Pan bagnat – sort of

           

Pan bagnat is the street taco of Nice, France, a sandwich layered with the ingredients of the classic French salade niҫoise. The recipe I have used and liked calls for chicken, but good albacore tuna is more traditional. The bread is usually a small round loaf (the French pain de campagne). Because it’s a made-a-day-ahead recipe, pan bagnat is great for company. You just whisk it out of the fridge and serve with a salad.

Like many folk foods or foods of the street, pan bagnat is flexible—you can substitute, and when I recently made it for supper for two, I did just that. All the round loaves I found at Central Market were way too big, and I remembered I had ciabatta in the freezer. It worked just fine.

Then I got out the rotisserie chicken breast I’d bought for the sandwiches, but it turned out to be a rotisserie turkey breast, so that’s what I used. A sliced hardboiled egg is sometimes included in the sandwich, but I knew my dinner guest was traumatized by eggs in childhood and does not eat them. So I guess what I’m saying is “Here’s a basic recipe. Take it where you want.” The only hard and fast rule that may be hard on the American palate is “No mayonnaise.”

Ingredients

Rotisserie grilled chicken or canned albacore tuna (preferably packed in olive oil)

Round loaf of artisan bread

1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice

2 Tbsp. anchovy paste

1 garlic clove, pressed

Capers

2 sliced tomatoes

sliced red onion to taste

Sliced hard-boiled egg (optional)

Romaine lettuce leaves

Slice the bread in half horizontally and pull out all the bready insides; discard or freeze to use for bread crumbs, etc.

Drizzle anchovy/lemon sauce over top and bottom of bread. You may want to add a bit of softened butter to make it more of a paste that will spread nicely on the bread. Line bottom of the bread with capers, drained.

If using chicken or turkey, slice into slivers If using tuna, drain well and break into chunks. Place the meat on top of the capers. Top with remaining ingredients.

Put the top on and smash it down with your hands to flatten. Wrap in foil and put in fridge overnight, weighted down by heavy skillet or canned goods--I used a lighter skillet and two cans of green beans. Cut into wedges and serve.

My dinner guest liked it so well she decided she’d make it for an upcoming casual dinner party for about twenty people. I call that an ambitious plan.