(No Cook Meal) Pan Bagnat – The Nicoise Salad on a Sandwich
Pan bagnat is a game changer. It’s literally the most delicious sandwich I’ve even eaten, and it’s super easy to make. I still don’t know how to properly pronounce it, but that’s okay!
Originally developed in Nice, France as a use for day-old bread, the pan bagnat is typically made with tuna, egg, raw vegetables, and an olive oil dressing that soaks into the bread and makes it soft and YUUUUUUUM.
Pan bagnat is fantastic for hot summer days as a lunch or dinner…or hell, breakfast too, whatever!! It mixes up really quickly and it stores like a dream, so you can make a few the night before and toss them in lunches the next day.
I didn’t use anchovies in my version, because I was afraid that I’d really taste them and I’m not a huge fan if they’re not completely blended in something. The pan bagnat does typically contain anchovies though, so if you are good with them, I’d dice them finely and mix them with the tuna.
For the tuna, I used my favorite Italian style in olive oil. It’s just more flavorful and better than that gross white Styrofoam tuna in water. It’s also more like the tuna you get in Europe (hence ‘Italian style’) so I would think that it will make the sandwich more authentic. You will NEVER use mayonnaise in your tuna again after making this sandwich, I can tell you that. And by the way – pan bagnat never contain mayonnaise. Never.
You’ll see that this is sort of an un-recipe – I’m giving you specifics on the tuna and eggs, but leaving the garnishes – the artichokes, arugula, and anchovies – up to you. I think you can handle figuring out how much of these you want to put on each sandwich, am I right?
- 1 baguette cut into fourths
- 3 - 85 gram or 2- 170 gram cans of Italian style tuna
- 2 hard boiled eggs sliced
- 5-10 black olives chopped or quartered
- 5 T chopped red or white onion
- 2 T red wine vinegar
- 3 T olive oil
- Large pinch of salt
- Arugula
- 1 bottle of artichoke hearts
- Diced anchovies optional
-
In a bowl, place the tuna, olives, onion, vinegar, olive oil, and salt, and anchovies if desired, and mix until combined.
-
Split the baguette pieces lengthwise, and layer the tuna mixture, egg slices, artichoke hearts, and arugula onto the bread.
-
Serve, or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and/or parchment and refrigerate until you’re ready to eat them. The longer these sandwiches sit, the better they are, because the flavors will incorporate with each other and into the bread.
Enjoy!!
