Why are sandwiches so popular? There are a lot of reasons.

Perhaps the biggest one is the sheer number of ingredients that can be placed between two slices of bread or on a bun and be eaten anytime.

In the morning, for example, a person can feast on a fried egg with bacon on two pieces of toast. Or one with tuna salad, PB&J or cold cuts at noon. And at night, maybe a burger, French dip or a meatball sub.  (All of the fast-food giants have picked up on this trend.)

Personally, I like a sandwich that has a little bit of kick to it. That’s why those that are spiced up with a rub or sauce have special appeal, such as the following recipe, which I prepared recently with a 2-pound bison roast.

The roast was left over from the previous day. I had sliced a little more than 1½ pounds off a 3¾-pound roast for use in making Swiss steak.

While there’s no doubt we would have eaten all of the meat if we’d done a traditional pot roast with potatoes, carrots and onion — much of it as leftovers on some nice bread with a slathering of mustard or Miracle Whip — this turned out to be a great way to produce the centerpiece for two meals.

And one of them that just happened to center on a tasty sandwich!

Shredded Barbecue Beef
2-pound beef or bison roast
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup ketchup
1 cup water
½ cup onion, chopped
½ cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons mustard
2 teaspoons celery salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
10 hamburger buns
Sprinkle roast with salt and pepper. In a nonstick skillet, brown roast in oil on all sides over medium-high heat; drain.
Transfer roast to a slow cooker. Combine the ketchup, water, onion, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, celery seed and chili powder; pour over roast.
Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or until meat is tender. Remove meat; shred with two forks and return to slow cooker. Spoon ½ cup meat mixture onto each bun.