Pan Bagnat a Provencal Sandwich | Provencal French Recipes Guide

The Provencal sandwich or Pan Bagnat.

The name of the sandwich comes from the local Provencal language dialect Nissart, in which it means "wet bread", ‘bathed bread' or "soaked bread".

The Provencal sandwich or pahn bahn-YAH (the right pronounciation ) is a speciality of the region of Nice on the French Riviera - Cote d'Azur.

The soaking is done with vinaigrette with our delicious local olive oil.

The filling is a close relative of Salade Niçoise .

It is then wrapped in cling film and foil and pressed under a weight so that all the juices soak into the bread.

It is often misspelled "pain bagnat" which, while correct in French, is not the spelling used in Nissart.

This sandwich is a great item for picnics, tailgate parties, fishing trips, and any other casual dining opportunity.

As good citizens of Nice we have reason to be proud of the Pan Bagnat Tradition and we take it seriously.

As evidenced by the establishment of the Commune Libre du pan bagnat: Association pour la Defence et la Promotion de l'Appelation Pan Bagnat.

Visit the website (French only) for more information, including an official recipe, endorsements, and songs.

This Webpage offers also THE recipe please click here (French only).

The sandwich is composed of a circle formed white bread around the classic Salade Niçoise, a salad composed mainly of raw vegetables, hard boiled eggs, anchovies and/or tuna, and olive oil.

If the round, crusty pan bagnat rolls are not available (hamburger buns won't do; too soft), you may use baguettes.

Count three servings per baguette on the average.

Along with socca and Pissaladière (onion pizza), pan bagnat is the archetypal Provencal street food.

The pan bagnat is a popular lunchtime dish in the region around Nice where it is sold in most bakeries and on most shops, markets, supermarkets, street stalls, kiosks etc. all across the region.

As stated elsewhere on the website, the Provencal sandwich and the Salade Niçoise are strongly linked to the city of Nice, where we have been over time developed out of locally available ingredients.

But be warned: some versions are much less authentic than others. Sometimes you ask for a pan bagnat and what you get is nothing more than a tired tuna and salad sandwich.

There are loads of variations.

You can add or subtract what you like, more or less, according to your own taste or local availability of ingredients.

You could use Italian ciabatta or focaccia instead of a baguette.

You could just put it in an ordinary sandwich, I suppose.

I just think than a crusty, freshly-baked French baguette is the best option in case the real round crispy white bread bun is not available in your place.

These days a crusty French Baguette can be found in Bali or in Karachi!

Below are the ingredients and the recipe I use.

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Ingredients' List

A -
• 2 white onions, thinly sliced.
• 3 small red onions, thinly sliced.
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for drizzling.
• 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar, plus additional to taste.
• Salt to taste.
• Black pepper to taste.
• 1 can of GOOD tuna packed in GOOD olive oil, including olive oil.
• Lemon juice to taste.

B -
• 4 round crispy white bread bun.
• Lettuce leaves, (combination of green leafy lettuce).
• 4 tomatoes sliced.
• 4 hard-boiled sliced eggs.
• 8 drained anchovy fillets.
• Small black olives.
• Chopped callions.
• Sliced radishes.

Note: I use the small black olives from Nice to make my pan bagnat, they are so tasty!

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Recipe - How to

• Combine the red and white onion with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar, salt and several grinds of black pepper in a bowl.
• Using your hands, mix and squeeze everything together for 5 minutes. (Don't rush through this part; the onions need time to release their juices and mellow.)
• Work in can of tuna in olive oil, including the oil. Season with fresh lemon juice, red-wine vinegar, and salt, then add then pepper to taste.
• Cut round crispy white bread buns in half crosswise and spread each bottom half with lettuce leaves. Use a couple of varieties, for the difference in texture.
• On top of each lettuce layer, arrange 4 tomato slices (You need here GOOD - Really GOOD - ripe tomatoes on hand). Then add about half the tuna mixture and 3 to 4 slices of hard-boiled egg.
• Crisscross each sandwich with 2 drained anchovy fillets and strew with black olives (pit them if desired), chopped scallion greens, and sliced radishes. Then drizzle generously with more olive oil and top with the remaining bread halves, pressing gently but firmly.

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A story I had in New York

In July 2002, I was in New York on holidays.

On the Bastille Day I had the best pan bagnat I ever had!

They were perfectly made by French living there with local ingredients only: olive oil, bread freshly baked.

Actually there was more than that and I was amazed to discover that in the Big Apple such big French event was organized.

I discovered later that there is in the city an organization dedicated to the Bastille Day!

I had a wonderful time and a lot of fun that day!

The Bastille day is held every year in New York and in many places around the world.

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Ideal for a Healthy Picnic:

• Provencal Sandwiches - Pan Bagnat.


• Fruit salad, or peeled and cubed cantaloupe in individual plastic bags.


• Individually wrapped cheese and crackers.


• Cookies or slices of chocolate cake.


• Sparkling water, and? A bottle of Cold rosé!