Butifarra

Ingredients

Bread

• 4pan francés rolls, or crusty white rolls

Ham

• 400 gjamón del país, thinly sliced

Salsa criolla

• 2red onions, very thinly sliced
• juice of 3 limes
• 1or 2 ají limo or rocoto chillies, finely sliced
• 1 tbspchopped coriander
• salt and pepper
• a little olive oil

Also

• lettuce leaves
• sometimes a little ají amarillo paste or mayonnaise

To serve

• at a party, at a café, or from a street cart

Directions

1. Slice it as thinly as you possibly can, using a mandoline if you have one. Thick onion is harsh and unpleasant here, where paper-thin slices soften almost immediately in the lime.
2. Slice with the grain rather than across it, which gives strips that stay separate rather than falling into rings. Put the sliced onion in a bowl of cold water and rub it with your fingers, then drain it. Some cooks soak it in iced water for ten minutes, which crisps it as well.
3. Drain and dry it thoroughly afterwards. Toss the onion with plenty of fresh lime juice, sliced chilli, coriander and salt. Use fresh lime rather than bottled, since the acid is most of the flavour.
4. Squeeze the limes gently by hand rather than crushing them on a press, since pressing hard extracts bitter oils from the pith. Ají limo or rocoto are the usual choices, and both are genuinely hot.
5. Slice them finely and adjust to taste, though salsa criolla is meant to have real heat. Dress it no more than about twenty minutes before serving.
6. Use pan francés, the Peruvian crusty white roll, or any crusty roll. It must be crisp outside and soft within, and sturdy enough to hold a wet salsa without collapsing. Lay the sliced ham over it, generously. Pile the drained salsa criolla on top.
7. Drain the salsa slightly as you lift it, since too much liquid makes the sandwich fall apart. Serve it immediately, since the bread softens quickly once the salsa is in.

Technique

• Peruvian butifarra is a sandwich, not the Catalan sausage of the same name.
• Jamón del país is a cooked spiced ham, quite unlike Spanish serrano.
• Rinsing the sliced onion removes its harshness.

Substitutions

• Good cooked ham rubbed with ají panca and cumin.
• Any hot chilli in place of ají limo.

Variations

• With a little ají amarillo paste spread on the bread.
• With sliced tomato added.
• Made small, as party sandwiches.

History

A Lima sandwich of the old cafés and jaranas, built on country-style cured ham.

Frequently asked questions

What is Butifarra?

Butifarra is a street food from Peru: bread roll with jamón del país, onion salsa and chilli. A Lima sandwich of the old cafés and jaranas, built on country-style cured ham.

How long does Butifarra take to make?

Butifarra takes 20 min of preparation and none of cooking. The recipe makes 4 sandwiches. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Butifarra?

Yes, within limits. Good cooked ham rubbed with ají panca and cumin. Any hot chilli in place of ají limo.

What is the most important thing to get right in Butifarra?

Slice with the grain rather than across it, which gives strips that stay separate rather than falling into rings. Put the sliced onion in a bowl of cold water and rub it with your fingers, then drain it. Some cooks soak it in iced water for ten minutes, which crisps it as well.