or hot component. 

ADD TEXTURE

• Add some crunch. A great sandwich should have some texture. Think about crispy pickles or pickled vegetables, crisp bacon or crushed potato chips to take the texture to another level.

• Switch up the greens. Think about shaving your lettuce rather than using full leaf. It has a bit more texture when cut and is more refreshing. Think about switching up your greens choices as well. Mâche, arugula, butter lettuce, shaved chard or kale, and cabbage can all bring big flavor and different textures.

• Toast your bread. Try toasting the bread or grilling the sandwich. Most store-bought artisan breads are only par cooked. They benefit huge amounts from the application of some heat before eating, tasting fresher with an improved bite or crumb.

MAINTAIN INTEGRITY

• Dial back the moisture. Do you have too many wet components? An excess of ingredients like dressed greens, ripe tomatoes and relish can be too much for even the sturdiest of bread choices.

• Play with the ratios. We tend to underthink the importance of the ratios of ingredients. Sometimes more isn’t always better and can lead to a sandwich that is clumsy to eat with ingredients falling out or uneven bites of ingredients within the sandwich.

• Check your bread. While baguettes and ciabattas are great, for some applications they can be too hard or dry, so think about sliced brioche, an onion bun, toasted naan or a sweet roll. For sandwiches that have more moisture, opt for more durable artisan style breads like focaccia, a baguette or your neighbors' sourdough.

ALWAYS ADD CHEESE

Can you even call it a sandwich without cheese? Inarguably (in our opinion at least) the best sandwich ingredient, Tillamook Cheese, makes your stack of ingredients worthy of the moniker sandwich. Sharp Cheddar, Whole Milk Mozzarella, Swiss, Smoked Medium Cheddar, Spicy Colby Jack...there are so many ways to spice up your sandwich (literally and figuratively) with Tillamook Cheese. Try them all. Try them all on one sandwich. Just make sure you never commit the ultimate sandwich sin: forgetting the cheese.