From scratch means: You grow your tomato, you grow your lettuce, you cure your own bacon or pancetta, you bake your own bread (wild yeast preferred and gets higher marks but is not required), you make your own mayo. All other embellishments, creative interpretations of the BLT welcome.

He judged the sandwiches based on best photo, best reinterpretation and best overall preparation. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to submit a recipe. Fortunately I have plenty of time to drool over the photos of mouth-watering BLTs.

In his commentary, Ruhlman hits the nail on the head. Most BLTs are too wimpy, the bacon is so slight that it feels more like a veggie sandwich topped with a little sprinkling of tasty pork. Instead he slightly refines the BLT as “[...] a pork belly sandwich, garnished with L, T and mayo.” Yes! It’s a bacon steak sandwich with some incidental accessories. I can’t wait for this bit of wisdom to percolate through the food industry and BLT’s arrive on plates heavy with pork-belly.

Did anyone here enter the contest? Have any other insights on the BLT?

Ladies: skinnyboysbigsandwiches is still available! Get it started!

Gender-unidentified: genderunidentiedpeoplebigsandwiches is also still available! Go go gadget sandwich-blog!

What was he eating? It was the ‘Three Little Pigs’ from the Silver Palm (no website, yelp) restaurant in Chicago (768 N Milwaukee Ave). This rediculous sandwich can only be the product of a hangover and/or a very drunken what-if escalation: smoked ham, breaded fried pork cutlet, two strips of bacon, two fried eggs doused in gruyere and served on a brioche bun. It’s like a croque-madame that’s been Americanized by adding fried pork and bacon. It feels good to finally best the French, join me for a quick round: ohhh sayy cann you seee, by the dawwnnss earlyy lightt…

Here’s the clip:

Anyone in Chicago and want to confirm Bourdains truthiness?

After a little youtube-googling, he said the exact same thing(“apex of sandwich making art”) about the Uruguayan “Chivito”. Man I hate it when my idols make mistakes. Here it is:

The Chivito:

Has anyone had both?

Thanks to Stephanie for sending it in and eat me daily for covering it.

Anyhow, they released this list of “America’s best sandwiches” (almost safe for work), as if that means anything anymore. Do people really travel across country to taste sandwiches off a list? I know I’ve dreamed about it, but I think most people just look at the list, drool a little, and see if any are nearby. If so, they’ve probably already been. Enough knockin’, they’ve got Italian Beef from Al’s, Pastrami from Katz, shrimp po’ boy, cheesesteak, etc. I’d say 8 of the 10 are predictable and boring. The two that caught my eye were: the St. Paul Sandwich at Wong’s Inn in Maplewood, MO and the Sloppy Joe at Town Hall Deli in South Orange, NJ. Both look pretty damn good. Maybe I should start reading the articles…

Shiv Sena, the ultra-right Hindu nationalist party in India, has launched a global brand of snack food called the Shiv Vada — a sandwich containing deep-fried potato ball. They want to make it as popular as hamburgers.

From Boing Boing

I don’t understand the politics of this sandwich, but I’m curious what kind of sandwich represents your political leanings? I’m pretty liberal and would like to promote sandwich love for everyone. And pork belly. What about you?

The glorious, two-handed sandwich comprises a half-pound tablet of ground pork, veal and duck cooked in its own reduced braising juices and planted between a chewy, crusty roll. Golden haystack onions spill out atop the meat loaf, while a layer of horseradish-dressed frisée packs serious zip, and briny, thin-sliced pickles temper the opulence.

I want that in my mouth, don’t you?

1. Bar Six, 502 Sixth Avenue, Greenwich Village, Manhattan, 212-691-1363
2. DuMont Burger, 314 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 718-384-6128
3. DB Bistro Moderne, 55 West 44th Street, Midtown, Manhattan, 212-391-2400
4. Buttermilk Channel, 524 Court Street, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, 718-852-8490
5. Shake Shack, 366 Columbus Ave, Upper West Side, Manhattan, 646-747-8770
6. Donovan’s Pub, 57-24 Roosevelt Ave, Woodside, Queens, 718-429-9339
7. Bosna Express, 791 Fairview Avenue, Ridgewood, Queens, 718-497-7577
8. Peter Luger, 178 Broadway, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 718-387-7400
9. Rhythm and Booze, 1674 Tenth Ave, Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, 718-788-9699
10. Back Forty, 190 Avenue B, East Village, Manhattan, 212-388-1990

Now, I love a good burger, but I’m not that obsessed about them as a lot of others (I like to save my love for other sandwiches). Of the list above, I’ve only been to Shake Shack and DuMont Burger. Shake shack has much nicer decor (the park!) but DuMont’s burger is much better. The prices on this list swing wildly too. I have a hunch that if price is no concern, there are better burgers out there.

What do you think?

Sandwiches fall into three categories:

5. Judging: The following guidelines will be used:
- Creative Use of Ingredients
- Taste
- Ease of Preparation
- Visual Appeal

Don’t go too crazy, because

4. Contest Guidelines: Recipes must use at least two (or more) of the following products: Mezzetta® Brand (specialty peppers, olives and gourmet foods), Mezzetta® Deli-Sliced (sliced specialty peppers), Napa Valley Bistro® (specialty pasta sauces and olives) or Kona Coast® (teriyaki and BBQ sauces).

Sandwiches will be judged based on:

5. Judging: The following guidelines will be used:
- Creative Use of Ingredients
- Taste
- Ease of Preparation
- Visual Appeal

Two second place prizes of $1,000 will be awarded for 2nd and 3rd place. That’ll buy a lot of sandwiches. When you’re ready, drop your recipe here.

What are you going to enter?

Howdy! You may have noticed a new name around Simply Sandwiches. I’m Martha, and I’ll be covering the drool-worthy sandwiches of New York City and beyond, and concocting a few of my own. I grew up in Texas and was raised on chopped beef BBQ sandwiches, which I gave up for the variety that NYC has to offer.

I live in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, where I have access to the best Mexican tortas and cemitas this city has to offer, as well as some of the best banh mi. It’s sandwich heaven down here, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be traveling far and wide to scout out new ‘wiches. I’m a big believer in the power of bacon, but also in the power of vegetables, and I’ll eat just about anything (except roasted red peppers. Don’t know why, I just can’t stand ‘em).

Know of an amazing sandwich you think I should track down and review? Send it my way at martha@simplysandwiches.net, and I’ll cover it.