 | |
| Type | Sandwich |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United States |
| Main ingredients | Bread, ham, cheese (Emmental or Gruyère), egg or batter |
A Monte Cristo sandwich is an egg-dipped or batter-dipped ham and cheese sandwich that is pan or deep fried. It is a variation of the French croque monsieur .
The first documented reference to a "Monte Cristo Sandwich" was in an American restaurant industry publication in 1923. [1] From the 1930s to the 1960s, American cookbooks commonly had recipes for similar croque monsieur variants, under such names as "French sandwich", "toasted ham sandwich", and "French toasted cheese sandwich". [2] Though it is commonly claimed that the Monte Cristo sandwich was developed in the 1960s in Southern California, mentions of the sandwich by name in earlier decades and similar recipes appearing in cookbooks cast doubt on this claim. Nevertheless, the sandwich developed a larger popularity in the region, and it rose in popularity nationally after the Blue Bayou Restaurant in Disneyland began to serve the sandwich. [3] The sandwich is heavily associated with the Bennigan's restaurant chain.
Depending on the regional variation, the sandwich can either be savory or a mixture of savory and sweet. In its most basic form, it is dipped in beaten egg and pan-fried, though it may also be deep-fried in beer or pancake batter. [4] [5] Regional variations [2] [6] may include sliced turkey or caramelized onions. Some variants are served grilled; in other variations, the Monte Cristo is served as an open sandwich, with only the bread egg-dipped and pan fried. In such cases, the fully assembled sandwich is then usually heated slightly under a grill or broiler. [2] In sweeter variations, the Monte Cristo is often covered in powdered sugar and served with maple syrup or preserves.
An omelette is a dish made from eggs, fried with butter or oil in a frying pan. It is a common practice for an omelette to be folded around fillings such as chives, vegetables, mushrooms, meat, cheese, onions or some combination of the above. Whole eggs or egg whites are often beaten with a small amount of milk, cream, or water.
French toast is a dish of sliced bread soaked in beaten eggs and often milk or cream, then pan-fried. Alternative names and variants include eggy bread, Bombay toast, gypsy toast, and poor knights (of Windsor).
Chicken-fried steak, also known as country-fried steak, is an American breaded cutlet dish consisting of a piece of beefsteak coated with seasoned flour and either deep-fried or pan-fried. It is sometimes associated with the Southern cuisine of the United States. It is breaded and fried with a technique similar to the more common fried chicken, hence "chicken-fried". When deep-fried, it is usually referred to as "chicken-fried steak". Pan-fried versions are typically referred to as "country-fried steak".
A croque monsieur is a hot sandwich made with ham and cheese. The name comes from the French words croque ("crunch") and monsieur ("gentleman").
An open sandwich, also known as an open-face/open-faced sandwich, bread baser, bread platter or tartine, consists of a slice of bread or toast with one or more food items on top. It has half the amount of bread of a typical closed sandwich.
The grilled cheese is a hot cheese sandwich typically prepared by heating slices of cheese between slices of bread with a cooking fat such as butter or mayonnaise on a frying pan, griddle, or sandwich toaster, until the bread browns and the cheese melts.
A schnitzel is a thin slice of meat. The meat is usually thinned by pounding with a meat tenderizer. Most commonly, the meat is breaded before frying. Breaded schnitzel is popular in many countries and is made using veal, pork, chicken, mutton, beef, or turkey. Schnitzel originates in Austria as wiener schnitzel and is very similar to dishes such as escalope in France and Spain, panado in Portugal, tonkatsu in Japan, cotoletta in Italy, kotlet schabowy in Poland, řízek in Czech Republic, milanesa in Latin America, chuleta valluna in Colombia, chicken chop in Malaysia, and chicken-fried steak and pork tenderloin of the United States.
A melt sandwich is a type of hot sandwich containing a suitable meltable cheese and a filling of meat or fish. The sandwich is grilled on the stovetop until the cheese melts and the bread is toasted, or heated in an oven.
Toast Hawaii is an open sandwich consisting of a slice of toast with ham and cheese, and a maraschino cherry in the middle of a pineapple slice, baked so that the cheese starts to melt. It was made popular by the West German TV cook Clemens Wilmenrod in the 1950s. It is likely that it was adapted from the "Grilled Spamwich" found in a 1939 Spam cookbook and brought to West Germany by American G.I.s. Spam was not available in Germany's grocery stores so Wilmenrod replaced it with a slice of cooked ham.
Francesinha is a Portuguese sandwich, originally from Porto, made with layers of toasted bread and assorted hot meats such as roast, steak, wet-cured ham, linguiça, or chipolata over which sliced cheese is melted by the ladling of a near-boiling tomato-and-beer sauce called molho de francesinha. It is typically served with french fries.
Uruguayan cuisine is a fusion of cuisines from several European countries, especially of Mediterranean foods from Spain, Italy, Portugal and France. Other influences on the cuisine resulted from immigration from countries such as Germany and Scotland. Uruguayan gastronomy is a result of immigration, rather than local Amerindian cuisine, because of late-19th and early 20th century immigration waves of, mostly, Italians. Spanish influences are abundant: desserts like churros, flan, ensaimadas yoo (Catalan sweet bread), and alfajores were all brought from Spain. There are also all kinds of stews known as guisos or estofados, arroces, and fabada. All of the guisos and traditional pucheros (stews) are also of Spanish origin. Uruguayan preparations of fish, such as dried salt cod (bacalao), calamari, and octopus, originate from the Basque and Galician regions, and also Portugal. Due to its strong Italian tradition, all of the famous Italian pasta dishes are present in Uruguay including ravioli, lasagne, tortellini, fettuccine, and the traditional gnocchi. Although the pasta can be served with many sauces, there is one special sauce that was created by Uruguayans. Caruso sauce is a pasta sauce made from double cream, meat, onions, ham and mushrooms. It is very popular with sorrentinos and agnolotti. Additionally, there is Germanic influence in Uruguayan cuisine as well, particularly in sweet dishes. The pastries known as bizcochos are Germanic in origin: croissants, known as medialunas, are the most popular of these, and can be found in two varieties: butter- and lard-based. Also German in origin are the Berlinese known as bolas de fraile, and the rolls called piononos. The facturas were re-christened with local names given the difficult German phonology, and usually Uruguayanized by the addition of a dulce de leche filling. Even dishes like chucrut (sauerkraut) have also made it into mainstream Uruguayan dishes.
A steak sandwich is a sandwich prepared with steak that has been broiled, fried, grilled, barbecued or seared using steel grates or gridirons, then served on bread or a roll. Steak sandwiches are sometimes served with toppings of cheese, onions, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, and in some instances fried eggs, coleslaw, and french fries.
Cheese on toast is made by placing sliced or grated cheese on toasted bread and melting it under a grill. It is popular in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, the Caribbean, and in African countries.
The cheese dream is an open-faced version of the American grilled cheese sandwich made with bread and cheese; it is cooked with either oil, margarine, or butter. Other ingredients such as bacon, avocado, pineapple, eggs, or sliced tomato can be optionally added to the open-faced sandwich as well.
A cordon bleu or schnitzel cordon bleu is a dish of meat wrapped around cheese, then breaded and pan-fried or deep-fried.
Regional street food is street food that has commonalities within a region or culture.
A carrozza, also referred to as mozzarella in carrozza, is a type of fried cheese sandwich or pastry in Italian cuisine. It is prepared by coating a mozzarella cheese sandwich in egg and flour, and frying it. It is a popular dish in the Campania region of Italy and in areas of New York City. Mozzarella fritta is a variation of the dish that consists of battered cheese, without any bread.
