Makes 4 sandwiches
When I was in Luang Prabang, Laos, with my son, Joshua, we quickly adopted an evening routine. We’d go to the night market, stroll among the vendors for a while and then turn into the alley where the food merchants set up. The sandwich ladies were at the entrance. Each woman would start putting together a sandwich only when the order came in. The process would start with one of them slicing a bamboo-skewered grilled chicken breast into long strips. Next would come the bread, a soft, almost squishy half-baguette. She’d open the bread wide and place it on the palm of her left hand, then get to work slathering both sides with mayonnaise and hot chile paste, covering the bread with slices of chicken moistened with a little sweet chili sauce, rounds of tomato and long slices of cucumber, tucking in some lettuce and finishing it all off with a prolonged squeeze of sweet chili sauce. Then, the final touch: She’d close the sandwich with a rectangle of paper torn from a magazine and secure the whole bundle with a rubber band.
It’s not easy to give a precise recipe for this sandwich, so I’ve given you the elements and the order in which they can be layered (but don’t necessarily have to be). Since grilled chicken is not a year-round staple in our house, I make the sandwiches with sautéed or oven-roasted chicken breasts.
a word on quantities
This is truly a season-to-taste recipe, so while I’ve given you measurements, please treat them as guidelines.
Spread both cut sides of the baguettes or rolls with mayonnaise and Sriracha. Arrange the chicken strips over the bottom halves and moisten with some of the chili sauce. Add the tomatoes and cucumber, drizzle with more chili sauce and top with the lettuce. Give everything a last hit of chili sauce and close the sandwiches.
Press the sandwiches down or, if you want the true Luang Prabang experience, secure them with rubber bands and wait for about 15 minutes before snapping the bands and digging in.
STORING: The sandwiches are good immediately and best 15 minutes later.
If you can find small skinless, boneless breasts, use them — they work best with this recipe. If you get big breasts (more usual in supermarkets), cut them horizontally in half. Rub the breasts with a little olive oil and some lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. (You can marinate the breasts in this mix for a few hours in the refrigerator, or at room temperature just while you preheat the oven.) Lay the breasts out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil. Roast them in a 350-degree-F oven for about 20 minutes (longer if they’re thick and more than about 5 ounces), until cooked through. Cut into one — it should be opaque at the center or measure 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Wrapped well, the chicken will keep in the refrigerator for about 5 days.