This sandwich is all about the roast pork
Just as roast turkey leftovers are elevated in a sandwich, so roast pork leftovers can serve a higher purpose between two slices of bread. Roast pork joints for slicing are difficult to find in stores, so roast a joint at home and make sure there are leftovers.
When I was a student, this used to be my sandwich of choice, especially when I found myself ordering lunch in a traditional Italian sandwich bar. Alas, such establishments are a dying breed; but if you’re lucky enough to know one surviving, go in and order the pork and salad sandwich. Chances are the pork will have been roasted specially for this purpose – you won’t be disappointed.
Of course the ultimate Italian pork sandwich is a ‘porchetta’ – made from roasted stuffed pork , served warm or cold in a panini with rocket, tomatoes and mozzarella. I’ve often wondered if the sandwich bar ‘pork salad sandwiches’ were developed by Italians trying to reproduce a traditional ‘porchetta’ acceptable to English tastes. It’s a shame they didn’t adopt the ‘porchetta’ itself. Perhaps, being Italian they feared it would be ‘too foreign’ to succeed. If so, this has proved a sad paradox; in modern Britain, being gastronomically exotic is a positive advantage.