Like Tina Fey's Liz Lemon on
30 Rock, I am more than partial to a nice sandwich. Whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner, there is nothing quite like the careful and considered layering of meat (or other protein), sweet 'n' spicy condiments, cheese and assorted salad vegetables between two or more slices of good bread. A well-made sandwich satisfies a basic hunger, but it also provides a sensual and textural pleasure-kick -
mouthfeel - when savoured slowly.
Lovers of 'dude food' or American diner food know what I'm talking about. Burgers of any variety, a Philly Cheesesteak, a Maine lobster roll, a club sandwich, a Reuben and even a Po' Boy are the most delicious things to eat with one hand while clutching a beer or napkin in the other. There's an art to eating a hot sandwich, staying well beerdrated and keeping your chin and cheeks grease-free.
Oh yeah.
However, nothing knocks my socks off like a slider. The heady meeting of slow-cooked marinated beef, lamb or pork, carelessly shredded into melt-in-the-mouth strips with anything else that takes your fancy and wedged between a soft and slightly sweet white bread bun is the ultimate sandwich. The sandwich de jour...the sandwich de la creme...you get the idea.
I don't know where the term for this sandwich comes from, and I don't care. I don't know what differentiates this from any other sandwich, but I JUST KNOW what makes a good slider in my own narrow, solipsistic view of the foodiverse.
- The bread bun must be white
- The bun should be small enough to hold comfortably in one hand
- You should be able to eat at least 2-3 in a single sitting. With accompanying fries or onion rings
- The meat should be beef, pork or lamb and well-seasoned and marinated - on the bone is better than fillet
- The meat should be slow cooked for at least 3-4 hours before being shredded - by human fingers
- Condiments must include but not be confined to pickles, chutneys, mayonnaise, mustards, gravy, ketchup, BBQ sauce
- There must be a salad of some description - coleslaw is best - with its own dressing wedged in there.
- Grated cheese is optional
- The filling should spill out of the bread
And let me share this favourite recipe with you - Pulled Pork Sliders - Dusty style
Brown a 1-1/2 kilo piece of pork leg or shoulder in its own fat in a large crock pot, then add:
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 375ml bottle brown beer (Porter or stout)
- 2 tsp salt
- Chicken or beef stock to cover meat
- 2 peeled onions whole
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1-2 star anise pods
- 1 chopped de-seeded red chilli
Slow cook for 3-4 hours until soft enough to shred into strips for slider-style sandwiches. This goes particularly well with coleslaw and spicy applesauce.
Enjoy.
