Going retro: club sandwiches and a mandarin gin sling

It’s fun to have a crack at some retro classics. So who fancies a club sandwich, devilled eggs and a mandarin gin sling?

Club sandwich. Picture: Guy Bailey

Some retro dishes come and go, others never leave the building. Like a great club sandwich, all crispy bacon against equally crisp lettuce, enveloped in charred bread triangles. Or devilled eggs, with your choice of devilling – horseradish, pepper, or even chilli sauce, the zhuzhed-up mayo that takes this club sanga into the 21st century… alongside a cocktail that always lifts the spirits.

Club sandwich

4 slices streaky bacon

3 tablespoons Kewpie mayo

3 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon capers, chopped

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

A good splash of chilli sauce (see tips)

6 slices hi-tin white bread

200g cooked, thinly sliced chicken breast

2 washed, dried and shredded cos lettuce leaves

1 tomato, sliced

2 slices Spanish onion

25g butter, softened

4 gherkins/cornichons

Potato chips, to serve

Place bacon on a cold griddle pan and heat slowly so the fat renders out and the bacon becomes crisp. Set aside to drain on some kitchen paper, reserving the greased-up griddle pan.

Make the zhuzhed-up dressing by mixing the Kewpie mayo with the lemon juice, chopped capers, parsley and chilli sauce (if using). Taste and correct for seasoning, adding a couple of twists of freshly cracked pepper, if you’re that way inclined.

Butter the bread liberally, then place butter-side up onto the bacon-greased griddle pan and cook on one side to create toasty tiger stripes, while the other side stays fresh and soft.

Place the first piece of bread soft side up on a chopping board and top with a quarter of the mayo mix, then add a quarter of the slices of chicken, then the bacon, lettuce, the tomato and onion, then the next piece of toasted bread, more mayo, chicken, bacon and then the lettuce, tomato and onion, salt and pepper to taste, then top with the remaining bread, toasted side up.

Cut the crusts off and then slice into 2 triangles, skewering each triple decker triangle with a gherkin laying down their life on top of each.

Serve with a side of potato chips and the cocktail below for an in-house-in-house dining experience. Serves 2

Mandarin gin sling

50ml gin

50ml Cointreau

50ml ginger syrup (or cordial)

Juice of 1 lime

200ml mandarin juice (approx 2-3 juicy ones)

12 drops Angostura bitters

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, then pour in the ingredients and shake like Tom Cruise in the ’80s. Strain into coupe glasses and garnish with slices of mandarin. Serves 2

Top tips

Tabasco is an easy pick-up from the shops for chilli sauce, but if you already have Sriracha or another hot sauce in the pantry, splash that in instead

If you’d prefer to cook the bacon or pancetta unsupervised, place strips onto a rack over a foil-lined tray and bake in a hot oven (220C) for 6-8 minutes until crispy.

Reserve the grease for frying croutons or tossing through potatoes for roasting

Devilled eggs. Picture: Guy Bailey

Devilled eggs

6 large free-range eggs, at room temperature

¼ cup Kewpie mayonnaise

½ teaspoon horseradish paste

1 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper

½ teaspoon salt flakes

Zest of 2 lemon

1 tablespoon finely snipped chives

6 thin slices rolled pancetta, grilled until crisp (see tips)

Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil, then turn the heat right down before lowering the eggs in gently. Bring back to a gentle boil and set a timer for the eggs to cook for 14 minutes to very hard-boiled. Place eggs into a bowl of cold water, or run under the tap in a colander to cool down completely. Once they are cooled, peel and rinse eggs lightly to make sure no shell grit remains. Slice eggs in half and, using a teaspoon, pop out the yolks into a small mixing bowl. Reserve whites. To the yolks, add mayonnaise, horseradish, pepper, salt, lemon zest and chives and fork together until smooth. Taste and correct for seasoning. Spoon or pipe dollops back into the egg white “bowls” and place onto a serving plate with extra chives and half a piece of crispy pancetta. Makes 12 serves