Chef notes

There’s something about family recipes that are passed down through generations that just taste better — and that’s definitely true of the marinade at the heart of this bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato sandwich from executive chef and owner of Pig Beach BBQ, Matt Abdoo.

The sandwich all starts with his mom's Italian marinade, which you can use on just about anything, from vegetables to steak, fish and pork. It’s made with a combination of olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic powder, dried oregano, dried basil, onion powder, honey and chopped fresh parsley. After all the ingredients are mixed, he then adds it to a large zip-top plastic bag, along with butterflied chicken breasts, and massages the meat until it’s well coated. After marinating for at least one hour, the chicken is grilled until charred and cooked through.

To assemble, smear Texas toast with some herb mayonnaise and top with butter lettuce leaves, strips of crispy bacon, tomatoes, sliced avocado, and the grilled chicken. It’s an irresistible Italian-inspired spin on this classic sandwich.

Swap Option: You can use alternate proteins like fatty chicken thighs, pork tenderloin and filet mignon in place of chicken breasts.

Special Kitchen Equipment For this recipe, you'll need a grill or large grill pan, tongs and a sharp serrated knife.

Technique Tip: Be sure to clean and oil your grill before cooking on it.

Get Ingredients: If you don’t have everything you need on hand, you can easily purchase all of the ingredients (just click the orange button below that says ‘Get Ingredients’). You can pick and choose exactly what ingredients you need based on what’s in your pantry and they’ll be on your doorstep before you know it.

Ingredients

For the Italian Marinade

1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

For the Grilled Chicken Sandwiches

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied
1½ cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup minced chives
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon minced shallots
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1 clove garlic, grated
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
8 slices Texas toast
1 head butter lettuce, for serving
24 strips cooked bacon
2 tomatoes, sliced
2 avocados, sliced

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Preparation

Make the marinade: in a small mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients, then transfer to a nonreactive food-safe container and refrigerate until ready to use.

In an airtight, zip-top bag, add the butterflied chicken breasts and 1 cup of the prepared Italian marinade. Massage the bag to evenly distribute the marinade. Transfer to the refrigerator and marinate for at least 1 hour, or up to overnight

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, chives, parsley, shallots, thyme, garlic, lemon, salt, pepper and sugar. Transfer to a food-safe container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat your grill and create two zones: one side set to high heat and the other side set to low heat.

Remove the marinated chicken from the zip-top bag and shake off any excess marinade. Place the chicken on the high-heat side of the grill and cook for 4 minutes. Flip the chicken and continue to cook for an additional 4 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reaches 160 F. If the chicken needs more time to cook, transfer it to the low-heat side of the grill and close the lid. Continue to cook the chicken until the internal temperature reaches 160 F. Transfer the cooked chicken to a platter to rest.

To assemble the sandwiches: toast each slice of Texas toast. Smear each slice of toast with 1 tablespoon of herb mayonnaise. Place 3 to 4 leaves of butter lettuce on the bottom slice of the toast. Evenly arrange 6 slices of cooked bacon on top of the lettuce, followed by 2 slices of tomato per sandwich. Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper, then top with 2 pieces of grilled chicken and sliced avocado. Season the avocado with salt and pepper, then place the other slice of Texas toast on top. Skewer each half with a long toothpick, cut in half and serve.