Pantry Sandwich

One of my goals in the summer when we head out for the weekend, is to try to pack as minimally as possible. This means, strategically planning and prepping every meal and trying to use the ingredients to the fullest, so that we come home with an empty cooler. This pantry sandwich does just that. Pantry ingredients that work well together in the sandwich, and are great in other meals too if there are leftovers.

Jarred pantry ingredients don’t take up cooler or fridge space. Refrigerate only the leftovers (if you have any!)

Pantry Sandwich Components

When I was developing this sandwich recipe, my criteria was:

  • Limited refrigeration required
  • Low squish factor
  • Easy on-site assembly and prep

I like using ciabatta buns for this sandwich because they are sturdy and don’t squish and flatten as much as hamburger buns do. You could also substitute with naan or tortillas for another low-squish option.

As a spread, I like olive tapenade. It’s briny, salty and full of flavor. Other options could be pesto, sundried tomato pesto or jarred antipasto.

I absolutely love sundried tomatoes. They are bursts of concentrated flavor and you can use them in so many other meals if you have some leftover. You can use sliced or whole sundried tomatoes for this. Oil-packed is best, so you don’t have to rehydrate the dried ones.

Roasted red peppers are an underrated pantry item. They are so sweet and perfectly roasted. Drain the liquid and pat them dry before adding them to your sandwich. I also love them in this Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup for a quick and easy slow-cooker meal.

Feta cheese is the last ingredient and the only ingredient you will need to pack in your cooler for your road trip. If you’re from Winnipeg, local Chaeban feta has a unique, creamy texture that you’re going to want to try! You can definitely substitute with a different cheese, like fresh mozzarella.

This pantry sandwich is quick to assemble, but you can also set out the ingredients so everyone can make their own sandwich.

Making your pantry sandwich

The first step is to toast your buns. You can do this in a toaster, in the oven, on the BBQ, on a campfire or by drizzling with a bit of olive oil and grilling face-down in a skillet. Since all cottages and campsites have different amenities, you have a lot of options here. As I mentioned previously, you can also use naan or tortillas if you’d like a flatter option that would pack well in a backpack.

Next, spread some tapenade on the bottom half. You can definitely spread it on both halves if you want!

Follow up with a layer or sundried tomatoes, then roasted red peppers and finally crumbled feta.

Top it off with the other half of the bun and you’re done. Serve with a side salad or some crispy potato chips!

Using Up Leftovers

If you happen to have any leftover ingredients after making this sandwich, here’s how you can use them up.

  • Toss them into some hot pasta with some garlic-infused olive oil. Check out page 82 of the Ultimate Guide for some other pasta toss ideas.
  • Use them as pizza toppings
  • Make a snack board and serve them with crackers
  • Add them to prepared hummus

Pantry Sandwich

This pantry sandwich uses mostly non-perishable pantry ingredients so you can easily pack it up for your weekend getaways, or throw it together when you have nothing left in the fridge.

Course Main Course, sandwich, Snack
Cuisine Mediterranean
Keyword ciabatta, feta, pantry, roasted red pepper, sandwich, sundried tomato, tapenade
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 4 sandwiches
Author SL

Ingredients

  • 4 ciabatta buns
  • 1 jar olive tapenade
  • 1 jar oil-packed sundried tomatoes (sliced or whole)
  • 1 jar roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry
  • 1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Instructions

  1. Toast ciabatta buns.

  2. Spread one half of each toasted bun with 2 Tbsp olive tapenade.

  3. Top each half with approximately 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes.

  4. Then, top with one roasted red pepper, patted dry and opened up.

  5. Top with approximately 1/4 cup crumbled feta.

  6. Close up the sandwich and enjoy with a side salad or potato chips.

Recipe Notes

To roast your own peppers: 

Cut two red peppers in half and remove the seeds. 

Drizzle the skin with olive oil and roast for 20-25 minutes at 425.  

As soon as they come out of the oven, place peppers in a bowl and cover with a lid or plastic wrap to hold in the steam. 

Let sit for 10 minutes, then peel off the skin. 

Asian Grilled Chicken Salad – Three ways

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

Something we all tend to struggle with now and again is trying to get out of a food rut.  Trying to find new ways to enjoy the foods we already love but eat way too often.  Keeping the same flavors you already enjoy, but changing the way they’re presented is an excellent way to add variety to your menu.

This Asian Grilled Chicken Salad recipe from Manitoba Chicken Producers is a great base for spinning off other recipes.  It serves 4-6 people, so you have the option of serving it family-style for dinner or splitting it up into containers for lunches. You could also make a smaller portion of the salad and use the remaining ingredients to make one of the three completely new meals that I’m sharing today. These three meals use all the same ingredients, along with a few extras:

  • Cashew Chicken Lettuce wraps
  • Asian Chicken Flatbread
  • Chicken Summer Rolls
Photo courtesy of Manitoba Chicken Producers

Why is this a good idea?

If you already have the ingredients on hand, you may as well use them to their full potential. This prevents food waste and allows for flexibility and variety on your menu.  Once you have already purchased some of these ingredients, for example, the hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and sweet chili sauce, you’re going to have more than enough to use in a few more meals, so you’re going to want some ideas to mix it up a bit. Also, if you make one of these recipes for dinner, you may want to use up the remaining ingredients to make a few lunches for the rest of the week.

Jump to Recipe

Prep strategies

If your life is busy like mine is, you’re going to want to save every minute you can in the kitchen, so you can have more time for relaxing and spending time with your family.  There are many ways you can save time executing this dish. Here are a few:

  • Batch cook your chicken
    • If you plan on using these ingredients in the same week in different ways, grill up all your chicken at the same time.  Slice it up and it’s ready to go for the salad, the summer roll, the flatbread and the lettuce wraps. If it isn’t a nice day, baking the chicken works just fine. Whichever cooking method you choose, be sure to use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. This chart will help you ensure your chicken is perfectly cooked.
  • Chop all your veggies at the same time
    • This will be especially helpful if you plan on using them in more than one meal in the same week.
  • Double the sauce, as needed.
    • Depending on which of the four recipes you will be making, double up the sauce if necessary. This will save you from having to make a second batch later.

Did you know that you should only store cooked chicken for three to four days in the fridge?

This guide is helpful for storing all cuts of chicken in your fridge and freezer.

Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I used romaine hearts for these because I love the crunch, but you could definitely use any larger leaf lettuce that could contain the filling. If you don’t have cashews, peanuts would be an excellent substitution.

Jump to Recipe

Asian Chicken Flatbread

chicken flatbread

This recipe is basically a salad on a pizza, minus the cheese. You will be topping it with the ingredients that can be served warm before popping it in the oven, then dressing it with a “salad” of julienned veggies, herbs and a squeeze of lime, once it comes out of the oven.

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Chicken Summer Rolls

These Chicken Summer Rolls make a great lunch or appetizer. They are a bit more time-consuming to prepare than the other recipes, so you’ve been warned! You can use any amount of the sliced veggies for these rolls and you don’t really have to measure, which I love. If you don’t have some of the listed vegetables on hand, you could also try avocado and cucumber as substitutes.

These rolls tend to stick together when stored in the fridge, so it’s a good idea to either individually wrap them in plastic wrap, or a greener option is to place a lettuce or cabbage leaf between each roll when storing them in a container.

Jump to Recipe

Chicken is versatile and nutritious

Chicken is an excellent ingredient for deconstructing and reconstructing because it is so versatile. If you’re looking for other ways to reconstruct and make the most out of the ingredients you buy, check out this post called Greek Chicken – Three Ways or head to manitobachicken.ca for more recipes using Manitoba chicken so you can try some reconstructing on your own!

Share your creations with us by tagging @toobusylivin204 and @manitobachicken on Instagram.

Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps

These fresh lettuce wraps make a great lunch or dinner.

Course Appetizer, Main Course
Keyword chicken, lettuce wrap
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 4
Author SL

Ingredients

  • 1 cooked chicken breast, chopped
  • 1/2 red pepper, diced
  • 1 cup baby corn, sliced in circles
  • 1 Tbsp fresh mint, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 cup cashews
  • 2 romaine hearts
  • 1 lime

Sauce

  • 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1/3 cup sweet chili sauce
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil

Instructions

  1. Grill or pan fry chicken breasts until thermometer reads 170F (about 5-7 minutes per side).

  2. While chicken is cooling, chop the corn, red pepper, mint and cilantro.

  3. Wash and dry romaine leaves, keeping them whole.

  4. Combine sauce ingredients and stir.

  5. Chop chicken.

  6. Heat chicken, red pepper and corn in the frying pan until warm, about 3 minutes.

  7. Add sauce and stir until combined and heated through.

  8. Transfer to a bowl and top with a squeeze of lime, mint, cilantro and cashews.

  9. Serve in romaine leaves.

Asian Chicken Flatbread

A fresh take on a pizza, this flatbread makes a great lunch for one or cut it in triangles for an easy appetizer.

Course Appetizer, Main Course
Keyword asian, chicken, flatbread
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Servings 1 flatbread

Ingredients

  • 1 naan
  • 1/2 cup cooked chicken , sliced
  • 1/4 red pepper, sliced
  • 1/4 cup snow peas, julienned
  • 1/4 cup carrots, julienned
  • 1/4 cup cashews, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh mint, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 lime

Sauce

  • 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. sesame oil

Instructions

  1. Grill or pan fry chicken breasts until thermometer reads 170F (about 5-7 minutes per side).

  2. Set aside to cool, about 10 minutes, then slice thinly.

  3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

  4. Combine sauce ingredients and spread on pizza.

  5. Top with sliced chicken and red pepper.

  6. Place in the oven until heated through and crust is lightly browned. (About 5-7 minutes. )

  7. Remove from oven and top with snow peas, carrots, cashews, mint and cilantro.

  8. Finish with a squeeze of lime.

Chicken Summer Rolls

These Chicken Summer Rolls make a great appetizer or lunch and pack a lot of flavor.

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish
Keyword chicken, rice paper, summer roll
Servings 6 rolls
Author SL

Ingredients

  • 1 chicken breast, cooked
  • 1 carrot, julienned
  • 1/2 red pepper, julienned
  • 6 baby corn cobs, julienned
  • 1 handful snow peas, julienned
  • fresh mint leaves
  • fresh cilantro leaves
  • 2 cups thin rice noodles, cooked
  • 6 rice paper wraps

Sauce

  • 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 lime, juiced

Instructions

  1. Grill or pan fry chicken breasts until thermometer reads 170F (about 5-7 minutes per side). Set aside to cool.

  2. Cook noodles according to package directions and run under cold water to cool. Set aside.

  3. Combine sauce ingredients and set aside.

  4. Julienne all veggies.

  5. Wash and dry mint and cilantro leaves.

  6. In a bowl of warm water, soak one rice paper wrap at a time, gently moving around until pliable. It should not feel stiff.

  7. Spread out the wrap on a cutting board. As you're working on your first roll, place another wrap in the water to soak, so it is ready to go when you have finished making your roll.

  8. Layer fillings in the following order: mint leaves, 1/4 cup noodles, julienned veggies (small handful), 3 slices of chicken, cilantro.

  9. You don't want to overfill the wraps. It's good to make a test roll, to assess how much filling will fit in your wrap.

  10. Fold over the left and right sides of the wrap, holding in the filling.

  11. Start at the top or bottom end, and continue rolling, tucking the filling into the wrap, like you would a burrito.

  12. Dip in sauce to serve.

Recipe Notes

If you’re making this for several people, you may choose to make extra sauce, so that everyone has their own bowl for dipping.  

When storing prepared summer rolls in the fridge, individually wrap them in plastic wrap, or separate them with a lettuce or cabbage leaf in a container to prevent them from sticking together. 

Other julienned vegetables can be used here such as cucumber, avocado, snap peas, and green onion.