There are many versions of the muffuletta sandwich around New Orleans, but it seems that Central Grocery in the French Quarter is the place to go. The store is charming enough, but at the back counter, seated on a stool with a muffuletta sandwich in front of you, is where you want to be. We sat down across from a man who told us he’d had his first muffuletta sandwich here fifty years ago and came back regularly for more. Next to him were a couple who have been coming to Central Grocery to enjoy the muffuletta sandwich for more than forty years. We ordered one without any hesitation. The large hamburger bun–like bread was soaked significantly with the olive-oil dressing of the olive salad; then layers and layers of the salad and the cold cuts were added. The sandwich was cut in four and wrapped in parchment paper. It was ten in the morning, one would say time for breakfast, but the two of us savored the muffuletta sandwich as did all the other customers.

　　

Ingredients

makes 1 sandwich

　　

olive salad—version 1

1 cup sliced marinated artichoke hearts

　　1/2 cup shredded carrot

　　1/2 cup shredded inner stalks celery

　　1/2 cup finely chopped pitted green olives

　　1/2 cup finely chopped roasted red peppers

　　1/2 cup seeded, finely chopped pickled Tuscan peperoncini

　　1/2 cup pitted chopped kalamata olives

　　1/2 cup sliced pickled cocktail onions

　　1/4 cup drained tiny capers in brine

　　2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

　　3 anchovy fillets, chopped

　　2 teaspoons dried oregano

　　1/4 teaspoon peperoncino flakes

　　

olive salad—version 2

16-ounce container giardiniera (assorted pickled vegetables), drained and chopped

　　1 cup sliced marinated artichoke hearts

　　1/2 cup finely chopped pitted green olives

　　1/2 cup pitted chopped kalamata olives

　　1/4 cup drained tiny capers in brine

　　2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　3 anchovy fillets, chopped

　　2 teaspoons dried oregano

　　1/4 teaspoon peperoncino flakes

　　

for the muffuletta

8-inch round muffuletta bread, split open

　　2 ounces provolone, sliced

　　2 ounces deli ham, sliced

　　2 ounces capicola, sliced

　　2 ounces mortadella, sliced

　　2 ounces low-moisture mozzarella, sliced

　　2 ounces Genoa salami, sliced

　　

Step 1

To prepare either version of the olive salad, mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Cover, and refrigerate several hours or overnight, to let the flavors develop. This makes more salad than you need for one 8-inch sandwich. Extra olive salad will keep for a week or more and can be used in salads, sandwiches, etc.

　　

for the muffuletta

Step 2

Lay the bottom of the muffuletta bread on a work surface, cut side up. Layer half of the cheeses and meats on the bread, then spread with 1/2 cup of the olive salad. Top with the remaining meats and cheeses. Finish with another 1/2 cup olive salad. Place top of bread on olive salad, and press down. Cut into four wedges.

　　Reprinted with permission from Lidia's Italy in America by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Copyright © 2011 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. Buy the full book from Amazon or Bookshop.