How Much Meat Does A Sandwich Really Need?

The question posed in the title — that of how much meat is needed in a sandwich — is more of a rhetorical one than anything else since the answer is obviously going to vary from sandwich to sandwich. If the feast in question is a Brooklyn-style potato and egg, the answer is none. The same goes for peanut butter, unless it's our version of the Elvis sandwich, in which case it needs four strips of bacon. Even if we limit ourselves to sandwiches made with deli meat, however, you'll get a different answer depending on who you ask. Anyone on a tight budget, counting calories, or both (me, for example) may tell you that one slice of meat will do, although two may be necessary if it's so thin you can see through it. Max Halley, the eponym behind both Max's Sandwich Shop (he owns it) and "Max's Sandwich Book" (he wrote it), would beg to differ.

When we asked Halley how much meat to pile on a sandwich, he replied with a question: "Ask yourself, 'Does that look like loads?'" He then answered himself, saying, "If it does, you're good to go." When we requested he explain further, he came back with yet another question. As he pondered, "Loads of anything is largely a good thing in life, right?"

Max Halley may believe in a "more is more" philosophy of sandwich making, but other sandwich shops, delis, and caterers seem to operate within a stricter framework. At the lower end of the scale, lunch meat manufacturer Boar's Head considers a single serving size to be two ounces of its turkey or roast beef but just a single ounce of its prosciutto or Black Forest ham (which is technically just a different kind of smoked ham, not a true Black Forest since it's not produced in Germany). Other guidelines are more generous, suggesting up to four ounces of meat per sandwich. As for commercial chains, Subway has stated that its six-inch subs are meant to contain three ounces of meat while its footlongs include six ounces, although specialty sandwiches such as The Beast may be made with up to eight ounces.

If you came here looking for some actual guidelines on sandwich construction, we can help with that. While there are no unbreakable rules, a general rule of thumb for a sandwich made with sliced bread is to use about two ounces of meat, which may equate to about two slices of a thicker product such as bologna or ham loaf. This may be combined with a single one-ounce slice of cheese. These sandwiches may not be the kind of over-the-top extravagant that would earn Max Halley's approval, but they ought to let you feed a crowd in a fairly economical fashion. You can always go crazy with lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles if you want to bulk them up a bit.