3 ms·

Well, the main issue is the terrible bread. US sandwiches have too much stuff in though.

Nursie 9y ago
Blasphemy!
SllX 9y ago
Some US sandwiches, sure, but not really. A quarter pound of meat is a decent serving for a sandwich, and load that up with veggies and only put at most, two sauces, and only on one side (the top side preferably so the lettuce will be pressed against it. If you include cheese, two slices is enough most of the time. Where you run into trouble is once you start loading it up with like 2 or 3 different meats plus bacon and slathering cheese on like there's no tomorrow, and then including loads of mayo and mayo-based sauces and toasting it with butter and so on and so forth. If you go into a sandwich shop and this describes half their sandwiches, it's because that is what their customers are looking for, but you can absolutely get a proper sandwich by asking. A decent sandwich consisting of meat, some fat (either avocado or cheese, you don't need both unless you're making an avocado and cheese sandwich without any meat), and some good quality veggies on sliced bread, not rolls, is still going to come out pretty big, but it will fill you up and get you through the afternoon. More importantly, a good 50% of the overall thickness will be from the vegetables if you make it right. If you buy loafs, buy oval-shaped loafs as well, the outer parts can be used as toast and the inside will make solid sandwich bread.
- balabaster 9y ago
  A quarter pound of meat in a sandwich is far too much for a normal sandwich. We're not talking about burgers here, we're talking about regular sandwiches. You really don't need that much meat - unless it's roasted/carved chicken/turkey and that's really the exception. I totally agree that you should have at least half of the sandwich thickness be veggies... and no skimping on the mayo and salt & pepper. This is where most sandwiches fall off the wagon.
  - rayiner 9y ago
    I just tried salt and pepper on my leftover turkey sandwich. You just changed my life.
    - balabaster 9y ago
      Hurrah! Of all the comments I've had on Hacker News. This is my favourite! Doesn't it make all the difference? :)
  - SllX 9y ago
    A quarter pound of meat is typical for a sandwich shop because if you're going to a sandwich shop for a sandwich, then you're ordering a meal. If you're only making part of a meal out of it or just a snack, feel free to use small squares for bread and only a couple of slices of deli meat and complement the sandwich with a soup. Source: actually worked in a sandwich shop on the deli slicer where we prepacked the meat for sandwiches. Most employees at other sandwich shops I talked to used basically the same amount of meat with only one typically using a fifth of a pound and another typically using half a pound.
    - louthy 9y ago
      I think most of us Brits would consider a sandwich with a quarter pound of meat in it to be an enormous amount of food. Personally, I don't see sandwiches as a large meal at all. They're relatively light compared to say a meal I'd eat in a restaurant. Even if they're not always light on the calories.
      - balabaster 9y ago
        Sandwiches shouldn't be a large meal. But they should be nutritious and filling enough to feel satiated without feeling like you need to sleep it off.

Blasphemy!

SllX 9y ago

Some US sandwiches, sure, but not really. A quarter pound of meat is a decent serving for a sandwich, and load that up with veggies and only put at most, two sauces, and only on one side (the top side preferably so the lettuce will be pressed against it. If you include cheese, two slices is enough most of the time. Where you run into trouble is once you start loading it up with like 2 or 3 different meats plus bacon and slathering cheese on like there's no tomorrow, and then including loads of mayo and mayo-based sauces and toasting it with butter and so on and so forth. If you go into a sandwich shop and this describes half their sandwiches, it's because that is what their customers are looking for, but you can absolutely get a proper sandwich by asking. A decent sandwich consisting of meat, some fat (either avocado or cheese, you don't need both unless you're making an avocado and cheese sandwich without any meat), and some good quality veggies on sliced bread, not rolls, is still going to come out pretty big, but it will fill you up and get you through the afternoon. More importantly, a good 50% of the overall thickness will be from the vegetables if you make it right. If you buy loafs, buy oval-shaped loafs as well, the outer parts can be used as toast and the inside will make solid sandwich bread.

balabaster 9y ago
A quarter pound of meat in a sandwich is far too much for a normal sandwich. We're not talking about burgers here, we're talking about regular sandwiches. You really don't need that much meat - unless it's roasted/carved chicken/turkey and that's really the exception. I totally agree that you should have at least half of the sandwich thickness be veggies... and no skimping on the mayo and salt & pepper. This is where most sandwiches fall off the wagon.
- rayiner 9y ago
  I just tried salt and pepper on my leftover turkey sandwich. You just changed my life.
  - balabaster 9y ago
    Hurrah! Of all the comments I've had on Hacker News. This is my favourite! Doesn't it make all the difference? :)
- SllX 9y ago
  A quarter pound of meat is typical for a sandwich shop because if you're going to a sandwich shop for a sandwich, then you're ordering a meal. If you're only making part of a meal out of it or just a snack, feel free to use small squares for bread and only a couple of slices of deli meat and complement the sandwich with a soup. Source: actually worked in a sandwich shop on the deli slicer where we prepacked the meat for sandwiches. Most employees at other sandwich shops I talked to used basically the same amount of meat with only one typically using a fifth of a pound and another typically using half a pound.
  - louthy 9y ago
    I think most of us Brits would consider a sandwich with a quarter pound of meat in it to be an enormous amount of food. Personally, I don't see sandwiches as a large meal at all. They're relatively light compared to say a meal I'd eat in a restaurant. Even if they're not always light on the calories.
    - balabaster 9y ago
      Sandwiches shouldn't be a large meal. But they should be nutritious and filling enough to feel satiated without feeling like you need to sleep it off.