MOZZARELLA IN CARROZZA
Photo by: Modern Magazine
Recipe
Mozzarella in Carrozza / Fried Mozzarella sandwich
Anything fried, cheese especially, just feels like the right food for this mood. And I also (same as Pamela, who shared this recipe) have a soft spot for all things fritto. Irresistible, warm, crispy. This recipe uses the usual old trick for the leftover bread - egg wash and frying pan, which we used often on Sundays, when I was a kid. Fried to golden crispiness and filled with cheese is even better.
Excerpt from Pamela Yung’s interview for Modern Magazine
“I’m guilty of having a soft spot for all things fritto, particularly while alternating with glugs of a light and lively natural wine. A snack food for the masses in much of Southern Italy, mozzarella in carrozza is simply made with leftovers from the previous days: dried slices of bread on the counter; yesterday’s mozzarella; the ever-present bowl of breadcrumbs that makes a cameo in nearly every dish in cucina povera, the food of Italy that speaks so dearly to me in its no-waste economy and its elevation of simple ingredients to the divine.
As a young cook in NYC, post-shift late-night appetites were more often than not satiated at the (now-defunct) Lower East Side institution ‘inoteca, delivering these kinds of indulgent snack foods meant to fill the bellies of both undernourished chefs/bartenders and the local scenester kids. My order would always include their version of this Southern-Italian classic. I’ve decided to revisit that memory with our own version at Flor, with the cheeky addition of an incredibly delicious ‘nduja brought to us by my friend, Giuseppe, straight from Calabria.
We use a housemade milk bread – a semi-enriched pullman-style loaf – and sandwich in buffalo mozzarella, a schmear of nduja, a drizzle of honey, and dried Sicilian oregano. The breading can be done with homemade breadcrumbs, if you have any, or panko breadcrumbs provide a great alternative. Ours is served with a simple basil sauce to complete the Italian flag trifecta (red, white, green).”
RECIPE
MOZZARELLA IN CARROZZA
Serves 2
4 slices of old bread
1 250g ball of high-quality buffalo mozzarella
Sea salt
‘Nduja (can be purchased at De Calabria, in Borough Market, or any good Italian grocer)
Honey
Dried Sicilian oregano
Plain flour
Fine breadcrumbs or panko breadcrumbs
3 eggs
Milk
Vegetable or sunflower oil
Slice your mozzarella into 1cm planks and carefully dab between sturdy paper towels to remove excess moisture.
Arrange two slices of bread face up and, using a butter knife, spread a thin layer of nduja onto each slice. Follow with a generous drizzle of honey and sprinkle of oregano. Trim your mozzarella to fit within 0.75cm of the bread’s perimeter and lay flat. Season with sea salt.
Carefully layer the second piece of bread on top of each slice. Use a pastry brush dipped into milk to moisten the perimeter of the top slice of bread – this will help with adhesion.
Using your palm, carefully and evenly apply pressure to try to create a “seal” around the mozzarella. Using a serrated knife, trim the crusts from the sandwich. Apply pressure once more to ensure a closed edge.
Prepare to bread the sandwiches. In three separate bowls, place the plain flour (seasoned with salt and pepper), eggs with a splash of milk (lightly whisked), and breadcrumbs of panko. Take your sandwich and coat completely (both sides and four edges) with the plain flour. Next, moisten entirely with the egg mixture – no dry spots should remain. Finally, coat it well in the breadcrumb mixture.
Fill a pot with a few inches of oil and heat to 180C. Drop the sandwich into the oil and fry until golden, flipping as needed. Best savoured hot, when the cheese pulls in the prized ‘al telefono’ fashion.
Vocabulary
'Nduja is a particularly spicy, spreadable pork from Italy. It is very similar to sobrassada from the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is typically made with parts of the pig such as the shoulder and belly, as well as tripe, roasted peppers and a mixture of spices.
A carrozza, also referred to as mozzarella in carrozza, is a type of fried cheese sandwich in Italian cuisine and Southern Italian cuisine. It is prepared by coating a mozzarella cheese sandwich in egg and flour, and frying it.
*source wikipedia
*photos, recipe and text kindly taken from: The Modern House https://www.themodernhouse.com/journal/flor-in-borough-market/
A monochrome black kitchen in bamboo by Ask og Eng.