Quick date check… National Sandwich Day was Tuesday. Which means by the time you’re reading this, we need another excuse for sandwich-making.

But we don’t miss holidays. We re-invent them to our own mad (meaty) ends. So National Sandwich Day is now National Sandwich Week.

As a member of the Dead Meat Society, consider yourself invited.

Today is our day to wax poetic on all things sandwiches, the greatest food invention man has ever known.

Think about it, the sandwich is the most democratic food on earth. Everyone eats them all the time. You can even make an argument that a taco is a sandwich. Maybe a hot dog in a bun is a sandwich. No one’s quite sure.

That means, you have no excuse to be bored by one. Lucky for us, Forbes (yes, the wealthy guys) went and rounded up 17 ways to celebrate, and two had our full attention:

  1. A smoked pastrami latke sandwich out of New Orleans, and…

  2. The one we cannot stop thinking about, Truth BBQ’s brisket banh mi.

WHY THE BANH MI

Simple. A banh mi is already a perfect sandwich machine of crunch, acid, heat, and fat.

Now drop smoked Texas brisket into the middle of it. Vietnamese brightness, Texas smoke, one handheld masterpiece.

And it’s your smoking challenge of the week…

THE CHALLENGE

Make a banh mi this week. We’ll give you two ways in, depending on how much you want to suffer for your art.

The easy way. Got leftover brisket? This leftover brisket banh mi is the move. Reheat sliced brisket in a skillet with a splash of broth so it stays juicy, then pile on quick-pickled red onion, carrot, radish, jalapeño, cilantro, and a smear of mayo on a soft baguette. Done in fifteen minutes.

The pitmaster way. Feeling ambitious? Go smoked pork belly burnt ends banh mi. Five-spice pork belly cubes, smoked at 225 for two hours, glazed in honey, soy, and sriracha, covered to turn tender, then uncovered to crisp the edges. Clear your afternoon.

Not sold on the banh mi? We’ll allow it. It’s Sandwich Week. Make whatever your sandwich heart desires that can fit between 2 slices of bread.

Try out:

A California tri-tip sandwich or a tray of smoked chuck roast sliders.

Both excellent substitutes if you’re not up for the whole operation this week.

However you choose to celebrate (unofficial) National Sandwich Week, the only thing we insist on is that you celebrate.

And depending on what sandwich you make, let us all see it, huh?

Post it in the Facebook group so the rest of us can judge your creation.

Bonus points if you bake the bread from scratch too…