Famous New Orleans Easy Muffuletta Sandwich Recipe | The Pure Taste (2024)

FAQs

What is the original muffuletta sandwich? ›

The traditional-style muffuletta sandwich consists of a muffuletta loaf split horizontally and covered with layers of marinated muffuletta-style olive salad, salami, ham, Swiss cheese, provolone, and mortadella. Quarter, half, and full-sized muffulettas are sold.

A muffaletta is a famous italian sandwich invented in New Orleans with cured meats (ham and salami), provolone cheese, olive dressing and great bread. The olive dressing sports chopped green and black olives with onions and olive oil and spices, and the bread is a round sesame-seed roll big enough for sharing.

No food captures the spirit of Louisiana quite like the poboy. The history of this famous and beloved sandwich is debated, but one of the most popular stories claims that the Martin brothers invented the recipe in New Orleans to feed striking streetcar drivers in 1929.

This legendary sandwich was invented at one of the city's oldest markets, the Central Grocery. Sicilian immigrants working at the nearby farmer's market would buy salami, ham, cheese, olive salad and Muffuletta bread (a soft round loaf that the sandwich takes its name from) and eat them separately.

noun. muf·​fu·​let·​ta ˌmə-fə-ˈle-tə variants or less commonly muffaletta. : a sandwich made with round Italian bread and filled usually with cold cuts, cheese, and olive salad.

A muffuletta is one of the three iconic sandwiches in New Orleans, a proud trio that also includes po' boys, of course, and the Vietnamese version, the banh mi. Like most traditional bites, a muffuletta isn't just a sandwich, it's a history lesson.

This culinary gem rivals even the best muffaletta. Gourmands hail the po'boy, a homegrown Louisiana staple. From gas stations to gourmet eateries, this famous sandwich can be found just about anywhere down South — but nowhere better than in Louisiana, its home state.

Po' boys, jambalaya, gumbo, beignets — these dishes define the city's cuisine and culture to the outside world. Many also serve as part of a restaurant's identity and history, like the gumbo z'herbes at Dooky Chase, or turtle soup at Commander's.

Lovingly abbreviated to "poboys," poor boy sandwiches are foundational to the culinary culture in New Orleans. It's revered as the Gulf Coast take on the Northerner's submarine sandwich.

Salvatore Lupo, of Central Grocery store, who is widely credited with making the first muffaletta sandwich in 1906.

Do you eat muffuletta hot or cold? ›

Some maintain that muffuletta is a cold-cut sandwich, period. Others had been serving it hot, like the James Beard Award-winning chef Donald Link, owner of Cochon Butcher. Yet others offer it hot and cold (Verti Marte).

The muffuletta is one of New Orleans' most iconic and quintessential eats. Traditionally, the colossal sandwich is stacked with Italian cured meats, cheeses, and the signature marinated olive salad, all stuffed inside a round seed–studded loaf.

In 1971, Don and Dolores Dissman founded the company in a "small, hole-in-the-wall shop" in Austin, Texas, on South Congress. The initial menu consisted of one sandwich, called "The Original," consisting of mixed meats, cheeses and black olives on a freshly made, toasted bun." It was based on the muffuletta sandwich.

A Noble Beginning. In 1762, John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich®, invented the meal that changed dining forever. As the story goes, he was playing cards and did not want to leave the gaming table to eat. He asked for a serving of roast beef to be placed between two slices of bread so he could eat with his hands.

New Orleans is home to both po'boy and muffuletta sandwiches, but aside from their hometown, the two iconic sandwiches don't have much in common. Most po'boys consist of fried shrimp on crusty, hoagie-style bread, while muffuletta sandwiches are made of Italian cold cuts and cheese on flat, sesame-crusted bread.