I have discovered Lettuce Sandwiches. No, its not a sandwich of lettuce in bread (though personally I haven’t tried that yet, so one never knows). Rather it is a sandwich that uses lettuce instead of bread.
Le Bun
I came across this concept first when making a hamburger. Hamburger buns in France are, well, ewwww. Go figure. Especially since bread is so revered here. It certainly is not something you go out of your way to buy in the shop, unless you like the taste of cardboard.
And any self respecting boulangerie (bakery) is not going to make ‘Le Bun’. Sure a gorgeous fluffy, puffy roll, which you couldn’t get your mouth around if you made it into hamburger. But not a bun.
Le Hamburger
The other week I fancied a good juicy burger and my butcher very nicely minced the cut of beef I chose. Perfection. I tried it as a burger without bun and for some reason this just doesn’t make sense.
Then I hit on the idea of taking the lettuce I normally put on the burger, around the burger. And voila! I must say it was delicious, fresh and because I could pick it up like a burger, it seemed like one.
Le Lettuce Leaf
Now I may not be spoiled when it comes to hamburger buns here, but I certainly am when it comes to lettuce. Iceberg lettuce does exist, though I have never seen anyone buy it, maybe because it is well known to have no nutrients in it, so why bother. Rather there are a plethora of other choices. Typically, in the supermarket, I can choose from at least 4 types, sometimes 5.
Batavia is my go to favourite as it has large leaves and cute curly edges. And it is my ducks favourite too, so what I don’t eat they will. There is also Chêne Blonde (white, but it’s really more a yellow green) or Rouge (red), with smaller more individual leaves. Laitue (which simply means lettuce) is a large leaf lettuce. And the largest of them all Chicorée Frisée (curly Endive). Another favourite is Mache, with little sprigs of flavourful leaves, but more appropriate for a salad than a sandwich. Head to a French market and there are even more varieties. So you can see I am spoiled for choice when it comes to my lettuce sandwiches.
Leftovers and Lettuce
This has led into the realm of trying all sorts of other things in lettuce. Left over stir-fried chicken, prawn noodles, even some meatloaf. But my absolute favourite, and so simple for lunch is the classic tuna and mayonnaise. I add just a tiny amount of mayonnaise, just enough to bind it a bit. If I am feeling really decadent, a little diced celery is added for extra freshness. A spoonful or two is dolloped in to a lettuce leaf and wrapped up. They are so fresh and flavoursome I wouldn’t eat tuna mayo any other way now.
Oh, and of course, a great and easy gluten free alternative to the normal bread sandwich. But honestly I prefer lettuce sandwiches to bread any day.
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