They are little meat napkins, delicate folds of mortadella, and few would refute their natural home inside bread. Some time ago, I wrote of mortadella’s proliferation in Britain. Or, rather, the arrival en masse of the mortadella sandwich, where the Italian cured meat is placed inside focaccia – usually this is the bread of choice – alongside burrata or similar, tangy leaves, possibly some sort of chutney.
Mortadella’s surge to the fore here has proven to be welcome. It is such a comforting and homely meat. While it appears simple, it is not. The Bolognese staple requires a careful process, one that puts weight on considered sourcing, mincing, a finely tuned spice mix, moulding, and a low and slow cooking time of around 72 hours. Traditionally, mortadella’s pinkish hue is brought about by wood being added to the furnace, piece by piece.
I think mortadella sandwiches became so popular in lockdown because they were something new in a troubled time. They were also accessible, relatively easy to put together, the perfect takeaway food when people were bound to be in search of something, anything, fulfilling. This is old hat, yes, but the Italian snack has hung around in the UK, and so here is something pleasing to come out of something unpleasant.
There are too many variations of the dish around in Britain today. I shall namecheck two. The first comes from Sons + Daughters, the high-end sandwich shop that recently opened a second site in Borough Market.
I have long been a fan of the brand and became more of one when co-owner James Ramsden decided to simplify the menu and reduce prices. What were sliced white wedges at £11 have become £6.50 rolls. At Sons + Daughters, mortadella sits cosily alongside Taleggio cheese and a nicely balanced tomato relish; rocket and a light cider vinaigrette add freshness and zing. It is a resourceful, heartening thing to eat.
Another mortadella sandwich to look out for comes from the new Quality Chop House Cafe, a casual sister site to the chop house next door, and which opened late last month. I would recommend visiting with one other and sharing a mortadella roll and a club sandwich. Together they make up two parts of the vital sandwich triptych (the other is a classic Reuben). Nick Bramham, head chef at sister restaurant Quality Wines, partners sheets of nutty mortadella with nothing more than butter – melting to act as a sauce – and pepper, piling it high inside squishy milk rolls, gently toasted.
Bramham told me that he believes Italians make the best charcuterie in the world and he relies on Elliott John, owner of The Ham & Cheese Company, to find him the finest mortadella. It is made by a farmer called Aldo Zivieri, who has a team of rare-breed pigs in the Bologna Apennines.
Here is how to make the milk rolls, and the sandwich afterwards.
Mortadella milk rolls
Makes 4 sandwiches
For the milk rolls (this makes a batch of 15, store or freeze the rest)
500g strong bread flour
50g milk powder
15g fine sea salt
18g fresh yeast
140g whole milk / 140g cold water
2 eggs
60g extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp of water, milk, or cream
For the sandwich
4 x milk rolls, halved across the equator
300g mortadella (thinly sliced)
80g salted butter (room temp)
Black Sarawak Pepper
For the rolls
Make these first, a day in advance if possible.
Combine the dry ingredients.
Add the milk, water, one egg and yeast to a kitchen aid bowl.
Add the dry ingredients and mix (dough hook) on low for five minutes.
Scrape down the dough and rest for 10 minutes.
Add the olive oil and mix on medium for 3 minutes.
Scrape down and mix on low for 7 minutes.
Tip out on to a lightly floured surface, shape into a ball, place in a lidded container.
Leave overnight in the fridge – this develops better flavour and also they are easier to shape when cold from the fridge.
On a lightly floured surface roll out into a 10x10cm square. Portion into 15 x 65g pieces.
Roll into balls, place on a silicon mat in neat rows, cover with an upturned container (or cling film) and proof for 1-1.5 hours until doubled in size.
Glaze with an egg wash made by beating one large egg and one tbsp of water, milk or cream in a small bowl with a fork until well combined.
Bake at 200C for 10 minutes.
For the sandwiches
Toast the cut sides of the bread, either in a pan or under the grill.
Spread both toasted sides thick with butter.
Two turns of pepper on each side.
Pile up the mortadella as high as you can, carefully draping each slice on top of the next, like a concertina.
Place the tops on and secure with a cocktail stick if necessary.
Consume immediately.
