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After the recent posting of a few eccentric sandwich combinations favoured by people I know, we received a number of comments from our readers suggesting some weird and wonderful sandwich combinations that they swear by. 

How could we leave it there? With all these suggestions, we had to taste them. In what could potentially be the world’s worst sandwich platter – we had our Unusual Sandwich Combination Taste Test. 

I selected a top ten from the suggestions, including two of the ones I had initially mentioned and only the exceptionally brave were prepared to put their taste buds on the line. Since Vegemite featured in so many of the combos mentioned and makes a uniquely unusual sandwich itself, all suggestions that included Vegemite were discounted. And since many combos suggested peanut butter, I selected only one that included this as an ingredient. My apologies if your personal favourite didn’t make it to the final platter. 

Our testers were asked to give each sandwich two scores out of ten: – one for the before (anticipation rating), and for the ‘after’ (actual taste score). Comparing the two would then give us a disappointment rating and a disappointment ladder. We would soon know if there were any surprisingly delicious and inspiring sandwich combinations on our plate. 

The sandwiches and their average scores were: 

Salmon, Peas and Chips

 

Before: 3.88/10 

After: 3/10 (equal worst tasting) 

Overall Disappointment index: 0.88 

Selected from my original post, mushy salmon acting as paste for the peas and chips. Got the usual “pea’d on the table” jokes and no new converts. 

Apple and Mars bar

Before: 4.75/10 

After: 4.71/10 

Overall Disappointment index: -0.04 

Originally from the Emerald aisle, this combo proved to be only very slightly more tasty than most expected. An odd burst of chocolatly goodness that was supported by the apple. Not as horrible as first sounding, but still not great, although one taster did think they were delicious and promised to go home and subject their 5-year-old son to the ordeal. 

Salt & Vinegar Chips and Peanut Butter

Before: 3.63/10 

After: 3/10 (equal worst tasting) 

Overall Disappointment index: 0.63 

As suggested by Anne Maree with an assist from Leisa. The peanut butter was kind enough to overpower the chips while still leaving a vinegar affront at the end of the palate. It is genuinely horrible. 

Bacon and Banana

Before: 4.25/10 

After: 4.57/10 

Overall Disappointment index: -0.32 

As suggested by Alison. Would have performed better but the bacon went cold very quickly, and some of the tasters had to deal with that.  There are surprisingly more fans of the sweet/savoury mix out there. 

Cream Cheese and Dates

Before: 5.25/10 

After: 3.86/10 

Overall Disappointment index: 1.39 (winner of most disappointing) 

As suggested by Sheila. The cream cheese and dates sanga was the second most anticipated combo on offer, but failed to deliver. Personally, I put the blame on the chef for not getting the right balance of cream cheese (too scarce) and dates (too abundant). 

Tomato and Chocolate Nesquik

Before: 2.63/10 (least desirable before tasting) 

After: 3.43/10 

Overall  Disappointment index: -0.80 (biggest improvement on before vs after) 

As suggested by MJ. Although this sandwich had the best improvement in score after tasting, it was made possible by the horrible score it had before tasting. The problem is the Nesquik quickly reacts with the moisture of the tomato, leaving a very poor looking brown sludge on your plate. The taste of the Nesquik is not overpowering though, and tasted pretty normal if you kept your eyes closed. 

Milo and Condensed Milk

Before: 4.88/10 

After: 3.86/10 

Overall Disapointment index: 1.02 

As suggested by Sandy. The bread didn’t so much soak up the milk as it did assimilate with it, to create a heavy, sticky new entity that could not be balanced by Milo alone. I like to think of this overly sweet sandwich as “Fairy bread in sepia”. 

Beetroot and Cheese

Before: 5.13/10 

After: 5.29/10 

Overall Disapointment index: -0.16 

As suggested by Sharon. When you think about it, this combination is just a patty and some lettuce away from a regular burger combination. As such, it wasn’t as offensive as some others and pretty tame in the end. 

Carrot and French Onion Dip

Before:  5.75/10 (winner least feared) 

After: 5.71/10 (winner best tasting) 

Overall Disapointment index: 0.04 

As suggested by Jodi. If you replaced the bread with crackers, this would be standard nibbles at any house around Australia. Throwing carrot and French onion dip between the bread was new, but pretty pleasant and not a bad starter. 

Orange and Onion

Before: 4.63/10 

After: 4.14/10 

Overall Disapointment index: 0.48 

As suggested by Kim. I initially expected this combination to fare much poorer, but the sandwich was lifted thanks to a particularly beautiful tasting orange, which drowned the onion flavour. Probably not a sandwich that would impress the in-laws, but in the privacy of your own home, not one you need to be overly ashamed of. 

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Thanks to everyone that took the time to comment on the previous post and giving us a chance to sample what you have been stocking your lunch boxes with for years. 

In conclusion, we decided that an obscure sandwich filling is a personal thing and most seem unlikely to catch on. But, let’s face it, caviar is also an acquired taste. Perhaps apple and Mars bar sandwiches or bacon and banana sangas will be on the Michelin star restaurant menus sometime soon. 

If you’ve been brave enough to give one of these a go, please let us know. If not, we’ll give something else the office taste test next time. Perhaps home made cocktail recommendations? Or the best cheesecake toppings? They sound like a lot more fun! 

Some of the action from the tastings: