Capocolla, Lettuce and Tomato
A capocolla, lettuce, and tomato sandwich is a homage to the most basic but heroic of sandwiches. An ideal summer lunch, hangover cure, or miraculously simple yet satisfying snack. The reliable combination of crisped cured meat, summer’s best tomato, cool crunchy lettuce, and creamy mayo can’t be beat. Except when you substitute the new king of sandwich meats, capocolla, for the bacon. AND make your own damn mayo. Which you should do because it’s embarrassingly easy.
Directions
For the mayo
Whisk the egg, vinegar, and salt in a large glass bowl until frothy. Slowly — and we mean slowly — drip in the vegetable oil, whisking to incorporate each drop before adding another. You’re creating an emulsion here. As it thickens, you can add the oil a little faster, but not by much. Then whisk in the olive oil — this will give a nice flavor and deeper color.
For the sandwich
Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the Capocolla in batches, flipping, until the slices lightly brown and get firm, about 5 minutes per batch. You can put a metal lid on top of them to keep them flat if you’d like. Remove to a paper-towel-lined plate and dab off excess fat with another paper towel.
Toast the bread. Spread mayonnaise on one side of each slice. Build your sandwich with the meat, lettuce, and tomato as you see fit. We like the lettuce, meat and then tomato. Grind some pepper on, if desired.
