Cast Iron

Pan Bagnat a Gribiche

by:
September 28, 2010
4
5 Ratings
  • Serves up to 4
Author Notes

I'm always trying to think of new ways to dress up tuna fish. In this recipe, I traded out the traditional standard vinaigrette in a pan bagnat for a play on sauce gribiche, one of my favorite sauces to serve with fish. [Note: there is enough sauce for 4 sandwiches; however, I give the sandwich ingredients per person so you can adjust accordingly. If you don't make four servings, you can use the leftover sauce to toss with roasted potatoes or serve on top of fish or chicken or vegetables. You won't be sorry you are left with extras!] - melissav —melissav

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe was great -- the sandwiches are full of flavor and easy to put together. The sauce really does achieve what melissav aims for -- it totally dresses up tuna. The recipe recommends 1/4 cup of sauce per can of tuna but I like more dressing! Part of what makes a good pan bagnat is striking a balance with enough dressing to give the bread a good soaking, but not too much. Luckily the recipe makes plenty of sauce gribiche so I had enough. - annalea —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Sauce Gribiche
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon diced shallots
  • 1.5 tablespoons sherry vinegar
  • 1.5 tablespoons champagne vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons whole grain dijon
  • 1 anchovy fillet, minced
  • 1/4 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon capers, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons minced herbs, any combo of chives, parsley and tarragon
  • 1.5 tablespoons olives, finely chopped. I use Cerignola because they are my favorite but a nicose would be nice as well
  • salt and pepper
  • Pan Bagnat
  • french bread or baguettes
  • 1 6 oz can of tuna, per person, preferably in oil but I've used in water before in a pinch.
  • thinly sliced red onion
  • thinly sliced red pepper
  • thinly sliced radish
  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper
Directions
  1. Place the egg in a small pot and cover with water. Place on the stove and bring to a boil. As soon as it is boiling, cover and turn off the heat. Let sit on the burner for 5 minutes. Remove and cool in ice water. [Note - I have a glasstop electric stove so my burner stays quite hot. If you have a gas stove (lucky you), You might let it sit for another minute. You want a cooked white but still soft yolk]
  2. While the egg cooks, combine the shallots with the vinegars in a small bowl.
  3. Peel the egg and dice the egg white and set aside. Place the yolk in a bowl with the anchovy and dijon and a pinch of salt. Whip/mash until a thick paste forms.
  4. Whisk in the shallots and vinegar and then slowly drizzle in the olive oil.
  5. Stir in the chopped egg white, capers, olives, and herbs. Season well with salt and pepper.
  6. Mix the tuna with the sauce. I use 1/4 cup sauce per can of tuna.
  7. To assemble the sandwich, pinch out the extra dough in the middle of each piece of bread, making a boat. Drizzle the inside of the bread with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper
  8. Fill the boat with the tuna and top with the slices of onion, radish and red pepper. Place on the top piece of bread. Wrap tightly in foil. Place on a plate in the fridge and top with your heaviest cast iron pan filled with a few canned goods. I leave my overnight and throw in my lunch box in the morning.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • TheWimpyVegetarian
    TheWimpyVegetarian
  • theicp
    theicp
  • melissav
    melissav

3 Reviews

TheWimpyVegetarian September 29, 2010
I love a good gribiche sauce and this looks like a great one!! Definitely trying it with tuna as you suggest but with veggies too! Thanks!
 
theicp September 29, 2010
Yum! I like the cast iron pan in the fridge trick, too. :)
 
melissav September 29, 2010
I hope you try it. I turned out really yummy. My husband actually called me after he took his first bite at lunch to tell me how much he loved it!