The sandwich is only slightly older than America’s most beloved democratic institutions, and while an American didn’t invent the sandwich, it’s still an American institution unto itself.
A new survey of 2,000 US residents suggests a remarkable degree of consensus on the best ingredients in handheld food.
The perfect sandwich, according to the will of the American people, calls for sliced tomato (54 percent of respondents agree), cheddar cheese (39 percent agree), and Black Forest ham (39 percent agree).
Although America’s favorite condiment is ketchup (which enjoys a 61 percent approval rating), only a few would recommend adding it to a cold ham sandwich.
But that wasn’t all the new survey found.
For starters, most Americans would like their toasted sandwich too please (58 percent agree).
The perfect sandwich, according to a survey of 2,000 US residents, calls for sliced tomato (54% of respondents agree), cheddar cheese (39% agree), and Black Forest ham (the 39%). The majority, 58 percent, also wanted their toastie
As seen with the BLT sandwich pictured, approximately 33 percent of Americans surveyed expressed a preference for making their sandwich with two slices of multigrain bread.
The random, double-opt-in survey was commissioned by Illinois-based deli vendor Buddig and conducted by market research firm OnePoll in July.
Two in three US residents surveyed (67 percent) said they could survive on sandwiches alone for a full week.
The Americans surveyed also had a majority opinion on the main vegetable toppings inside their sandwich: onions (54 percent agree) and cucumber (51 percent).
When it comes to condiments, 58 percent of Americans viewed barbecue sauce, mayonnaise and honey mustard favorably, with ranch dressing being their least favorite at 26 percent.
Black Forest ham shared its favoritism ranking with runners-up honey turkey, honey ham and regular ham with almost the same 39 percent approval rating.
When it comes to cheeses, the most preferred after cheddar turned out to be Swiss and American (36 percent approval each), with Alpine Hard Swiss Gruyère near the bottom of the list (just 1 percent approval ).
While it’s what’s inside that counts, the expressed preferences of many Americans for sandwiches encased in wholemeal bread (37 percent), sourdough (36 percent) or multigrain bread (33 percent).
“Given the rising cost of groceries, the majority of respondents have switched to preparing meals at home,” according to Buddig’s executive vice president of marketing, Tom Buddig.
Among those surveyed, 67 percent said they personally felt the sandwiches were good value for money, providing, in Buddig’s words, “protein options that are tasty and affordable.”
For 42 percent of the 2,000 US residents surveyed, cutting costs amid rising food prices has been a growing concern; 67 percent (a two-thirds majority) agree that sandwiches are a solid, inexpensive meal.
But Americans love their sandwiches in their own right, too, telling the OnePoll survey team that they crave a sandwich about four times a week.
Amid all this consensus, however, there were clear ideological flaws: 29 percent of Americans preferred simpler ingredients, describing their sandwich approach as ‘minimalist.’
Another 27 percent defined themselves as “savoury eaters,” in contrast to 15 percent of Americans who reported they were “sweet tooth” sandwich eaters.
“A sandwich offers an affordable and convenient option no matter what time you can take a moment to eat in your busy schedule,” according to Tom Buddig.
And indeed, there was a broad consensus among Americans in favor of enjoying a sandwich during non-traditional hours outside of lunch (59 percent approval rating).
“Today, people are working differently than before,” Buddig said. “Lunch time can be different times of day for different people based on their circumstances.”
While many Americans reported that they liked to eat a sandwich in the comfort of their home (36 percent) or in a public park (36 percent), their true preference, according to the survey, was at the beach (38 percent). .
