- Desert Island Dishes | Recipes
Chicken Caesar Sandwich
The most outrageous sandwich there ever was: the Chicken Caesar Sandwich. Breaded crispy chicken, cheat’s Caesar dressing tossed with crunchy lettuce and slices of parma ham too. Covered with a generous grating of parmesan, it’s just the perfect sandwich.
Last year, chicken Caesar wraps were everywhere after going viral and then starting a trend of videos. They are also very good but there’s something about a big, chunky sandwich, wrapped up in parchment paper, with a balance of flavours and texture from the salty parma ham, crispy chicken, punchy garlic butter (or wild garlic butter!), creamy dressing on the crunchy salad and toasted bread. YUM!
What you’ll need for this Chicken Caesar Sandwich
Parma ham
Chicken breast (you will be breading it in panko breadcrumbs and sesame seeds, then frying until golden brown. You could use chicken thighs if you’d rather)
Breadcrumbs (for extra texture in the sandwich)
Loaf of crusty bread (pulling out the middle of the bread means you can make some excellent crispy breadcrumbs and there’s more room for filling in the sandwich)
Anchovy (perfect for an umami hit in the dressing, it’s really distinctive to a Caesar salad so keep it in!)
Garlic butter (super simple to make – blitz 50g softened butter in a blender with some parsley, 2 chopped garlic cloves and some salt. Use wherever you like!)
Garlic
Iceberg lettuce (or any lettuce but iceberg has a neutral flavour whilst retaining the crunchiness you want so it’s great here!)
Mayo (this forms the base of the Caesar dressing)
Parmesan
Some key tips
Pulling out the middle of the bread is not only the perfect opportunity to add more texture to the sandwich but it also means you can add more filling, which is the best bit! Don’t crumble the bread pieces too small or they’ll be too crumby in your chicken caesar sandwich.
Adding a splash of boiling water to this easy Caesar dressing breaks down the anchovy and takes the rawness out of the garlic. This means you don’t get a huge garlic hit and you don’t risk chomping down on a big piece of anchovy. Then you just add lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mayo and parm. Cheat’s Caesar dressing with no blender or raw egg yolks!
Frequently Asked Questions
No, you don’t have to. It’s super simple though and if you want a few more tips and tricks when it comes to making your own dressing, that might make you feel a bit more confident. You can use shop bought dressing though, any you like!
You can use individual ciabatta breads or crusty rolls, or use focaccia. Any bread you like but ideally something crusty that can withstand the chunky sandwich rather than a slice of white bread that will just disintegrate among the fillings.
More sandwiches you might want to try
Ultimate Steak Sandwich
Chicken Parm Sandwich
Goat’s Cheese, Apricot Jam & Ham Sandwich
Prosciutto, Tomato, Mozzarella Sandwich
Mortadella, Burrata and Pesto Sandwich
Chicken Caesar Sandwich
Breaded crispy chicken, cheat’s Caesar dressing tossed with crunchy lettuce and slices of parma ham too. Covered with a generous grating of parmesan, it’s just the perfect sandwich.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: Serves 2
Ingredients
For the dressing
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- 4 anchovy fillets
- Parmesan, around 1/3 cup
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 pinch salt, to taste
For the sandwich
- 1 large crusty loaf
- 1 pack of parma ham
- Garlic butter – blitz 50g softened butter in a blender with some parsley, 2 chopped garlic cloves and some salt. Use leftovers wherever you like!
- 2 chicken breasts
- Panko breadcrumbs, for breading
- Sesame seeds, for breading
- Flour, for breading
- Egg, for breading
- 1 iceberg lettuce
- Parmesan, grated
- Salt
- Pepper
- Sunflower oil, for frying
Instructions
For the dressing
- Take 4 anchovies and the chopped garlic in a bowl and add a few tbsp of boiling water. This will melt them down into this salty liquid so you don’t get a chunk of anchovy. Then stir in 3/4 cup of mayo, the juice of 1 lemon, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, and lots of parmesan. Add lots of black pepper and a little salt.
For the sandwich
- Slice the loaf of crusty bread in half, then pick out the middle of the bread and lay those chunky breadcrumbs on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and bake in a 200c oven for around 10-15 minutes until golden and crisp.
- Meanwhile, add some flour to a shallow bowl, egg to another and a few handfuls of panko breadcrumbs with some sesame seeds to another. Season each bowl well with salt and pepper. Heat 1-2cm veg/sunflower oil in a pan over medium heat. Take a chicken breast, dip in the flour on both sides, followed by the egg and then finally the breadcrumbs, making sure it’s really packed on. Then place in the hot oil. Repeat with the other chicken breast. Fry for around 5 minutes a side until golden and cooked through.
- Slice up the iceberg lettuce and add to a bowl. Add a few spoons of the caesar dressing and toss together.
- Assemble the sandwich. Spread the sandwich with garlic butter, grate over fresh parm and toast in the oven until crispy. Then top with parma ham, the chicken breast, the dressed salad, crispy breadcrumbs and more parmesan. Sandwich with the other half of bread, slice in half and eat – if you can get your mouth around it!
