Cheese and Branston Pickle Sandwich

Best Cheese and Pickle Sandwich Recipe

This cheese and pickle sandwich is a typical English sandwich that forms part of a so-called ‘Ploughman’s lunch’.

A typical Ploughman’s lunch is commonly sold in English pubs. It consists of bread and butter, cheddar cheese, onion, pickles, salad and, of course, a nice pint of tasty English beer 😄.

 

I remember as a kid a Ploughman’s lunch was pretty much the only thing you could get to eat in an English pub.

Luckily, things have changed now as British pub cuisine has developed enormously for the better. In fact, pretty much the only pubs that have survived are the ones that provide good food. If you order a Ploughman’s Sandwich in a pub now, it will probably include ham, tomatoes and lettuce on top of the cheddar and pickle.

 

 

This is a simple sandwich recipe, which we often take with us on road trips or in packed lunches to the beach, as it tastes so good.

How does pickle taste?

You may want to try some pickle before you make one, as it can be an acquired taste. In Britain, Branston’s Pickle is a famous brand that we use for our cheese and pickle sandwiches.

It is such a loved taste in the UK, that they even have cheese and Branston pickle-flavoured crisps (potato chips)!

Branston’s is made from chopped vegetables preserved in a vinegary sauce. The tart combination of the pickles with cheddar cheese is perfection and I love it.

 

But the taste is quite sour if you compare it to chutney, for example, which tends to be a bit sweeter in taste (we also eat cheese with chutney over here). But then that is why it is called a pickle.

The British love vinegar in their food – just think of salt and vinegar crisps and salt and malt vinegar on their chips (fries), as examples.

But if you have a sweeter tooth you could try making a cheese and chutney sandwich instead. We tend to eat cheese with chutney as a TV snack with a glass of wine, rather than as a sandwich.

In these pictures, I made this sandwich with multigrain bread from Aldi. This makes it a pretty healthy Cheese and Branston Pickle sandwich.

 

What type of cheese in a cheese and pickle sandwich?

Traditionally any type of English cheese could be used in a traditional Ploughman’s sandwich. But in this recipe, we use some mature sharp cheddar cheese which I think goes fantastically well with Branston’s pickle.

In my opinion, the stronger the cheese, the better. But of course, you can use a milder cheese if you prefer.

Traditionally, the Ploughman’s lunch might be served on a wooden platter with a large lump of cheese. You then cut the cheese yourself with a knife to fit your crusty piece of bread.

It may also be accompanied with some vegetables or pickled gherkins, and of course a pint of bitter!

Here I sliced the cheese to make it easier to eat, as these were made to go in a sandwich box.

I hope you enjoy trying this traditional British sandwich. If you do, please let me know what you thought of it in the comments section below!

How to make a Ploughman’s sandwich

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