the sandwich goes east • 三明治往东方走

Student life in Beijing is certainly nothing to complain about, though it can be a challenge to weave a meal-plan into a schedule with the equivalent of 6 bosses and 6 offices. Tuesdays and Thursday afford no break for me; just thinking of lollygagging between classes means I could miss a quiz delivered at the ring of the bell.

It is the fourth week of my first semester at Peking University (PKU). In China, college classes are sectioned into 2-hour blocks, each with a blink of an intermission. When class lets out, you have 20 minutes to take care of necessary business and navigate across campus, over the hills, and through the crowds (!) to your next class. The journey requires another, more demanding, level of [physical and mental!] skill than is typically required at such intellectual hubs.

Hunger lies in wait, with nothing passive about its expectations. It isn't that food is not readily available here on campus ... the 'intermission' snacks cater to carnivores and starchites, with processed cookies, so-called pastries, and -if you eat of meat- the 'convenient' burrito (yes... the Mexican specialty has landed in Beijing, if not only where foreign shadows fall.)

And sure, canteens and the questionable dives are readily available. The food is even likely to be cooked that day, if not in right front of you [read: no foodservice giant pushing frozen variations of the same flavor!] The problem lies in that the queuing itself, which not only is a hazard (imagine elbows, chopsticks, slick floors from spilled soup, etc.), takes more time than it does to ingest the hard-earned meal.

What to do and what to eat on such a day with no time for cooking or ordering out? The good ol' sandwich has come to the rescue once again - even here in Beijing. In fact, my Chinese apartmate (apartment +mate) even prepares a locally-flavored version when she is pressed for time!

Below is the sandwich that I whipped up in defense of a long 9-hour stretch of classes:

... the music of Anaheim zingers between
sweet miso and ripened tomato ...

The Recipe: Miso Tickles the Tomato [Sandwich]
note: such a name could easily be found on a menu here in Beijing!


SWEET•EGG•BREAD•THICKLY•SLICED
slivered•salted•butter•slices
crunchy•green•cabbage•leaf
red-miso-smothered-liberally
hot!•green•Anaheim•slices
ripe•red•juicy•tomato•slices
fried•egg•sunny•side•up*
crunchy•green•cabbage•leaf
cream•cheese•slathered•freely
thickly•sliced•aged•cheddar•cheese
SWEET•EGG•BREAD•THICKLY•SLICED
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

*Admission: there was no egg in my sandwich today, an addition forgotten that was sorely regretted.

I will, however, take a moment to expound upon the good qualities of this sandwich's composition. Thickly sliced egg-bread is a great variant of the more traditional (but hard to find in Beijing) whole-wheat bread and was actually quite pleasing to a hungry appetite. The tomatoes couldn't hold onto their juice and had mixed quite nicely with the salty miso. That said, the sweetness of the miso in turn was complimented by the layer of cream cheese for a satisfying balance of sweet and salty. The crunch of the cabbage added just enough masticatory texture for spiking the serotonin levels. And the thinly sliced Anaheim pepper threw a heat tough enough to take on the chill of Fall... or another lecture!

Looking for another Eastern influenced version of the ol' standby? Below you will find another take, all too influence by the local Chinese bakeries: the open-faced broiled sandwich.

My friend Debbie and I concocted this original on a desparate afternoon a few weeks back, though unfortunately there is no "final" picture to show; just this mid-preparation before-the-broiling snap:

The Recipe: Open-faced "Beijing" Broiler

thinly•sliced•pink•Chinese•turnip
thinly•sliced•white•Chinese•cabbage
fried•egg•sunny•side•up
tomato•sauce•ribbon
red•onion•slivers
aged•white•cheddar•cheese
fresh•spinach•leaves
slivered•salted•butter•slices
SWEET•EGG•BREAD•THICKLY•SLICED
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

If the above image isn't tempting enough, then I'll try to persuade you here. Vegetarian and full of flavor - the roastedness of the melted cheese laced with onions and spinach, topped off with the crunch of fresh turnip and cabbage. When you use what you've got on hand, the combination can bring a surprise that is worth repeating!

If you dare, I'd be honored if you tried either of these... and furthermore, I'll challenge you to substitute ingredients from your pantry - and let me know how it turns out!