I’m all about Jimmy John’s Picklewhich, but at nearly $10 for a combo… I’d much rather make my pickle sandwich in my own kitchen. Plus, making your own gives you the option to customize it however you’d like!
I am a tried and true sandwich fanatic. So when the famous sandwich chain announced you could go against the grain and swap bread for a briny, crunchy pickle… we were first in line to give it a whirl. At first, they only offered two options, which were turkey and “Vito” (their nod to an Italian sandwich). However, their recent re-release in 2025 includes the originals plus 4 new varieties: ham, roast beef, tuna, and veggie. My personal favorite is the Vito, so that’s what we recreated here at home… with a few tweaks of our own. Serve it with a side of kettle chips, my favorite Red Potato Salad, or for the ultimate pickle experience go ahead and serve alongside these Crispy Cheesy Dill Pickle Chips with Homemade Ranch for dippin’.
WATCH OUR HOW-TO VIDEO ON THE GRAM!
INGREDIENTS FOR OUR PICKLE SANDWICH:
PICKLES: As one of the most important ingredients in this recipe, you know you want to go with the best. That’s why we always grab these jumbo Kosher Dills from Mt. Olive.
CHEESE: While Jimmy John’s uses provolone for their Vito Sandwich and Picklewich, we only had White American on hand so that’s what I used here. Honestly, I loved the creamy texture the it gave to this sandwich so I highly recommend giving it a try.
MEAT: We opted for Boar’s Head Sandwich Style Pepperoni and for a kick of heat we paired it with their Genoa Salami .
MAYONNAISE: Since moving to “The South”, we only use Duke’s Mayo. It’s the best. Jimmy John’s doesn’t add mayonnaise to their pickle sandwiches and I totally think they should.
MUSTARD: Feel free to use whichever mustard you enjoy most. I was making this for my husband and he asked for spicy brown mustard, but you could also use yellow, dijon, or whole grain. We always have spicy brown mustard in our fridge as it’s our favorite to dip these Homemade Pretzel Bites in.
LETTUCE: Shredded green leaf is my personal favorite, but you could always go with romaine or other crunchy-type greens.
RED WINE VINEGAR: This is one of my favorite things to add to my Italian sandwiches so obviously we needed to add a little splash here for that tangy, zesty flavor.
SALT + PEPPER: Cuz, duh. No explanation needed here.
ITALIAN SEASONING: Another MUST when making an Italian sandwich.
HOT CHILI PEPPERS: We love these in our sandwiches, as they had a zip of heat and some extra crunch. Our go-to are these ones from Mezzetta. You could also use pepperoncini or banana peppers here too though if you’d like.
INGREDIENT ADDITIONS AND SUBSTITUTIONS:
CHEESES: Pepper Jack, havarti, munster, Swiss, cheddar, yellow American, mozzarella, or even a cheese stick. Feel free to use whatever cheese you enjoy most. Oh, even cream cheese could be lovely here with the right combination of other ingredients.
PROTEIN: Deli-style chicken breast, turkey, ham, capocollo, prosciutto, roast beef, corned beef, bologna, mortadella, bacon, or to make vegetarian you can use some baked tofu slices. My favorite is this Sriracha Baked Tofu from Trader Joe’s.
EXTRA VEGGIES: Sliced tomatoes, onions, black olives, jalapeño peppers, roasted red peppers, sprouts, or mashed avocado.
RECIPE TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST COPYCAT JIMMY JOHN’S PICKLEWICH:
PICKLES: Always opt for the jumbo whole pickles and cut them in half yourself. Don’t forget to scoop out the seeds, too! Once they are prepared, the last step is to blot them dry. This way the interior ingredients won’t slip out once you take a bite.
STACKING: I like to stack my meats on top of each other with the cheese. Then I fold them in half, length-wise to fit the same shape as the pickle. You could also roll them together into a log shape. This way you don’t have meat and cheese spilling out the sides of your pickle sandwich.
HOLDING TOGETHER: I highly recommend you wrap the pickle sandwiches in parchment or sandwich paper. If not, at least make sure to use a tooth pick of some sort to help hold the sandwich together.
MORE SANDWICHES YOU’LL LOVE:
Crispy Cheesy Salami Sandwich with Banh-Mi Style Pickled Veggies
Low Carb Pickles and Cheese Waffles For Sandwiches
Classic Reuben Sandwich (snuggled in a cheese blanket!)
Italian BLT with Sun-Dried Tomato Mayo
Roast Beef Sandwich-Sushi on Crispy Rice Cakes
My Favorite Air Fryer Falafels in a Pita
Cobb Salad Grilled Chicken Sandwich
Avocado Chicken Salad Pinwheels
Meatball Stuffed Mexican Torta Sandwich
Super Delicious Deviled Egg Salad with Miso Sandwiches
Super Crispy Fish Sandwiches (Filet-o-Fish Copycat)
Ham and Provolone Savory Waffle Sandwich
VIEW ALL RECIPES BY CLICKING HERE!
Pickle Sandwich: Making Jimmy John's Picklewich at Home
Ingredients
- 1 Jumbo Kosher Dill Pickle
- 1 slice White American cheese, cut in half
- 1 tbsp. Mayonnaise
- 1 tsp. Mustard
- 4 Genoa Salami Slices
- 4 Sandwich Size Pepperoni Slices
- 2 tbsp. Shredded Green Leaf Lettuce
- Splash of Red Wine Vinegar
- Salt + Black Pepper, to taste
- 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
- 2 Hot Chili Peppers, chopped
Instructions
- Cut the pickle in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scrape out the seeds and create a deep indent for the ingredients to stuff into. Then dab the insides dry with a paper towel to get rid of any access moisture.
- Slather one side of the hollowed out pickle with mayonnaise and the other side with mustard. Then stack the salami, pepperoni, and cheese together. Fold in half lengthwise to fit the size of the pickle. Set aside.
- Add lettuce to the mayonnaise side of the pickle. Splash with red wine vinegar and season with salt, pepper, and Italian Seasoning. Add the hot chili peppers to the mustard side of the pickle. Then top with the meat and cheese stack. While holding together, place the meat and cheese stack side of the pickle on top of the lettuce side of the pickle.
- Wrap tightly in parchment paper and cut in half. Enjoy immediately.
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