Food talk
Say it with sandwiches

The staple of picnics and tea, pita sandwiches combine nutrition with convenience, says
Pushpesh Pant

According to legend, it was the Earl of Sandwich, an aristocrat exceptionally fond of a game of cards, who invented the substantial snack that bears his name. The sandwich, as everyone knows, is essentially a couple of slices of bread serving as a convenient covering for assorted meats or vegetables.

The sandwich has come a long way since the English gambler thought of a rough-and-ready dish that eliminated the need to interrupt a gaming session. We encounter it in diverse manifestations from the delicately thin teatime cucumber sandwiches that are inseparable companions of aromatic Darjeeling tea poured from translucent fine bone China to the multi-tiered jumbo club sandwich that seems to be catering to the glutton.

There are tomato, egg and cheese sandwiches that are staples at lunchtime in school, college and office canteens or indispensable fillers in picnics. Mayonnaise or chutney replacing butter or a touch of pickle or pineapple tidbits spiking up leftover vegetables or roasts can easily lift a sandwich to the level of an unforgettable novelty.

There are toasted and grilled varieties and those that are prepared with specialty breads. Who can quibble that a fresh croissant packed with creamy chicken salad is a divine offering? And, we are still busy only scratching the surface. There are ‘Danish’ open sandwiches and myriad ‘foot-longers’ and ‘submarines’.

One can even argue that a hamburger or a hot dog as well as bun omellette or bun tikki are derivatives and had the good old earl been around, he could well have claimed royalties invoking intellectual property rights. Indeed a recipe that can guarantee balanced and tasty nourishment and offers infinite possibilities for improvisation and innovation is not to be scoffed at.

A friend recently reminded us that there are non-western sandwiches—not spawned by the English ‘original’ that need to be given their due—the middle eastern fala-fal filled pita bread for instance. Here it is an interesting recipe that is inspired by the oriental option. Unknown outside the foodie circle till a couple of years back, this kind of bread is now being marketed under well-known brands like Harvest Gold etc.

Remember, you can easily replace the pita bread with phulka or kulcha. Combine it with a salad in summer or hot soup in winters and you have an appetising light meal ready in a jiffy.

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