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Picture this. It’s Friday night. Your favourite show is playing in the background for the 100th time, while you tear off a piece of the garlic naan and dip it into delicious, creamy butter chicken. The glass of diet cola waits patiently on the side. Or it’s Sunday morning. A hot dosa, crispy on the edges, soft in the middle, and filled with a delicious masala aloo, is waiting for you. And then comes Monday. The dreaded Monday where you open your refrigerator, only to find a packet of bread, leftovers from the weekend (butter chicken in one bowl, aloo in another), and the entire work week ahead of you. Well, the Usha sandwich grill can’t make work disappear (it’s not that magical), but it can certainly be put to use in combining these classic Indian dishes and staple bread into a sandwich that feels familiar yet novel. It’s got the trademark crunch that defines a well-grilled sandwich, but the filling is as desi as it gets.
Here are five inspired grilled sandwiches made with fillings you’ll typically find in an Indian meal.
Butter Chicken Sandwich
Image Credits: Canva
Butter chicken is rich, creamy, and mildly sweet. If you’ve got leftovers, you only need mint chutney (or mayo), bread, and a multipurpose sandwich grill to turn it into a delicious snack. Start by spreading mint chutney or mayo on your bread slices. Pile a generous amount of the butter chicken mixture onto one slice. Top with sliced onions, fresh coriander, and cheese if using. Cover with the second slice and grill the sandwich with a bit of butter until both sides are golden brown and crispy. Cut diagonally and serve hot!
If you don’t have Usha’s Sandwich Grill, 
Dosa-Style Masala Aloo Sandwich
You may have seen a lot of versions of aloo sabzi, but the masala aloo used in a dosa is in a league of its own. The dosa-style masala aloo is a semi-mushy, mildly spiced potato stir-fry designed specifically as a dry filling. Thus, it’s one of the best options on the list for a sandwich, because it’s purposely designed to be a filling. Additionally, unlike the jeera aloo or aloo gravy, this one relies on South Indian aromatics like mustard seeds, curry leaves, chana dal, green chillies, and turmeric. It thus provides a completely different flavour than your regular aloo sandwich. Once you have the masala ready, simply layer it between two buttered bread slices and grill.
Chilli Paneer Sandwich
Image Credits: Unsplash
Chilli paneer sandwich sits somewhere in the middle of typically Indian flavours and extreme Western tastes. Inspired by the Indo-Chinese dish of chilli paneer, it’s a quick and spicy sandwich option that works beautifully as a chai-time snack. For the sandwich, begin by sautéing grated or cubed paneer with onions, capsicum, green chillies, soy sauce, and chilli sauce. Layer the mix between buttered bread and toast until crispy. While the sandwich gets ready, heat some water in your Usha kettle for a cup of coffee or tea, whatever you prefer. If you want to turn the evening chai into an early dinner, you can even boil water for instant soup and enjoy a comforting meal.
If you don’t have Usha’s Kettle,
Egg Bhurji Sandwich
Image Credits: Canva
For a quick, flavourful and protein-rich breakfast or evening snack, opt for the egg bhurji sandwich. Make the egg bhurji like you normally do (3-4 eggs, scrambled with an onion-tomato mix and basic spices). Let it cool slightly. Then, just butter two bread slices, place a portion of the egg bhurji inside, and close the sandwich. Grill the sandwich until golden and crisp. You can pair this with a protein-rich smoothie.
Aloo Gobhi Sandwich
Aloo gobhi is great as a side with roti, but it absolutely slaps, as the kids would say, as a stuffing. Whether you have leftovers or are cooking fresh, this dry sabzi needs only two additional steps to become a stuffing – one of which is completely optional. Now, aloo gobhi can be made with just a simple tadka of jeera and spices (no onions or tomato), or with a base of onion-tomato. In both cases, the result is a dry sabzi. To turn it into a stuffing, mash it thoroughly. For a slight crunch, you can add chopped onions to the mix. Spread it on a slice of bread, cover with another, and grill on a preheated grill. While the sandwich crisps up, prepare a cup of chai in your kettle and get ready for a comforting breakfast. You can use this sandwich hack with almost any dry sabzi, especially ones with aloo in it (as that mashes beautifully).
