Cheesy Chopped Bacon Chicken Ranch Sandwich on the Flatrock

In partnership with Cabot  

Fifteen minutes, a hot griddle, a few simple ingredients, delicious Cabot Vermont Cheddar cheese and a big kitchen cleaver. Those are the things you need for a delicious cheesy chopped bacon chicken ranch sandwich on the Flatrock– which makes an amazing quick and easy family dinner!

CHEESY CHOPPED SANDWICHES

If you watch social media trends, you have without a doubt seen a wide variety of chopped sandwiches being highlighted lately. From cold deli sandwiches with salami and provolone to hot and melty Philly cheesesteak hoagies, the sky is the limit on ways you can chop a sandwich. The steps are simple: assemble some delicious ingredients, prep your bread, and chop away until all the ingredients are combined and heaped on your sandwich roll.

And while the trend has taken off, we wanted to give this approach our own touch by cooking everything up on the Traeger Flatrock griddle. From start to finish– everything that is featured in this dish is cooked on the hot griddle in our backyard. The result is a super delicious cheesy chopped sandwich that keeps the kitchen clean and the house’s interior cool.

And it couldn’t have been more perfect for our family– each person’s sandwich can be crafted individually with their preferred ingredient ratios. It’s like going out for a delicious hot sandwich, but never having to leave the house.

These cheesy chopped bacon chicken and ranch sandwiches, cooked up on the Traeger Flatrock, feature grilled marinated chicken, lots of melted Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese, crisp bacon, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, red onions and a heaping serving of homemade horseradish ranch sauce.

Give this tasty recipe a try today and customize it to your heart’s desire. But don’t skimp on the cheese– that brings it all together!!

CABOT CHEESE MAKES IT DELICIOUS

For this recipe, we knew for sure that using our favorite cheese– from Cabot Creamery Cooperative– was the way to go. With the distinct and delicious flavor of the Vermont Sharp Cheddar slices and the incredibly melty texture, we knew that this cheese would stand out in flavor and stand up to the heat of the Traeger Flatrock Griddle.

Not only is the cheese delicious, but the ease of use is something that we can get behind. With two busy toddlers underfoot, getting dinner on the table for the four of us can be a feat. Cabot’s Vermont Sharp Cheddar cheese slices come packaged in an easy-to-use way with plenty of slices in one package for a few family meals. And the way it’s packaged makes it easy to seal and refrigerate again after opening, limiting waste and keeping the cheese fresh and delicious.

BOLD AND BALANCED CHEESE

We think that Cabot’s Vermont Sharp cheddar cheese if full of flavor and has a smooth slightly tangy finish that really compliments grilled food. Admittedly, when we pull the Cabot cheese out of the fridge for a recipe, we usually have to distribute a few slices around– one for each of the twins to snack on and a couple bites for mom and dad. It’s the perfect cheese for snacking on in addition to cooking with!

HOW TO GRILL CHEESE TO MELT

Sometimes, you’ll see that real cheese used in recipes on the grill doesn’t fully melt. At least not the way fake “cheese” melts. But with a few simple steps and a little extra time, we’ve been successful in getting super amazing melty cheese in our recipes using our favorite Cabot Creamery cheeses. Here are some hot tips:

1. Cheeses with a higher fat content tend to melt more quickly. So if you’re in the hunt for super melty cheese, you may want to pick up a bag of Cabot’s shredded whole milk mozzarella. But cheddar cheeses can melt just as well as a mozzarella… just stick with the more mild versions as they are aged for less time and therefore have more moisture overall.
2. If you need maximum meltage in your recipe, it’s recommended that you shred the cheese you’re using. Start with one of Cabot’s bars of cheese and shred it yourself (or buy a bag of their shredded cheese for a shortcut). The thin shape of the cheese will allow it to melt more quickly. Or, like in our recipe, use the pre-sliced cheese for similar results.
3. Give yourself some time! Rather than blast the heat on your griddle and hope that the cheese melts quickly and evenly, you’re better off turning down the heat on the grill, adding the cheese and taking a deep breath. Some time + heat can make a huge difference. If you’re able to, cover the cheese with a dome or lid while you’re cooking which will keep the heat trapped around the cheese ensuring it melts from below and above.
4. A little extra steam can help. When you’re cooking food on a griddle, there’s a tried and true trick to getting good cheese melting– and you can thank your local short order chef for this tip. Add a splash of water near the food with the cheese on it and then cover the whole thing with a lid or dome. Give it a few minutes and you’ll open the lid to find perfect meltage. Just as we mentioned in #1, moisture can make a big difference in melting cheese, especially cheeses like Cabot’s terrific lineup of cheddar cheeses.

PRIMARY INGREDIENTS

• Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese Slices
• Chicken thighs
• Chicken marinade (soy sauce, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, agave, garlic, cumin and dijon mustard)
• Bacon
• Iceberg lettuce
• Tomatoes
• Red Onion
• Horseradish ranch sauce (mayo, hot sauce, horseradish, ranch dressing mix, buttermilk, parmesan cheese
• Hoagie rolls

WHY COOKING CHEESY CHOPPED SANDWICHES ON THE TRAEGER WORKS 

Chopped sandwiches have taken the world by a storm on social media lately. From ground meat and veggies chopped together on a hot griddle with lots of cheese to cold deli sandwich ingredients chopped together before being piled on a bun, there are lots of ways to make a chopped sandwich.

In this iteration, we wanted to use a hefty piece of chicken– so we started with chicken thighs that can take on a lot of flavor from a delicious marinade. Once marinated, they went onto a hot griddle to cook through and then were covered in layers of melty Cabot Vermont Cheddar Cheese. The distinct and rich flavor of the cheese, paired with the marinated chicken really shone as the key ingredients to these cheesy chopped sandwiches. And the veggies added some requisite crunch to our dish.

The nice thing about this cook is that everything is done on the Traeger Flatrock Griddle. All at once. In about 15 minutes total. For a busy family like ours, this is the ideal way to cook on a warm summer night and the resulting sandwiches can be customized to each person’s liking. Add more sauce and less lettuce for some, and more chicken, cheese and bacon for others!

STEP-BY-STEP

• Prepare marinade in a shallow dish or bowl by combining the soy sauce, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, olive oil, agave, cumin and dijon and whisking until well blended.
• Place the chicken thighs in the marinade and turn to coat.
• Cover the marinade and refrigerate the chicken for at least one hour, turning the meat at least once.
• Preheat your Traeger Flatrock griddle in two zones to medium heat.
• Arrange the bacon slices on one zone of the hot griddle and cook until just crisp.
• Transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate and scrape off most of the bacon grease.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade and place it on the section of the hot griddle where you just cooked the bacon.
• While the chicken cooks…
• Make the horseradish ranch sauce by mixing together the mayo, horseradish, ranch mix, buttermilk, hot sauce and parmesan. Taste and adjust seasoning to your preferences.
• Assemble the rest of your ingredients– slice the tomatoes, wash and cut the lettuce into big pieces, and slice the red onion on a big cutting board.
• Slice the hoagie rolls in half, leaving the edge intact.
• Brush the inside of the hoagie rolls with the remaining 1/2 tsp mayonnaise.
• Flip the chicken and continue cooking until it reaches an internal temperature of 150*.
• Add slices of the Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar cheese to the top of each chicken piece on the griddle.
• Cover the chicken and cheese with a cooking dome or lid and continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches about 160* and the cheese is fully melted.
• Allow the chicken to rest on a loosely tented plate for about 5 minutes.
• Toast the hoagie roll until golden brown.
• Put 3-4 chicken and cheese pieces on top of the vegetables on your cutting board.
• Add a few slices of bacon and a few spoonfuls of the prepared sauce.
• Using a cleaver, chop your ingredients until even bite-sized pieces have been achieved and the ingredients are combined.
• Scoop the chopped chicken, cheese and vegetables into the prepared hoagie rolls.
• Serve your Cheesy Chopped Bacon Chicken Ranch sandwiches while hot and enjoy!

ALTERNATE RECIPES/PRODUCT LINKS

Here are some other cheesy recipes to cook up on your Traeger, featuring Cabot’s amazing products!

• Smoky Sweet & Heat Cheese Ball
• Pimento Stuffed Cheeseburgers
• Loaded Baked Mac & Cheese
• Smoked Green Chile Shotgun Shells

Products used in this cook:

• Our family loves using Cabot Creamery Co-operative’s cream cheese and seriously sharp cheddar cheeses, and they work particularly well in this kind of recipe. Not only does the quality of the cheese stand out, but the distinct and sharp flavor of the cheddar cheese comes through really well with this combination of ingredients. We are using amazing ingredients in our cooking, but we are also using products made by a certified B-Corp that has an intent focus on sustainability, land stewardship, and being good community citizens. As a B-Corp, Cabot Creamery Co-operative has hung their hat on being a positive contributor to the community and environmental problems. As an elementary teacher, getting to partner with a company like Cabot means that I’m demonstrating to my students how corporate citizenship can make a positive impact!
• Traeger Flatrock Griddle– The addition of a gas-powered griddle to our arsenal of Traeger grills means that dinners like this– fast, delicious and family friendly– are even easier to make and enjoy with two busy toddlers underfoot. The three distinct cooking zones mean we can get perfect cooks on everything we make, in limited time.

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Cheesy Chopped Bacon Chicken Ranch Sandwiches

thisjewcanque

All the ingredients of an amazing bacon chicken ranch sandwich, topped with Cabot cheddar and chopped into a smashingly-delicious sandwich.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Marinating Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course main, sandwich

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Equipment

• Traeger grill
• Pan or dish
• Whisk
• Cutting board and cleaver knife
• Spatula

Ingredients

  

• 6 slices Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese Slices
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
• Chicken marinade
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• Juice of one lime
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tbsp agave
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 6 slices bacon
• 1/4 head Iceberg lettuce
• 3 small tomatoes
• 4 slices red onion
• Horseradish ranch sauce
• 1/4 cup mayo
• 2 tsp hot sauce
• 2 tbsp horseradish
• 2 tbsp ranch dressing mix
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• Hoagie rolls

Instructions

 

• Prepare marinade in a shallow dish or bowl by combining the soy sauce, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, olive oil, agave, cumin and dijon and whisking until well blended.
• Place the chicken thighs in the marinade and turn to coat.
• Cover the marinade and refrigerate the chicken for at least one hour, turning the meat at least once.
• Preheat your Traeger Flatrock griddle in two zones to medium heat.
• Arrange the bacon slices on one zone of the hot griddle and cook until just crisp.
• Transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate and scrape off most of the bacon grease.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade and place it on the section of the hot griddle where you just cooked the bacon.
• While the chicken cooks…
• Make the horseradish ranch sauce by mixing together the mayo, horseradish, ranch mix, buttermilk, hot sauce and parmesan. Taste and adjust seasoning to your preferences.
• Assemble the rest of your ingredients– slice the tomatoes, wash and cut the lettuce into big pieces, and slice the red onion on a big cutting board.
• Slice the hoagie rolls in half, leaving the edge intact.
• Brush the inside of the hoagie rolls with the remaining 1/2 tsp mayonnaise.
• Flip the chicken and continue cooking until it reaches an internal temperature of 150*.
• Add slices of the Cabot Vermont Sharp Cheddar cheese to the top of each chicken piece on the griddle.
• Cover the chicken and cheese with a cooking dome or lid and continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches about 160* and the cheese is fully melted.
• Allow the chicken to rest on a loosely tented plate for about 5 minutes.
• Toast the hoagie roll until golden brown.
• Put 3-4 chicken and cheese pieces on top of the vegetables on your cutting board.
• Add a few slices of bacon and a few spoonfuls of the prepared sauce.
• Using a cleaver, chop your ingredients until even bite-sized pieces have been achieved and the ingredients are combined.
• Scoop the chopped chicken, cheese and vegetables into the prepared hoagie rolls.
• Serve your Cheesy Chopped Bacon Chicken Ranch sandwiches while hot and enjoy!

Video

Keyword chicken bacon ranch sandwich, chopped sandwich, griddled sandwich, Traeger recipe

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