9 Sandwiches For Springtime

Our favorite recipes that feature seasonal ingredients, as well as a few sandwiches that are perfect for packing in a picnic basket.

The Serious Eats Team

Updated April 23, 2024

Side view of chacareo chileno — Serious Eats / Estudio Como

It's finally nice outside—or, if you live in a more fortunate climate than us New Yorkers, it's even nicer than it is the rest of the year. From the asparagus-ricotta-mint tartines to soft-shell crab sandwiches and a towering muffuletta, these are our nine favorite sandwiches to whip up in the spring. Some of these sandwiches celebrate spring produce, while others are perfect for eating at the park on a big blanket, or at the end of a hiking trail.

Asparagus Tartine With Ricotta and Mint
Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt
Several years ago, Kenji contributed several tartines that celebrate spring produce and only require a handful of ingredients. Here, a slab of well-toasted bread is topped with a layer of ricotta, blanched and chopped asparagus, torn mint leaves, and a healthy glug of good olive oil. If you come back from the farmers market with fresh fava beans, try making a tartine with goat cheese and Marcona almonds. Or, if you splurged on some morel mushrooms, sauté them with a little shallot and serve as a tartine with snipped chives.
Asparagus Tartine With Ricotta and Mint
Classic New Orleans Muffuletta
Serious Eats / Mateja Zvirotic Andrijanic
There are few things more beautiful than the cross section of a muffuletta. Our version of this New Orleans classic features a mountain of soppressata, capicola, mortadella, and provolone, plus a briny olive salad made with capers, roasted red peppers, giardiniera, garlic, and a mix of oil-packed olives. This sandwich is ideal for a relaxed picnic, because it's best after the garlicky olive salad has had an hour to soak into the bread. If you're on a long hike with several friends and portability is paramount, try Kenji's shooter-style muffuletta.
Classic New Orleans Muffuletta
Grilled Lemongrass- and Coriander-Marinated Tofu Vietnamese Sandwiches
J. Kenji López-Alt
This bánh mì might be vegan, but it's got just as much flavor—and texture—as its pork-filled counterpart. We ensure the tofu gets extra-crisp by drying it thoroughly and cooking it over indirect heat. The sandwich bread is smeared with vegan mayo and loaded up with pickled carrots and daikon, fresh cucumber, jalapeño, cilantro, and the tofu.
Grilled Lemongrass- and Coriander-Marinated Tofu Vietnamese Sandwiches
Classic Fried Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches With Lettuce and Tomato
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
Soft-shell crabs start to appear in markets towards the end of spring—a perfect excuse to whip up a beer batter and get frying. If you'd rather not go through the whole deep-frying rigamarole, Daniel has put together some other options, including this báhn mì-inspired recipe and a butter-sautéed soft-shell crab sandwich with roasted tomato salsa.
Classic Fried Soft-Shell Crab Sandwiches With Lettuce and Tomato
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Herbed Cucumber Radish Tea Sandwiches
Serious Eats / Maria del Mar Cuadra
Radishes, pea shoots, and other springtime treats fill these tea sandwiches, which get a healthy slathering of labneh that's been mixed with minced chives and finely chopped dill.
Herbed Cucumber Radish Tea Sandwiches
Mayo-Free Mediterranean Tuna Salad Sandwiches
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
As much as we love a classic tuna salad sandwich, it's not ideal picnic food. The mayo mixture quickly works its way through the bread, creating just-a-bit-too-soggy sandwiches. So when our sandwich has to last through a little bit of travel, we make this mayo-free Mediterranean tuna salad sandwich. It features flakey, high-quality oil-packed tuna, red wine vinegar–soaked red onions, and a splash of fish sauce or a hit of minced anchovies to bump up the savory flavors.
Get the recipe for Mayo-Free Mediterranean Tuna Salad Sandwiches
Steak Sandwiches With Roasted Tomatoes, Parmesan, and Radicchio
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
Building a steak sandwich before you head to the park or on a hike is a true act of self-love. This particular one is layered with a roasted cherry tomato jam, a creamy sauce spiked with anchovy and cheese, a light salad, pickled onions, and parmesan. It doesn't come together quite as quickly as some of our other favorites, but you'll thank yourself when you unwrap it and take your first enormous bite.
Get the recipe for Steak Sandwiches With Roasted Tomatoes, Parmesan, and Radicchio
Chacarero Chileno (Chilean Steak and Bean Sandwiches)
Serious Eats / Estudio Como
As long as you're on a steak sandwich kick, you might as well—really, you should—try your hand at this Chilean one with steak and green beans. It's simple, featuring only a handful of non-pantry ingredients, making it a great choice for a spontaneous dinner. Gently tenderized steak is slathered with a mayo mixture before it's grilled, and green beans are blanched until crisp-tender, thinly sliced on the bias, and mixed with peperoncini and their flavorful liquid. The steak and a big handful of green beans are stacked on sturdy sandwich rolls (such as telera or ciabatta) along with juicy tomatoes.
Get the recipe for Chacarero Chileno (Chilean Steak and Bean Sandwiches)
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Grilled Blackened Fish Sandwiches
Serious Eats / Julia Hartbeck
With temperatures rising, it's time to break the grill out, give it a good cleaning, and start cooking dinner outdoors. Start the season off right with these simple blackened fish sandwiches. Inspired by Daniel's Florida family vacations, the simple fixings on this sandwich place the focus squarely on the fish.
Grilled Blackened Fish Sandwiches