This is such a mega sandwich. It's one that you dream about and hope it'll be as good as you dreamed it to be. But this one really is. It's a Mortadella and Burrata Sandwich, in focaccia with pesto, rocket and a homemade garlic confit aioli.
The combination of the flavours is truly something I dream about. The good news is that it's not tricky to make, it's just the garlic confit aioli that requires you to firstly confit garlic cloves. You can learn about that here but if you don't want to make it, you can also use standard mayo. But if you do have the time, I'd recommend going the extra step and making it, it's well worth it.
Why you'll love this Mortadella and Burrata Sandwich
- It takes less than 10 minutes to make the sandwich itself, and it is SO good despite the lack of time it takes.
- It has a delicious blend of creamy, cool, peppery and salty. It makes for the perfect sandwich bite.
- It's interchangeable for other ingredients if you don't have everything on hand, but it's a great base recipe.
What you'll need for this recipe:
Focaccia: we used pesto focaccia but go with what you can find or what you like.
Burrata: this is a softer, creamier version of mozzarella that adds a luxurious finish to this sandwich. You could use mozzarella if you can’t find any burrata.
Green basil pesto: shop bought is perfect here. I like to use the fresh one in a pot rather than the shelved jarred version. I just prefer it but both work.
Mortadella: thi is essentially an Italian sausage, that's then thinly sliced. If you haven't tried it before, please do. It's great! It's almost like ham when you look at it but it is a thinly sliced sausage! And it has better flavour!
Rocket: perfect to contrast the creamy burrata and salty mortadella.
Garlic aioli: full details of this are below, you can just use regular mayo or cheat's aioli if you don't want to make the full thing.
See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements
Substitutions and Variations:
Mortadella: If you can't find mortadella, try with ham, prosciutto or even bresaola. Any cured meat would be good but I love it best with mortadella.
Burrata: If you can't find burrata, your best option is to use mozzarella as they can often be used interchangeably. Both are made from cow’s or buffalo milk, but mozzarella has a firmer texture which can be sliced and shredded without losing its shape - and a more mild and delicate flavour.
You can make a ‘cheat’s burrata’ using one of two hacks:
- Tear 250g mozzarella into small pieces in a medium bowl, add 200g crème fraîche and a generous pinch of salt. Stir well to combine, then cover and chill for a couple of hours - or until ready to serve.
- Tear 250g mozzarella into small pieces in a medium bowl, pour over 100ml double cream and add ¼ teaspoon salt. Stir well to combine, then cover and chill for a couple of hours - or until ready to serve.
Roasted garlic aioli: If you don't want to make the aioli from scratch, here's how I would make a cheat's aioli.
- Mix about ⅓ of a cup of good quality mayonnaise with salt, pepper and 1 grated garlic clove. Make sure it's really finely grated and mix together.
Here's how to make this Mortadella Burrata Sandwich
ONE: Add the confit garlic, oil, salt to a jug that can fit an immersion/hand blender.
TWO: Add the confit garlic, the oil and a squeeze of lemon, as well as the egg!
THREE: Blend with a strong hand blender until it emulsifies and you get a thick consistency. Taste and adjust for seasoning.
FOUR: Spread toasted focaccia with the aioli and pesto.
FIVE: Add mortadella curls (don't lay them flat, curls are best!) then top with a ball of burrata, spread it out across the whole sandwich and season with salt and pepper.
SIX: Add rocket and close the lid. Slice and tuck in!
Cooking Tips:
Roasted garlic aioli: if you don't have a hand blender, I would add the garlic cloves, egg, lemon and salt to a blender. Blend together then add a tablespoon of the oil. Blend again. Then slowly stream in the rest of the oil whilst blending. This will help it come together and not split.
Pesto: If you want to also make fresh basil pesto, my recipe is here. But store bought works well too, I like the fresh kind in the tub rather than jarred for this recipe, but use what you have.
Frequently Asked Questions
Confit is a French cooking technique that involves cooking something in fat for a long time at a gentle heat. This makes it meltingly tender and mellows the flavour of the garlic. All you have to do is add peeled garlic cloves (as much as you want to make) to a small ovenproof dish. Submerge in olive oil (don't bother with extra virgin olive oil, just regular is fine) and place in the oven at 120 degrees for 2 or so hours. You want them to be totally soft and golden. You can make as much as you like, just adjust accordingly for what you need and for the size of your ovenproof dish
If you have leftover garlic confit aioli, use it on more sandwiches! But if you want to use up the confit garlic cloves themselves, they're great smashed into a salad dressing, into a pasta, smeared on to bread with some ripe tomatoes on top - the possibilities are endless. You can use it wherever you'd use garlic normally!
More recipes like this
It's no secret that I am a sandwich's biggest fan. BUT it has to be a good sandwich. A range of textures and flavours, all layered in. Try my Goat's Cheese and Ham Focaccia Sandwich, it has apricot jam for the sweet contrast. My Chicken Parmesan Sandwich is world famous too, crispy chicken, tomato sauce, pesto mayo. YUM! I also love this recipe for Crispy Chicken Caesar Sandwich. Caesar Salad in a sandwich, you need to try this one.
Made this recipe and loved it?
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PrintMortadella, Pesto, Burrata Focaccia Sandwich With Garlic Confit Aioli
Sometimes you dream about sandwiches, hoping they’ll be as delicious as you dreamed. Well, this one is. It has crisp focaccia, pesto, burrata, mortadella, rocket and a homemade garlic confit aioli.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 2
- Category: Sandwiches
Ingredients
For the Garlic Confit Aioli
- 10 garlic cloves
- 1 cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 egg
- Pinch of flakey sea salt
For the sandwich:
- 2 slices focaccia
- 1 ball of burrata
- 4 tbsp green basil pesto
- 75g Italian mortadella
- 25g wild rocket
- 2 tbsp garlic aioli (use good quality mayo if you don’t want to make the garlic confit aioli, although we’d highly recommend it!)
Instructions
For the Garlic Confit Aioli
- Add peeled garlic cloves (as much as you want to make -10 should do) to a small ovenproof dish. Submerge in the olive oil (don't bother with extra virgin olive oil, just regular is fine) and place in the oven at 120 degrees for 2 or so hours. You want them to be totally soft and golden. You can make as much as you like, just adjust accordingly for what you need and for the size of your ovenproof dish.
- Place 10 confit garlic cloves, 1 cup garlic confit oil, 1 egg, salt and 1 tablespoon lemon juice into a glass container or jug that is just wide enough to fit a hand blender. Blend all ingredients together. Continue until you have a thick consistency.
- Store in an airtight container or jar in the fridge for up to 5 days.
For the sandwich:
- Cut your focaccia into thirds lengthways. Slice 1 piece of the focaccia in half. Drizzle cut side with olive oil and toast in a pan until golden
- Assemble your sandwich by beginning with a layer of the garlic aioli, a spoon of pesto, followed by slices of the mortadella, burrata, torn in two, and rocket, finished with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Top with the other half of the focaccia and cut in half. Enjoy!
Notes
If you don't want to make garlic aioli, try my cheat's aioli above or just use good quality mayo and rub the focaccia with a garlic clove after toasting in the pan.
Corey says
One of the best sandwiches I have ever eaten. Thank you!