Who Wants A Sandwich?
More precisely, who wants a “Pan Bagnat?”
Yes, it’s “National Sandwich Day”, so I’m sharing a recipe for an international taste treat!
Here’s the recipe I originally made for my “52 In 22” cooking challenge last year – from the terrific “French Kitchen Cookbook” by Patricia Wells!
A French Kitchen utilizes the ingredients of the region, and in the south of France, this sandwich utilizes all of nature’s bounty!
The traditional ingredients shown above include heirloom tomatoes, hard boiled eggs, anchovies, red bell pepper and kalamata olives – but in its simplicity comes incredible flavor and history as well!
Time To Make Some “Bathed Bread!”
The city of Nice, France is considered home to this beloved French staple….you see, “pan banhat” and the alternative spelling “pan bagnat” mean “bathed bread”.
The sandwich was popularized in the 19th century, when Nice fisherman would carry it with them when fishing in the Mediterranean Sea.
And speaking of bread:
The best bread is a Baguette, with a filling soft enough that the ingredients will indeed “bathe” it…and the process begins by slicing the loaf lengthwise…
I used an olive loaf, and tore out big chunks of the soft center, making room for my ingredients…Patricia suggests that you save the interior bread and toast it for breadcrumbs!
Next, I put two glass jars of Tuna fillets in a bowl – and very important: you want the Tuna that is packed in oil, as that is an important part of the recipe – remember, we are going to “bathe”!
Slice a Red Bell Pepper lengthwise in thin strips, then peel your hard-boiled eggs and slice them as well…I used one entire bell pepper and three eggs:
Once the hard-boiled eggs are sliced, do the same with your Kalamata Olives – I do them lengthwise as well, and unpack your Marinated Anchovies:
Now, it was time to have some fun and put this sandwich together:
Look at this! The interior is stuffed with the messy, oily mixture, which I gave a nice salt-and-pepper to as well…I overloaded the sandwich so it formed a mound…
I am ready to dig in and enjoy it – but not so fast!
You see, this beautiful sandwich has one more step in the recipe, and that involves some aluminum foil and a heavy heavy brick!
Patricia is clear about two things: first, wrap the sandwich in tin foil and put it in the refrigerator, with a heavy object pressing down on it…that will help the bread absorb the oil in the tuna!
Her second point: this sandwich is supposed to be a messing affair: the filling should fall out when you eat it!
After several hours in the refrigerator, covered with a heavy pot, I took the sandwich out and here’s how it went:
So, how did it taste?
Well, “simple” doesn’t have to be a negative when it comes to food: it’s delicious! I love Tuna, and the crisp bell pepper, creamy egg, pop of olive flavor and of course, the salty burst of sardine was delicious, and it was wet enough to feel messy and almost wrong in a way!
My goal with the “52 In 22” cooking challenge was to pay tribute to some of the great Chefs and Cookbook Authors I’ve met – and Patricia’s many cookbooks will give me more opportunities to cook from her books…
This colorful sandwich feel like the south of France, with the bright yellow egg yolk, the red bell pepper, kalamata olives the color of a great provencal red wine, and the freshness of the tuna and anchovies give it the taste of the sea…
That’s Patricia on the right…Alex and I got to cook at her provencal home and yes, that is Julia Child’s provencal stove we are leaning on – Julia gave it to her as they were close friends!
We cooked with her and husband Walter, an incredible cooking class at her home that you can see more of by clicking on my story here:
It was the perfect mix of food and travel…and I am trying to make recipes that capture a culture as well as flavors….the Pan Bagnat sandwich took us back to Provence and a culture of delicious food – speaking of that, what about this sandwich?
This “bread sandwich” is very important in one culture – click here for the whole story!
Another sandwich of cultural importance is as delicious as it sounds!
“Chop chop” indeed! Click here for the story of Harlem’s iconic “chop cheese” sandwich!
I just shared this sandwich – which is one of the most delicious I have ever tasted:
I will never look at bologna the same way again!
Click here for more amazing food from Chicago’s Au Cheval restaurant:
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Categories: 52 In 22!, Bite Eat Swallow, Bite! Eat! Repeat!, Chef memoirs, Cookbooks, Eat This!, Food, Food Pictures, Food Travel, Recipes, Travel, Wacky Food, World's Wildest Food
Bite! Eat! Repeat! 
I love the term ‘bathed bread.”
So do I! Evokes delicious flavor which the sandwich delivers on – thanks for the comment!
I would definitely try a version of that minus the Tuna, which I really don’t enjoy eating.
Best wishes, Pete.
I do, I do!!