This sandwich takes me back to the first time I walked into a sandwich shop in New Orleans and asked if they could make me a vegetarian po' boy. The lady behind the counter told me that the original po' boy was made with french fries, lettuce, and tomato, and they'd be happy to make this historic sandwich for me. I walked in to the same shop the next day and they had added the french fry po' boy to the menu board.
This fried green tomato po' boy is just perfect. The dredge has a hint of nutmeg, and the N'awlins sauce puts it over the top...way over the top. This one should be on the menu, too!
When selecting the bread for this sandwich you should look for a baguette that has a crunchy exterior and is light for its size not one that is soft and chewy. Not only is it more authentic, it’s easier to eat. French baguette should be available at most grocery stores, but certainly specialty stores such as Fresh Market.
Fried Green Tomato Po’ Boy
(serves 4)
(serves 4)
1 crusty baguette (about 3 feet long)
4 ounces soft goat cheese
N’awlins Sauce (recipe follows)
2 cups spinach
2 medium red tomatoes (sliced)
Fried Green Tomatoes (recipe follows)
1/2 cup sliced green onion (to garnish)
Salt and Pepper (to taste)
To assemble the sandwich, slice a crusty french loaf in half leaving one long side intact. This hinge will help keep the sandwich together as you bite into it. Pull the bread out of the top half creating a channel for the ingredients. Spread creamy goat cheese on the bottom part of the inside and Naw'lins sauce on the top. Layer in fresh spinach, sliced red tomato, and the fried green tomatoes. Slice into 6-inch sections. Then...crunch! So good.
Fried Green Tomatoes:
4-5 medium green tomatoes (sliced into 1/2-inch slices)
1 egg (beaten)
1 cup all-purpose flour
about 1 cup of water (to make it as thick as pancake batter)
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
scant 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
scant 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
2 cups canola oil (for frying)
Pour canola oil into a sauce pan (oil should be about 2 inches deep). Heat oil to medium-high (350 degrees). Make the batter by whisking together the egg, flour, and enough water (about a cup) in a medium bowl to make the mixture as thick as pancake batter. Now make the dredge by tossing the cornstarch, cornmeal, salt, paprika, nutmeg, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper together in a separate bowl. Using a pair of tongs, dip each green tomato slice into the batter and allow excess to drip off leaving a think coating of batter on the tomato. Then sprinkle dredge over tomato allowing excess to go back into the bowl. do this just before placing each tomato into the oil. Fry in batches for 5-6 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
N'awlins Sauce
1/4 cup mayo
2 tablespoon creole mustard
1 teaspoon vegetarian Worcestershire
Tabasco or Louisiana hot sauce (to taste)
Mix mayo, mustard, Worcestershire, and hot sauce in a small bowl until well incorporated.
Chubby, I'll take a crack at this one.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! You'll love it.
ReplyDeleteI think I'm going to try these when I make the apple/parsnip soup. Want my two cents, or no?
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, and yes! You are a star tester! Thank you so much. You'll love them. Green tomatoes available at Superlo.
ReplyDeleteHey Chubby!! (hope you don't mind me calling you that.. I really like the name and I know you're not chubby anymore )
ReplyDeleteWell we just had these tonight before we are leaving for the basketball game. Here's my notes:
Note 1- the Nawlins sauce was tasty and an upgrade from just plain mayo or remoulade.I don't think the quantity was enough for this large of a po-boy. Also, for me I couldn't get past the mayo taste, so I added another 1/2 tsp of Worcestershire sauce and couple more dashes of hot sauce. (it really could of used more heat) My husband said he couldn't really taste the "heat".
Note 2- The French bread I was able to find at Kroger as well as the green tomatoes. They had a good selection, and I got the ones which are in between changing from green to red...the whitish/yellow color. (this color is what I was always taught had the best flavor for frying). The bread wasn't quite 3 ft long, maybe 2 1/2. I decided to toast under the broiler a few minutes just to warm it up and make it crunchier.. and get my husband interested.
Note 3- The red tomatoes added just enough wetness to keep the sandwich from being dry. Spinach was not overpowering and I think a good choice to go with the tomatoes.
Note 4-The goat cheese gave the sandwich a nice cheesey taste, and just enough sour to the nutmeg sweet.(in the future I may try with a good mozzarella as well..but I don't guess thats a usual cajun flavor? lol) Good choice of veggie-cheese combination.
Note 5-The only thing I had trouble with was the batter. (also check your word above I think you meant "thin" and you put "think" It looked like pancake batter and dripped just slightly like it.. It was hard to get the dredge to completely cover without the batter trying to squish out. (I think I would add cayenne pepper as well to the dredge) I guess thats the way batter behaves though.. I have never used a batter when I make fried green tomatoes..just the dredge. They did fry up looking kinda like a fritter you'd expect from a po-boy. My husband watched.. and he who never eats red or fried green tomatoes, said I'm gonna have to try one, you got them looking so yummy. He did like them.. and ate the whole sandwich.. but of course being such a meat eater, said he would add bacon or ham/turkey... oh well baby steps..
If I have left out anything let me know, and I'll try to answer ya. Tortilla tomorrow :)
That's great! I made the adjustments. I added an option for cayenne to the dredge. I like it hot, but I don't want to scare people away which is why I say a few dashes of hot sauce (or more.) Check it out. One question. Did you have a bunch of extra batter or dredge. I hate to waste.
ReplyDeleteTo borrow the words of my husband,"These things are pretty damn pure. They need to go into dinner rotation immediately." The flavors and textures in the po-boy all complement each other so nicely. I baked some sweet potato and russet potato "fries" to go along with them, and it gave us a perfect little takeout feel.
ReplyDeleteThe N'awlins sauce was awesome. I agree with SusieQ, though, that there might not have been enough of the sauce to cover all of the po-boys. We used all of it on two po-boys--we do love a saucy sandwich at our house. I'd maybe consider doubling the recipe for the sauce.
I do need to mention that I have never liked the taste or texture of ripe, red tomatoes. Fried green tomatoes are a different story, though. These sandwiches gave us plenty of fried goodness and still made us feel like we were eating our veggies. We did substitute some roasted red peppers for the red tomatoes, which I think gave a similar texture. Delicious!
One thing that I've noticed is that some of your recipes tell how many it serves and some of them do not. I would suggest including that information.
The girls and I are making the muffalettas with the apple/parsnip soup on Wednesday. I've got some green tomatoes left over. They were so easy to fry that I think we'll have fried green tomatoes for an appetizer. I'll report back on Thursday.
Sweet! I doubled the sauce recipe and added the info on how many this sandwich serves. (do you agree?) I'm so happy this worked out well doe you. I LOVE me some FGT. I served coriander-spiced FGT with mint yogurt and hot peppers at an all-tomato dinner at the trolley stop a few years back. They were a hit.
ReplyDeleteDon't like tomatoes????? WHat.