The Simple Preparation Tip For Better Sub Sandwiches Every Time

Truly crafting an excellent sub, hoagie, hero, or whatever different name the long, ingredient-packed sub sandwich may have where you're from, requires more than merely adding protein, cheese, and veggies to bread. You first need the right kind of bread to call this hefty, handheld meal by any of its rightful names. One must also identify the appropriate meats when making something as specific as an Italian sub. And, in almost every case, you should take care to season, even dress, any produce you plan to incorporate, just like you would if you were making a salad, before you get to stacking the sandwich.

If you were to go to an adequate deli, bodega, or even a chain, they might finish your sub with a few shakes of salt and pepper, plus maybe a swirl of oil and vinegar, before adding the top bread that actually makes it a sandwich. That seasoning gesture is marginally better than nothing, but it won't have a meaningful effect on things like the lettuce, tomatoes, and onions that might lie inside. A great shop will instead season these items before they're joined to really let their flavors mingle and sing. That same practice is also one of the easiest ways that you can build better subs at home. You needn't stop at just the standard salt, pepper, oil, and vinegar in your pursuit of tastier sandwiches, either.

If seasoning and dressing your sub vegetables sounds like yet one more step between you and what's supposed to be one of the easiest meals to prepare, you are correct. But it only has to take a few seconds for what amounts to a pretty tasty impact. Consider just the tomatoes for a moment; you already need to break out the knife and cutting board to slice them down to size. Spreading them out and sprinkling a bit of salt on top right after can make them taste even sweeter. As a bonus, letting the salted tomatoes rest for a few minutes will even draw out moisture to help prevent your sandwiches from getting too soggy. You can similarly slice and season things like cucumbers and bell peppers, too.

Additional ingredients like shredded iceberg lettuce will also benefit from individualized attention. Tossing the lettuce like a salad in oil and vinegar, for example, will help the seasoning better wind around its leafy contours than if you were to just drizzle the liquids from the top down and hope for the best. Dried oregano and crushed red pepper flakes will also have a finer shot at coating the veggies when applied precisely. The same approach with a slightly sweet balsamic vinegar can more pointedly mellow the bite of something like the sliced onions that also go terrifically in plenty of subs. This principle also applies across flavors, whether you're showering roasted eggplant and zucchini with garlic powder, or zhuzhing up sprouts and avocado with black pepper and hot honey. Seasoning and dressing your veggies on their own will make for a more cohesive, complete sub.