Soup & Sandwich

A Match Made in Heaven



I've already confessed my love for sandwiches on several occasions. And it's true that a sandwich alone can be a complete meal depending on what's on it. But sandwiches have a natural co-partner: soup. A good match between soup and a sandwich can result in an extraordinarily good meal, for example, a grilled cheese and a bowl of tomato soup is something most of us remember from our childhoods &mdash and well we should as it's classic pairing of unctuous cheese, butter, crisp bread, and rich soup.

There are other equally good matches, though perhaps none so classic, and these are a few of my favorites.

Clam Chowder — It's Chowdah, Baby: Year's ago I set off on a quest for the perfect New England clam chowder. I ate bowls of it in San Francisco; Eugene Oregon; and Seattle, Washington and was unsurprised they were un-exceptional (wrong coast) but I had high hopes when I moved to the East Coast but I was still disappointed in most cases. But eventually I gathered enough data to make an honest effort at my own recipe. I won't call this perfect, but it's among the best I've eaten.

Country Ham Panini — Feelin' Country: A good chowder includes some pork. It could be bacon, lard, fat-back or even salt-back, but the background pork flavor is an essential element of great chowder. The last time I made a batch I'd made a recent trip to Bentons and so had some of Alan's "prosiutto" - his country ham slice paper thin. I made a panini. Crisp, salty, cheesy. I couldn't have chosen a better match for clam chowder.

Gumbo & mdash; Laissez le Bons Temps Rouler: We tend to think of gumbo as a New Orleans soup — or, at most, a Louisiana dish. But it's real origins are blend of African and French cuisine and so it's found wherever the French kept slaves, which includes most of the Caribbean islands. In fact the best gumbo I've eaten was at a Caribbean restaurant in Sacramento that's owner/chef was from Haiti. Of course, add rice and gumbo is meal in itself with meat, broth, vegetables, and starch. Nevertheless, sometimes a sandwich rounds it out beautifully.

Muffaletta — Interesting: New Orleans has two "most" famous sandwiches — the Muffaletta and the po' boy. And don't get me wrong, a good fried oyster or shrimp po' boy is mighty fine, even deeelicious. But to me no sandwich says New Orleans like the Muffaletta. And the olive mix is a wonderful contrast to the deeply savory gumbo. I've found it best, though, to have a big mug/small bowl full of gumbo and an entire quarter Muffaletta so that instead of the sandwich backing up the soup, the soup backs up the sandwich.

Ciopino - A Common Pot: Ciopino is a fish soup developed by Italian fishermen in the San Francisco area. Like all such dishes, it's composed of by catch - the fish caught during the day that probably won't sell. It's a close relative (in both flavor and history) to the famous French bouillabaisse. And like all such soups it's easy to make. Just cruise down to your local fish market and buy whatever looks good as well as bones and such-like to make the stock. Add the fish and serve.

Roast Pork Sandwich - Magic Sandwich: Unlike gumbo, ciopino isn't heavy. Nor does it already contain pork so a pork sandwich is a great match. My local equivalent of Whole Foods (Fresh Market) sells a very good sourdough bread and since sourdough starter died (God rest it's yeast and lacto bacillus) I've relied on them for that particular bread choice. Though I call for a Kaiser roll in this recipe, sourdough is a better pairing with the ciopino and complements — the red onion and pickled daikon.

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