Dont you just love bizarre sandwiches? You dont have to actually make them or even eat them at all, but for some reason its kind of nice to know that there are those who like such things! I mean, ever heard of a “St. Paul”, which is apparently only available in St. Louis, Missouri, and only then in certain old-timey Chinese restaurants? Its a hunk of egg foo young on white bread with lettuce, tomato, and mayo ” sometimes even a slice of American cheese! Or the chow mein sandwich, which apparently is a common menu item on Route 195 in southern Massachusetts ” and not confined to Chinese restaurants! Others report having peanut butter-and-onion sandwiches, peanut butter-and-pickle sandwiches, or peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches with crushed potato chipsthere is no end to the variety of bizarre sandwiches out there!

Included in the list might be one of the most bizarre, the “Avraham Karadi” sandwich (A.K.A. Avi Karadi sandwich). It seems like it may have been created as a gourmet sandwich as it involves a tremendous amount of time and effort to gather and prepare the ingredients. I simply could not see anyone actually enjoying the resulting sandwich, but that’s just me as there has been talk that it is popular in some locations. Here is the list of ingredients:

Passum, a sweet wine sauce from ancient Roman times. This is produced by boiling the must (whole fruits including the seeds, stems, and leaves pressed) and then adding honey in order to thicken it up.

Garum, a salty fish sauce from ancient Rome, approximated today by combining passum, oregano and fish paste.

Pine nut sauce, also an ancient Roman standby, made by combining vinegar, pine nuts, and honey, with some pepper and lovage.

Finally, and as desired, you may use spinach and onions as well as lettuce and tomatoes. When it comes to the bread many choose rye bread, but some do like Black Russian Bread as an alternative. Egg paste, as found in egg salad, is also sometimes used. Pastrami or Roast Beef are the meats of choice. Then there are the variations, there are too many to go over them all, just keep in mind they all pretty much keep within these ingredients. Curiously, I was not able to find out where the nickname of the “Avraham Karadi” or “Avi Karadi” came from for this sandwich.

1. The Passum: Reducing it to one-tenth its volume, start by cooking the grape juice. Feel free to add honey to taste.

2. The Garum: Add two full tablespoons of fish paste to the Passum. Then add a pinch of oregano.

Step Three: Making the pine nut sauce. You will need to soak the pine nuts for three hours in vinegar. Once completed you then want to blend it with honey and a few dashes of lovage and pepper.

4. Build the sandwich: Smear egg paste on rye or black Russian bread; insert meats and vegetables; ladle passum, garum, and pine nut sauce generously.

All done, enjoy your “Avraham Karadi” (aka “Avi Karadi”) sandwich!

Tags: Travel Tips

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