Grilled Chicken Caesar Sandwich

I wanted my Matt-man here for this grilled chicken Caesar sandwich.  Because he loves Caesar salad, and he loves my sandwiches.  Matt always says, “you make the best sandwiches, mom”!  Too bad we can’t email food as an attachment, huh?

Believe it or not, I have never made this sandwich for Matt.  It would have been a no-brainer, given the combo.  But in truth, I made this for the first time a few weeks ago when I made a Caesar salad and had leftover dressing.  I happened to have some chicken breasts, Romaine lettuce, and sourdough bread in the house, so the next day, I put them together and this is what came out.  Steve and I were so pleased with it that I knew it had to be featured on Mutt & Chops!  So, here it is!

Picture this: crunchy grilled sourdough with a hint of olive oil, juicy, tender grilled chicken breasts, surrounded by Caesar salad goodness.  It’s a great way to have lunch, let me tell you.  Or dinner.  Or an afternoon snack.  Shoot, I’d have it for breakfast!

Making a grilled chicken Caesar sandwich

To me, it is a grilled chicken Caesar Salad between two thin sourdough croutons.  That simple.  And it takes no time at all to pull together.

Start by pouring 1 teaspoon of olive oil over the breasts and coating both sides.  Then season both sides with salt and fresh cracked pepper.

I like to coat my chicken in olive oil before grilling because I think it really helps to keep it moist.

Then, lightly brush one side of the bread with olive oil.  I only do the one side because I want some nice caramelization and distinct grill marks on the outside of the grilled chicken Caesar sandwich only.  But the inside of the bread still has to have some of that sourdough chewiness.

I grill the bread first so that it has time to cool.  This sandwich uses the Caesar dressing as the only condiment.  If the bread is hot, it melts the Caesar dressing, so I like to let it cool.

Then grill the chicken.  Remember, these are thin cut breasts, which means they will cook faster.  Regular-sized breasts with rib meat are too big and fibrous, and would make the sandwich dry and clunky to hold and eat.  The thin cut breasts just need a few minutes on each side and they are perfectly grilled and juicy.

Once the chicken is grilled, I brush some Caesar dressing on the inside of both the bottom and top sourdough slices.  I cut two Romaine leaves in half for each sandwich, and brush some dressing on each half, stacking them one on top of the other.  Then, I stack the dressed Romaine and the grilled chicken on the bottom slice of sourdough, and cover it with the top slice.  Finally, I cut sandwich in half.

Isn’t it pretty?

You really can’t skip the brush of olive oil on the bread.  The gorgeous taste of sourdough bread grill-toasted with that hint of olive oil is so delicious it should have a taste name that describes just THAT flavor. You know, kinda like how umami describes a very distinct taste?  Well, this taste is big enough to have its own name too.  I just can’t think of a good one right now.

That crispy grilled bread, cool and delicious salad, and the warm, perfectly grilled chicken breast.  It’s the perfect marriage of taste and texture.  It’s a keeper.

Grilled Chicken Caesar Sandwich

Lori

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Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Total Time 15 mins

Servings 2 sandwiches

Ingredients

  

• 2 thin-cut chicken breast pieces
• 4 slices of crusty sourdough bread
• 4 leaves Romaine lettuce from the heart cut in half to make 8 pieces
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• <a href="https://www.muttandchops.com/southwest-grilled-shrimp-caesar-salad/">Caesar dressing</a> about 1/2 cup
• Salt
• Cracked pepper

Instructions

 

• Preheat a grill to medium heat.
• Pour 1 teaspoon of olive oil over the chicken breasts and toss until both sides of the breasts are coated.
• Season both sides with salt and cracked pepper to taste.
• Lightly brush one side only of the four slices of sourdough with some olive oil.
• First grill the slices of sourdough, oil side down, until golden and lightly toasted. Do not burn.
• Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Grill the chicken breasts just until done. Time will vary depending on thickness of the breast and grill temperature. Using thin cut breast meat and medium grill setting, mine took about 4 minutes per side.
• Spread Caesar dressing on the un-grilled side of the sourdough slices.
• Brush Caesar dressing between the Romaine leaves, 4 per sandwich.
• Stack the Romaine leaves then the grilled chicken breasts on the bottom slice of bread and top with the other slice.
• Cut in half and serve.