A grilled cheese and vegemite toastie may appear like an exotic menu item to non-Aussies, so what sandwiches can we expect when we’re travelling?
Chip Butty’s, Torta’s and Bao’s are just the beginning. Warning: this post may induce #HungerPangs
1. Báhn Mì
Place of origin: Vietnam
What it is: The Vietnamese were first introduced to bread during French colonial rule in the 18th century. Bánh mì, which simply translates to “bread,” was initially just a baguette smeared with butter, ham, or pâté. When the French left Vietnam in the 1950s, bánh mì became more representative of Vietnamese cuisine. Today, bánh mì is known as a baguette slathered with mayonnaise; topped with pâté, grilled meat, or cold cuts; and loaded with crisp cucumbers, pickled vegetables, chilies, and coriander.
Recipe: The Noshing Bride
2. Croque Monsieur
Place of origin: France
What it is: When it comes to bread and cheese, the French know what they’re doing. Developed in Parisian cafes around the turn of the century (the first ever recorded dates to 1910), a croque monsieur is a ham and cheese sandwich, typically made with either Emmental or Gruyère then fried in butter. If you want to be really indulgent, make a croque madame by topping it with a poached egg.
Recipe: Gourmet Traveller
3. Döner Kebap
Place of origin: Turkey
What it is: People have been grilling meat over an open flame for thousands of years, but the creation of the döner kebab is credited to two men, Iskender Efendi and Mahmut Aygun. Back in the 1860s, Efendi started grilling meat on a vertical, rotating spit. Nearly a hundred years later, Aygun emigrated from Turkey to Germany, and took this concept to a whole other level. He served the first döner kebab, as we know it today, in 1971 at his Hasir restaurant in Berlin. Drunk people everywhere will be forever grateful for his creation of thinly-sliced, grilled lamb tucked into a pita, alongside chopped lettuce, tomato, cucumber, mint, and yogurt sauce.
Recipe: Taste Australia
4. Arepa
Place of origin: Venezuela
What it is: Arepas are a staple of Venezuelan cuisine. This century-old sandwich, first created by the indigenous tribes of the country, is made from shaping ground corn dough into flat, circular patties, used like buns around different fillings. The joy of arepas is that they can be eaten any time of day, be any size, and have any assortment of accoutrement, from ground meat and cheese, to chopped vegetables.
Recipe: Serious Eats
5. Pav Bhaji
Place of origin: India
What it is: Pav bhaji was created in the 1850s in Mumbai for textile mill workers who had short lunch breaks and needed something quick and filling. It’s since become a favourite fast-food item across India. To make pav bhaji, a myriad of vegetables are tossed in a pot and left to stew. Once the vegetables have broken down, they’re placed on two soft and buttery buns and sprinkled with raw chopped onion, coriander and lemon. Consider it the vegetarian burger of India.
Recipe: Veg Recipes of India
6. Torta
Place of origin: Mexico
What it is: A torta is a layered sandwich on a crusty roll (called a bollilo), spruced up by Mexican ingredients like pickled jalapeños, avocado, and refried beans. Meats, like taco fillings, vary widely and can include everything from al pastor pork to chorizo sausage.
Recipe: Rick Bayless via Food & Wine
7. Doubles
Place of origin: Trinidad and Tobago
What it is: Doubles were first sold by an entrepreneurial family in Trinidad in 1936. The Deen family sold a variety of street food from channa (curried chick peas), to baras (a turmeric-spiced flattened and deep fried bread). He began pairing the two together, and the rest is history. Today, doubles are a staple of Trinidadian cuisine.
Recipe: What’s Cooking in Your World?
8. Broodje Kroket
Place of origin: Netherlands
What it is: Although krokets are thought of as quintessentially Dutch, they actually originated in France. The Dutch were first introduced to this sandwich during the 18th century, and they’ve since made it their own. A traditional broodje kroket is meat ragout covered in breadcrumbs and deep fried, then sandwiched between two white buns with ample amounts of mustard. In addition to restaurants, you can find broodje krokets at automatieks, Dutch vending machines that are open 24 hours. The Dutch are so crazy about these savoury meat patties that McDonald’s even created the McKroket.
Recipe: The Guardian
9. Chacarero
Place of origin: Chile
What it is: Chacareros are traditional Chilean sandwiches – crusty rolls filled with thinly sliced steak or pork, tomatoes, smashed avocado, and hot sauce. The unexpected secret ingredient? A layer of green beans.
Recipe: The Lemurs Are Hungry
10. Montreal-style smoked meat sandwich
Place of origin: Canada
What it is: Though the age-old question “Which is better, pastrami or Montreal-style smoked meat?” may never definitively be answered, we wholeheartedly appreciate the approach the Canadians. Although they’re both made from cured whole brisket, Montreal-style smoked meat goes heavy on the spices, and lays off on the sugar, resulting in a super-savory sandwich. Served on rye and slathered in mustard, this smoked meat sandwich from Mile End is pretty much unstoppable.
Recipe: Mile End Deli via Oh Briggsy
11. Chip Butty
Place of origin: England
What it is: The chip butty is perhaps the most endearingly lowbrow sandwich on this list. Lay a bed of French fries on two slices of white bread, drizzle it with ketchup, and you have a chip butty. This carb-centric sandwich got its start in working class pubs; these days, it’s a staple of casual British cafes.
Recipe: Wiki How
12. Bao
Place of origin: China
What it is: Bao originated in China and have since spread across Asia as a popular snack and entree. As legend has it, the first bao was created by the famed Chinese Chancellor, Zhuge Liang, who was known as the greatest strategist of his time. These fluffy steamed buns can be sweet and savory, while remaining exceptionally fluffy. Filled buns can be referred to as bao, but bao can also resemble small sandwiches with fillings ranging from pork belly to bean paste.
Recipe: Gourmet Traveller
13. Skagenröra
Place of origin: Sweden
What it is: Skagenröra is a traditional Swedish summer dish, named for the Danish region of Skagen. This open-faced sandwich is topped with prawns tossed in mayonnaise, sour cream, dill, red onion, and lemon.
Recipe: A World Devoured
This article has been adapted and originally featured on First we Feast.
