SLT – Speck, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich

Speck. It is something that we probably do not encounter all that often, nor maybe even heard of, and that is why I am introducing it to you today. Speck is basically made from the hind leg of a pig, and deboned, but the trick to speck is that it is cured and smoked much longer than bacon. Think of speck like pancetta, or bacon, but with a slightly different flavor due to the cure.

I first encountered speck while browsing through some local Bolzano meats from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They basically provide local charcuterie to Milwaukee, and do a pretty darn good job of it. As I had sampled their pancetta in the past, I thought I would pick up some speck (something I never heard of), and see what I could make of it. Well, I made the class BLT (bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich) and turned it into a SLT.

Ingredients: (Makes 1 sandwich)

• 2 pieces of white bread
• 6 slices of very thinly sliced speck
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• Fresh lettuce, to your liking
• 2 slices of tomato

Begin by spreading the butter on each slice of bread.

Heat a skillet on medium heat and add the sliced speck, cooking just until lightly crisp. Remove from the skillet.

Toast the slices of bread until a nice golden brown. Feel free to use the oven, or standard toaster for that.

When ready, take the slices of bread, and lightly spread each one with the mayonnaise.

Add the speck, the tomato slices, then the lettuce. Slice on a diagonal and serve.

Something different for sure. In my opinion it was a bit saltier than your standard bacon, and had a hint of juniper, but when used in a SLT sandwich, it was pretty darn delicious. If you ever find speck at your local farmers market, or store, give this one a shot.