Niçoise-Style Tuna Sandwiches

Pan bagnat is a sandwich from N ice in southern F rance. Made with tuna (or anchovies), olives, hard-cooked eggs, tomatoes and Mediterranean vegetables, it sometimes is described as salade N iç oise between pieces of bread. T he classic method for making pan bagnat is to wrap the assembled sandwiches and weight them with a heavy obj ect for a few hours, or even overnight, so the ingredients and flavors meld and the bread soaks up any j uices. We press ours for j ust 1 5 minutes, but if you’re in a rush, you can serve them right away. T hinly sliced fresh fennel and/ or baby arugula also are nice tucked into the sandwiches before pressing. Don’t use water-packed tuna for this recipe, as it lacks flavor and richness. The velvety tex ture and full flavor of olive oil-packed tuna is essential. Before draining the tuna, don’t forget to reserve 2 tablespoons of the oil from the cans. We add the oil back when mix ing the tuna with the seasonings for heightened flavor.

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Step 1

I n a medium bowl, stir together the tuna and the reserved oil, the capers, olives, tarragon, shallot, lemon juice, olive oil and ½ teaspoon pepper. Taste and season with salt.

Step 2

S plit each roll horizontally, leaving one side hinged. I f the rolls are very thick, pull out and discard some of the crumb so the bread is about ½ inch thick. D ivide the tuna mixture evenly among the rolls, distributing it on the bottom halves. L ay the tomato slices on top of the tuna, followed by the eggs and radishes.

Step 3

C lose the sandwiches and press firmly. Set them on a rimmed baking sheet and lay a sheet of foil on top. Place another baking sheet on top, then weight it with a heavy object, such as a large D utch oven or cast-iron skillet. L et stand for about 15 minutes. To serve, cut each sandwich in half on the diagonal