Chick Magnet: Dub Shack BBQ Presents Chicken Bacon Grinders

Years ago when I worked for a certain environmental science program in New England, I would find myself at a pizza restaurant that made the best grinder sandwiches fairly frequently; no comment of the dive bar a mile further west. It also doubled as a nice date night spot when my pockets were light before payday. In tribute to Kent Pizza of Winsted and the eggplant grinders I used to order with pizza and draft beer from Berkshire Brewery, this is my version of a Connecticut classic.

Yeah, I said eggplant grinders. Once upon a time, I briefly embraced vegetarianism - and may try it again one of these days - just not today because I'm making chicken bacon grinders instead. I'll share another story of how I was labeled the world's worst vegetarian one day.

What exactly is a grinder? See what Wikipedia tells us below.

A common term in New England is grinder, but its origin has several possibilities. One theory has the name coming from Italian-American slang for a dock worker, among whom the sandwich was popular. Others say that it was called a grinder because the bread's hard crust required much chewing. In addition, grinders are served hot unlike sub sandwiches which are often cold.

But really, here are the basic ingredients.

Just a big ole hot sub sandwich loaded with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, olive oil, vinegar, and roasted peppers.

For the purpose of this cook, we're doing the TikTok phenomenon only 1)better and the )DSB way. 

INGREDIENTS

French bread

Chicken breast 

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Onion

Bacon (because, why not?)

Olive oil

Basalmic vinegar

Provolone cheese 

Red pepper, if desired

Minced garlic

1/2 stick butter 

Fire and Smoke Society's The Usual barbecue rub

STEP ONE. In the pursuit of making it better, season the chicken! There is a special place in hell for people who don't season the meat before cooking it, and doubly for passing off anything less than safely cooked bird as rare - we don't like salmonella around these parts. Apply The Usual on both sides of the chicken and light the grill. During this time of waiting for 325-350 degrees on the PK, begin sandwich prep by melting the butter and mixing in the minced garlic since the bread is going to be toasted. Once the grill comes up to temperature, cook your chicken breasts to 165 and set aside. Bacon cooks really well in the grill; just keep an eye on flare-ups and turn to satisfaction. 

Grilled bacon is a treat, lemme tell ya.

Remember the French bread? Don't forget to split it, slather it with the aforementioned garlic butter on the inside, and grill it to the crispiness desired. As the remaining homies in the 860 and 203 reminded me, grinders aren't the easiest thing to eat due to how the hot ones are made so please do not burn the bread! The balance here is crunchy outside, soft inside. Once it is finished, let's go inside to put it all together.

STEP TWO. In the miracle of time, the chicken bacon grinder is ready except... it's time to build it. In the traditional Dub Shack BBQ way, building sandwiches - and evangelizing the gospel of great barbecue -  better is how we do things. This monstrosity gets provolone cheese, the chopped up chicken and bacon (so every bite makes you want to slap your mama or hug the chef), more provolone cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, red peppers, olive oil, and basalmic vinegar.

Say ahh and enjoy!

I should have taken a picture before I sliced up the sandwich but I got hungry. Sorry. 

Grinders are a part of what makes America in a culinary sense: Man working hard toting only a sandwich and something to drink for his lunch at work. Yeah, I did it better than Subway but I would stop short of calling it a sub sandwich courtesy of the bread itself. One of the ways you can make this recipe your own is combining all of the vegetables with mayonnaise and setting that mixture in the refrigerator for an hour or however long it takes for everything else to come together for a uniquely balanced taste; I would recommend my Dat White barbecue sauce (local only - I don't trust shipping that one nationwide yet) as a bottom layer on the toasted bits.

As always, thank you for reading this post. If and when you get the chance, go outside and cook something awesome for your family! Y'all be blessed, be safe, be good to each other, and tell everyone that every day is a GREAT day for Dub Shack BBQ!