Modern sandwiches have gotten to be cumbersome beasts, layered with meats and cheeses and condiments, swimming in special sauce, pressed and heated and generally manhandled within an inch of their lives. But when we traveled to a new food-business incubator in Northeast Minneapolis to visit with Mike Phillips, the artisan salumi-maker behind Red Table Meat Co., we traveled back in time.
Phillips advocates making sandwiches that are pared down and simple, evoking the bocadillos of Spain: nothing more than baguette, butter, and meat. Red Table salami and other cured meats bring subtle spice, tender texture, and deep flavor that meld into unctuous butter. Cradled in the folds of a crunchy baguette, it represents the union of our region’s meat, dairy, and baking heritage.
Red Table meats are available at a variety of locations, including France 44 (and the St. Paul Cheese Shop), Seward Co-op, Lunds and Byerly’s stores, and the Wedge & Wheel in Stillwater.
Red Table Meat Sandwich
- 1 fresh baguette
- 8 oz. Red Table Meat Co. meat, thinly sliced (we used Big Chet’s and Salbando Grande large-caliber salami and coppa and lonza whole-muscle cures)
- 1 oz. salted butter, sliced (hand-rolled, if possible)
1. Split baguette lengthwise and open.
2. Line bottom with butter.
3. Layer meat, overlapping, until baguette is filled.
4. Close baguette and cut into quarters to create four sandwiches.