It is Principally a Hen Pot Pie on a Bun and It is Superb

In accordance with one story, the sloppy Joe originated in Iowa, a descendant of the state’s free meat sandwich. True or not, the Joe went mainstream many years in the past, whereas its poultry counterpart remains to be roughly distinctive to a different a part of the Midwest.

The Ohio shredded hen sandwich, additionally known as a “sloppy chook,” is mainly hen pot pie filling on a bun. Within the northwestern and central elements of the state, it’s a staple, served in faculties, ice cream retailers, and retirement properties. The usual recipe requires a can of hen breast meat, a can or two of cream-of-something soup, a sluggish cooker, and a pack of burger buns. Many cooks additionally use crackers, stuffing combine, breadcrumbs, or potato chips to thicken the slow-cooked filling, making it extra scoopable.

The sandwich is simple to make and straightforward to get pleasure from, so long as you might have a Midwesterner’s appreciation for carbs on carbs, which is why it’s been widespread in Ohio for the reason that Nineteen Forties. Compact and transportable, it’s the strolling taco of hen dinners. It doesn’t have the zing of a tomato-sauced sloppy Joe, nevertheless it has its personal heat, steamy, comforting attraction.

As you may think, some variations can be bland and mushy. Engaged on this recipe, I didn’t need to reimagine the sandwich, or add something you possibly can’t simply discover on the grocery store, which might really feel like a betrayal of its convenience-food origins. I needed to provide you with a model that tasted like extra than simply comfort… with out numerous additional effort.

Ranging from scratch received me there. As a substitute of canned hen breasts, I used contemporary hen thighs, which is a extra forgiving lower—much less more likely to dry out and naturally richer in taste. I sear the thighs to develop fond and taste, braise them, shred them, then end them in a type of home made cream of celery soup. The ingredient record remains to be brief and acquainted, however I changed the crumbly thickeners akin to breadcrumbs utilized in conventional recipes with a roux and puréed greens, to maintain issues easy and comparatively gentle.

For some mouthwatering tang, I added pickled banana peppers, a well-liked topping for different sandwiches in addition to pizzas in Buckeye State sandwich retailers and pizzerias. They aren’t commonplace on shredded hen sandwiches, however I’m not the one Ohioan who makes use of them, and my analysis turned up extra shocking secret components, together with mushrooms, eggs, and numerous cheeses. Customization is a part of the custom.

There’s no good cause why the shredded hen sandwich is simply an Ohio factor—no hyper-regional surplus of canned hen, to my information. It’s a dish that might slot in nearly wherever. (Who doesn’t like hen and gravy?) Maintain this simple recipe in your again pocket for potlucks, tailgates, and all these different events if you want a sloppy sandwich to scoop out of a skillet.

Cook dinner Mode
(Maintain display awake)