You Can’t Make a Good Sandwich Without Good Bread
By: Rick Easton
Tags: Bread, Recipe, Baking, Sandwich, Cooking

We are currently in a depressing era of Instagram-driven food trends, where so many sandwiches are dripping, hulking over-stuffed monsters, designed to be photographed as much as or more than they’re designed to be eaten.

I propose a modest revolution in the face of this excess: a return to the notion that sandwiches first and foremost are about the bread. I would like everyone to dispel the notion that the bread in a sandwich is merely a vehicle that prevents you from getting condiments on your fingers or eating meat with your hands.

Plain and simple: Bad bread means bad sandwiches.

In part, I believe that we have arrived in this strange place due to years of terrible bread. Generally speaking, bread in many places in the United States hasn’t been good enough to enjoy on its own, or even modestly dressed as a sandwich. Spongey, industrial bread tastes bad or at best bland, and the more stuff you can pack inside of it, the less you are aware that you are actually eating it. From a standpoint of functionality, this type of bread is soft and allows certain flexibility in the construction of a sandwich.

Our enthusiasm for smushable sandwiches — and a fixation with the tastes from some of our suburban childhoods — have fueled the wild popularity of products like Martin’s potato rolls. I get it; I’ve smushed and crammed as much as the next guy, but really, let’s not forget that we have teeth. Also, dough conditioners and preservatives that create this celebrated smushiness, and allow for an incredibly long shelf life, are not good for us.

Truly, texture is an essential consideration in choosing the bread for a sandwich. Ask yourself: Will I be able to bite through this sandwich? Will chewing this sandwich be a pleasure or incredibly laborious? Hard-crusted “country-style” loaves are not always the ideal choice when it comes to sandwiches. If you slice them horizontally and fill them hoagie-style, sometimes they can be too much of a workout. The crust can be too thick and the interior too soft to provide the right construction. Country-style bread is often better for sandwiches when it’s toasted or pressed — or even cut thick and served open-face, topped with a filling that’s particularly wet and eaten with a knife and fork. Yes, it is fair to debate whether this is still considered a sandwich. For the sake of discussion, I say, sure, why not?

Personally, my favorite bread for sandwiches is pizza bianca. When made well, it is perfectly crisp — not crunchy; there is a difference — and sturdy enough to be filled with a wide range of choices while being simultaneously soft, light, flavorful, and incredibly digestible. Focaccia can also be a great choice, as well as ciabatta, or even a good baguette. If you go with either of the latter, seek loaves that are light and airy, not excessively bready, with crusts that are not too hard or thick.

Quince, pecorino, and arugula sandwich (not made for Instagram)

There are a wide range of options. Just think about what it is like to eat before you select it. It sounds silly, but it is astounding how many sandwiches made on the wrong bread are sold in celebrated commercial contexts.

Another related consideration is structure. Will this bread adequately stand up to the intended fillings? If not, check and make sure you are not asking too much of the bread with something that is just excessive or ill-conceived. A meatball sandwich can be great, but probably not on brioche or a soft pain de mie. The bread will start to dissolve with the sauce and there’s a good chance the meatballs will fall out.

Seek balance in both construction and flavor. Regarding sandwich fillings, harmony is key. Pick one to three items (in extreme cases four) and balance them in proportion to each other. Choose them to highlight the choice of bread.

Season the separate components of a sandwich. It is always disappointing when you bite into a sandwich with lettuce or tomato or some kind of greens or vegetables and those items are not salted or seasoned at all. A little salt is nice. Olive oil is always a good idea; a light drizzle on the bread or to dress any vegetables goes a long way to making a sandwich that is merely fine way better.