This week’s Dinner in Minutes recipe was born of frustration.
How to make a classic, double-decker club sandwich
Total time:30 mins
Servings:2
A well-constructed one would be pierced with four toothpicks and then cut into four even triangles. A generous handful of potato chips — or french fries — would be added to the plate.
Granted, in other parts of the world, club sandwiches can mean something altogether different, but in the United States, this was once considered the norm — the classic.
Gradually, over time, the term “club” has been applied to just about any double-decker sandwich with bacon. And these, while tasty, are far removed from this traditional configuration.
I’ve seen them piled so high with thick chunks of poultry and super-thick bacon that I can’t get my mouth around them. I end up taking them apart to eat them. Or they might feature bean sprouts, avocado, a flavored aioli or delicate spring lettuces. They may be served on sourdough or ciabatta.
Is there anything wrong with this creativity? Absolutely not.
But you know how it is when you have your mouth set for a certain dish? You want that experience.
So, after a few less-than-satisfying orders, I decided to build what I consider a classic, diner-style club sandwich myself.
I determined that the keys to a well-made club sandwich are a sturdy white bread (for nostalgia, I picked up Pepperidge Farm sandwich bread) and a good-quality mayonnaise along with roasted turkey, crisp thin center-cut bacon, crunchy lettuce and ripe tomato.
Then it is a matter of proportion and construction.
This may seem simple, but for a sandwich that slices beautifully into the traditional four triangular pieces and does not fall apart when you pick it up, you’ll want to make sure you are fairly generous with the mayonnaise and that your fillings are thinly sliced, evenly distributed and trimmed to fit.
I took my time, cutting the iceberg (or romaine — I tried both and liked it with either) lettuce leaves into pieces, so they fit neatly on the bread slice. For me, 1½ slices of bacon is just right. Three half-slices fit evenly across the bread so you get a bit of bacon in each bite. For the turkey, I found 2 ounces was perfect — not too much, not too little.
I repeated all the ingredients on both of the double-decker layers: mayonnaise, lettuce leaf, tomato slice, bacon, turkey, and a light seasoning of salt and pepper.
When I sliced it and turned the triangles pointed side up, it looked perfect. Then I picked up a quarter and bit into it. The tall sandwich still fit in my mouth with ease, a bit of each ingredient in every bite and very little spillage. Success.
I did try to find out if my idea of a classic club is actually the one. I found lots of validation for my memory and experience and lots of origin theories, because, as with most such stories, the source of this sandwich is murky.
“The Oxford Companion to Food” says the club — also called a clubhouse sandwich — was sometimes served as a three-decker sandwich, adding: “Some believe that it was originally only a two-decker, perhaps, matching the two-decker ‘club cars’ running on U.S. railroads in 1895.”
“The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink” claims the club sandwich originated in the Saratoga Club House’s kitchen in 1894. That clubhouse, now called the Canfield Casino, cites that claim to fame on its website.
No matter the true creator, both of those encyclopedias refer to a sandwich, much like the one I built here, that has been around for more than 100 years. It has blogs devoted to it and is cited as one of the most-beloved room-service orders.
So let’s celebrate its well-earned longevity with a solidly constructed classic club sandwich for dinner tonight.
Diner-Style Club Sandwich
Want to gussy up your club? Bake your own bread, roast your own turkey — or chicken — add sliced Swiss or American cheese or sliced avocado, or make your mayonnaise or a favorite aioli.
Note: You’ll need 8 toothpicks to secure the sandwiches.
Storage Notes: Refrigerate leftover assembled sandwich for up to 1 day.
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Ingredients
- 6 strips thin, center-cut bacon
- 6 slices white bread, lightly toasted
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise, plus more as needed
- 2 large romaine or iceberg lettuce leaves, plus more as needed
- 1 beefsteak tomato (5 ounces), thinly sliced
- 4 ounces thinly sliced roasted turkey
- Fine salt
- Ground black pepper
- Potato chips, for serving (optional)
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and turn the oven on, setting it at 425 degrees. Place a towel-lined platter near your workspace.
Arrange the bacon strips in a single layer on a large, rimmed baking sheet and transfer to the oven (no need to wait for it to be preheated). Roast the bacon for 18 to 20 minutes, or until it is crisped. Transfer to the prepared platter and break each strip in half.
While the bacon is roasting, gather and prepare the remaining sandwich ingredients: the bread, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, turkey, and salt and pepper.
To assemble the sandwiches, generously spread the mayonnaise on one side of each of the bread slices. Cut the lettuce leaves into 4 pieces, so they will fit neatly on the bread.
Place a lettuce leaf on 2 of the slices; top each with a tomato slice, then 3 bacon halves and a quarter of the turkey; and season lightly with salt and pepper. Top with a second slice of bread, mayonnaise side down. Gently spread mayonnaise on the top slice of bread. Repeat layering the ingredients in the same order on top of this slice of bread. Cover the sandwiches with the final slice of bread, mayonnaise side down.
Gently press down on each sandwich and use 4 toothpicks to secure the sandwich layers in 4 equally spaced spots, pressing all the way through the bottom slice of bread. Using a serrated knife, cut each sandwich diagonally, into 4 triangular pieces (each piece should be secured in the center with a toothpick).
Arrange the sandwiches on plates and serve with potato chips.
Nutrition Information
Per serving (1 sandwich)
Calories: 694; Total Fat: 41 g; Saturated Fat: 9 g; Cholesterol: 102 mg; Sodium: 1590 mg; Carbohydrates: 41 g; Dietary Fiber: 9 g; Sugar: 60 g; Protein: 40 g
This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.
From recipes editor Ann Maloney.
Tested by Ann Maloney; email questions to voraciously@washpost.com.
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Source: WP
