Recipe: Mortadella Focaccia Sandwich

This September, embrace the upgrade with us: Make your eating and drinking better, faster and stronger.

The sad cold-cut bologna sandwich is, well, bologna, so we set out to create a cooler version: We've always been a fan of the Little Chef sandwich at Saltie in Brooklyn-a perfect creation featuring focaccia piled high with mortadella (bologna's cooler, pistachio-studded cousin) and pecorino. Our rendition is slathered with piquillo-jalapeño mayonnaise, using the sweet roasted and spicy pickled peppers to stand up to the fatty, salty, melt-in-your-mouth mortadella.

It's essential that the focaccia is toasted well. The golden brown and crispy interior holds up to the rest of the ingredients and adds the perfect amount of crunch. Recipe from the Tasting Table Test Kitchen.

Mortadella Focaccia Sandwich
5 from 41 ratings
Trade in your bologna sandwich by toasting pillowy soft focaccia, then piling it with mortadella and a spicy pickled and sweet roasted red pepper mayonnaise.
Prep Time
10
minutes
Cook Time
5
minutes
Servings
1
sandwich
mortadella focaccia sandwich
Total time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
  • For the Piquillo-Jalapeño Mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons chopped roasted piquillo peppers
  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped pistachios
  • 1½ teaspoons chopped pickled jalapeño
  • 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
  • Pinch dried oregano
  • Pinch freshly ground black pepper
  • For the Sandwich
  • ½ teaspoon olive oil
  • One 4-by-6-inch piece focaccia, split in half lengthwise
  • ¼ pound thinly sliced mortadella
  • ½ ounce pecorino cheese, thinly shaved using a vegetable peeler
  • ¼ cup loosely packed basil
  • 2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley
Directions
  1. Make the piquillo-jalapeño mayonnaise: In a small bowl, stir together all ingredients and set aside.
  2. Make the sandwich: In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the two focaccia halves, cut-side down, and fry until golden brown and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes.
  3. Spread the piquillo-jalapeño mayonnaise evenly onto the toasted slices. Layer one slice with the mortadella, pecorino, basil and parsley, and cover with the top half of bread. Serve.
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