Recipe: Chicken Sandwiches Two Ways
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Recipe: Chicken Sandwiches Two Ways
Poached chicken lightened with natural yoghurt, spring onions and zesty lemons, or roasted chicken with luxurious sour cream, crispy bacon and chives. Or do as Ben does, and have both!
Ben Shewry
Published 18.03.25
The roast chicken sandwich
Chicken sandwiches – poached and roasted
I’m a self-proclaimed ‘club sandwich master.’ I honed my skills as sous chef to the New Zealand Governor General at Government House in Wellington in the early 2000’s. At Gov House club sandwiches were the main game, almost the only game. I made thousands of them, all flavours, fillings and shapes. Despite the possibilities, it is the chicken mayo sandwich that is the sandwich after my own heart.
For the mayonnaise
Ingredients
3 free-range egg yolks
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1½ tbsp white wine vinegar (I used chardonnay for a little sweetness)
Pinch of salt
Squeeze of lemon juice
220g grapeseed oil (or other neutral-tasting oil)
50g olive oil
Method
Combine all ingredients in a bowl, except oils, and whisk until well combined. Whisking well, begin to add the oil at a very slow drizzle until the mayonnaise begins to thicken slightly, then you can carefully increase the amount you are adding until all the oils have been used. Refrigerate in an airtight container until needed. Can be made the day before.
If making both recipes below, divide the mayonnaise into two portions.
For the roast chicken sandwiches
Ingredients
½ of the mayonnaise recipe above
1 freshly roasted free-range chicken, pan roasting juices retained and meat chopped
200g streaky bacon, fried until crispy, then drained, cooled and chopped
3 spring onions, finely sliced
1 heaped tbsp of sour cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 lemon
Method
Place mayonnaise in a bowl and slowly whisk in chicken roasting juices. Add chopped chicken, bacon, spring onions and sour cream. Add a pinch of salt and a grind of black pepper, and then a small squeeze of lemon juice and mix well.
For the poached chicken sandwiches
Ingredients
2 free-range chicken breasts, poached and diced
½ of the mayonnaise recipe above
1 heaped tbsp of natural plain yoghurt
½ bunch of chives, finely sliced
1 lemon for zesting
Freshly ground white pepper and salt to taste
Method
In a bowl add the diced poached chicken, mayonnaise, yoghurt and chives. Finely grate a small amount of lemon zest into the bowl. Add a couple of grinds of white pepper and a generous amount of salt. Stir well to combine and set aside in the refrigerator for 45 minutes to firm up before building the sandwiches.
Build tips and tricks
A loaf of your favourite soft white bread
100g soft salted butter. I used cultured because it tastes better.
Build them how you like them but make them triple decker!
I butter each piece of bread. Make sure the butter is not too thick, and evenly spread. Room temperature butter is best.
Weigh your total amount of chicken mayo, then divide that weight by the amount of layers you intend to make. This guarantees consistency.
Spread your chicken mayo right to the edge of your bread, making sure it’s even and level.
A medium sized crank handled palette knife is the sandwich tool of the enlightened. Use it to butter, spread mayo and plate delicate cut sandwiches.
If refrigerating and serving cold add slightly more salt than you think you need. Cold food requires more seasoning.
A electric knife is the tool of the volume sandwich professional.
Paper doilies are making a comeback. To club sandwich masters, they never went away.
When cutting, don’t push too hard- let the bread knife do the work. Wipe blade between cuts.
Always cut the crusts off. It is most uncouth to serve crusts.
Roast chicken sandwich mix
