In search of perfection Samson Spanier The 4th Ear
In search of perfection Samson Spanier The 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718-1792) gave his name to the snack of meat encased between two slabs of bread. The story goes that it was designed so that it could be eaten at the gaming table without hands getting greasy. Like all myths that stick around, this one convinces because it captures its subject. A sandwich should be of high quality, fit for an aristocrat if not for a king. And it should be simple.
Excellent ingredients are vital, and the pursuit of them has sent me running away from motorway service stations and highstreet chains. As for snack trolleys on trains, let's not even go there. Dispel from your mind limp lettuce, dry meat or bland cheese. A sandwich should be as delicious as any other meal.
But delicious should not mean complicated. If I am ordering a sandwich, I do not want to be waiting around while someone drizzles the filling with hundreds of ingredients. This is one area of culinary excellence where the celebrity chef has nothing to add.
After many office lunch-break experiments, I have found the best mix of quality and simplicity to be found in Italian delis. One of my favourites in London is Terroni on Clerkenwell Road. There are many others. Look for hams hanging from the ceiling and fresh mozzarella floating in a bowl.
But finding the best raw ingredients, whether in a deli or at home, is only the beginning. Choosing which ingredients, how to use them and how they complement each other is where the fun starts. Because a bite of sandwich involves all the ingredients simultaneously, texture is key: neither too tough nor falling apart; neither dry and sticking to the roof of the mouth, nor dripping messily on to the hands.
Almost any meat is ideal, but how should it be chopped? Parma ham must be carved ultra-thin. I will never forget the mistake of not doing so — I chewed until my jawbone ached to force down my throat what should have been an exquisite pleasure. But a salami like finocchiona — pork with fennel — is loosely compressed, so thicker slices are more satisfying.
Smoked fish works but, sadly, fresh cooked fish is too delicate in taste and texture, and tends to get lost in the mush of bread.
If cheese is to be the mainstay of the sandwich, make sure it packs a punch. Ideal would be an aged cheddar, which requires a proper bite to cut through with the teeth, and which fills the mouth. The mistake is to use a bland cheese, spiced up with pickles and chutneys. There is nothing wrong with extra flavours, but if the cheese doesn't add to the taste, then why it is there at all?
You can judge a great sandwich by how the tastes and textures bounce off each other. Here, the minor players come into their own. Lettuce and tomato are the classic vegetable additions, but do not forget the wealth of other possibilities. The creaminess and saltiness of cheese is perfectly foiled by grapes. Is the meat very soft? Then for contrast use crunchy lettuce, such as romaine.
There are many alternatives to butter, too. A rich, unctuous cheese can give all the moisture needed, and add taste. I recommend taleggio. For the 21st-century Neanderthal, the bloody gravy of the meat filling moistens perfectly.
This brings us to that too often overlooked hard-working hero of the sandwich: the bread itself. Everyone, myself included, has had the disappointment of sauces and dressings causing the typical sliced loaf to fall apart, often with the salami landing on one's lap. For a thin slice of bread that holds its own, I recommend Poitane.
The major question, however, is what to use if, like me, you have a big appetite and you need a major carbs fa. Too often, I have scoffed a delicious sandwich only to be left hungry an hour later.
I am forever asking sandwich-makers in delis to replace the bun with a family-sized loaf. The key here is to choose a bread with enough moisture to stop my mouth drying up, such as a casareccio. Wanting a whole loaf may sound greedy, but it sustains for many hours — surely a prerequisite for the famous earl when he embarked on a late-night gambling session.
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