What is a Grinder Salad?

A Grinder is an Italian American sandwich that uses a long crusted bread roll, filled with meats, cheeses, vegetables and salad. There are many theories on the Grinder name but some say the sandwich got its name because of how hard the bread is to chew. This is why it usually has a creamy dressed salad to help with the tough bread.

In New England and Pennsylvania, a grinder is normally referred to as a hot submarine sandwich and a cold sandwich is called a sub.

There are also many names identified for the grinder sandwich from the US , New Jersey and across the world. Most common names are the submarine sandwich, subs, hoagie, hero, wedge, spukie or the simple Italian sandwich.

Ingredients to make this Grinder Sandwich

Iceberg lettuce is the base of the salad. You can also use romaine or cos lettuce

Banana peppers which are also known as pepperoncini peppers are my favourite part of the salad!
They are full of flavour and make it taste so good!

Salad Dressing is made with mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, oregano, garlic, red pepper flakes and S&P. You can also make it vegan by using a vegan mayonnaise

A Thick bread roll is essential! I've used a rustic Italian roll but you can even use Focaccia, ciabatta, hoagie roll or cob

Protein, I’ve used plant based chicken schnitzel for my grinder sub. Typically they are made with cold cuts, salami, turkey, ham, or even roast beef. You can really use any protein you like

Cheese, I’ve used Swiss cheese along with grated parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano). You can even use cheddar cheese, provolone cheese, American cheese or even a vegan cheese to make the grinder sub fully vegan

I've also added marinated red peppers and tomatoes. Other toppings you can add are onions, sun dried tomatoes, artichokes, cucumbers or any vegetables

How to make Grinder Salad

Steps to show how to make the grinder salad dressing

Cook protein. Cook the plant based chicken or chosen protein

Make Salad. Add the dressing ingredients to a bowl and whisk together. Then add the iceberg lettuce and banana peppers and mix together until nice and creamy

Marinate tomatoes. Add a teaspoon of olive oil along with salt and pepper to the sliced tomatoes to let them marinate

Prepare bread with cheese. Slice the bread roll in half and if its quite thick, tear out some of the inside
Add a slice of cheese to each half and place in the oven or grill for a few minutes until the cheese has melted

Assemble. Assemble the sandwich starting with the marinated red peppers, plant based chicken (or protein), iceberg salad, parmesan cheese and tomatoes. Place on the top, slice in half and enjoy!!

Steps to show how to prepare the grinder sub sandwich bread with cheese

Grinder sandwich layers to show the order of how to assemble the sub

Tips for the Best Hero Sandwich

Make sure to use a thick bread roll as the base so the sandwich doesn't go soggy from the dressing

Pull some of the insides of the bread out to fit in more fillings. I like to do this before adding the toppings

Don't slice the iceberg lettuce too thin as it will lose its shape and become soggy

Whisk the salad dressing well before adding the lettuce and peppers. It might seem really thick to start, but it will loosen up once the ingredients are tossed in

Marinate the tomatoes with olive oil and S&P, it will make the biggest difference!

Finely grate the Parmesan cheese which makes it taste so much better