A Gatsby is a South African

submarine sandwich A submarine sandwich, commonly known as a sub, hoagie (Philadelphia metropolitan area and Western Pennsylvania English), hero (New York City English), Italian ( Maine English), grinder (New England English), wedge (Westchester, NY), or a spuckie ...

consisting of a bread roll filled with chips (French fries) and a choice of fillings and sauces. It originated in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

and is popular throughout the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

province. The sandwich is typically large and shared by several people.

Recipe

There is no standard recipe for a Gatsby, but it is usually offered in a long (one foot or more) French-style bread roll cut lengthwise. Other breads used may include hot dog buns or

roti Roti (also known as chapati) is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent. It is popular in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Trinid ...

flat breads, although a filled roti is usually referred to as a salomie. The sandwich is made large to be shared, usually four ways. The filling of a Gatsby comprises chips with any number of other ingredients such as meats, fish and eggs. Meat fillings may include chargrilled

steak A steak is a thick cut of meat generally sliced across the muscle fibers, sometimes including a bone. It is normally grilled or fried. Steak can be diced, cooked in sauce, such as in steak and kidney pie, or minced and formed into patties, ...

, masala steak, chicken, polony sausage,

Vienna sausage A Vienna sausage (german: Wiener Würstchen, Wiener; Viennese/Austrian German: ''Frankfurter Würstel'' or ''Würstl''; Swiss German: ''Wienerli''; Swabian: ''Wienerle'' or ''Saitenwurst'') is a thin parboiled sausage traditionally made of p ...

and Russian sausage. Fried or pickled fish,

calamari Squid is eaten in many cuisines; in English, the culinary name calamari is often used for squid dishes.''Oxford English Dictionary'', 3rd edition, 2002''s.v.''/ref> There are many ways to prepare and cook squid. Fried squid is common in the Me ...

curry A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradit ...

and eggs are also frequently offered. The fillings are commonly dressed with achar pickles or peri peri sauce. Although the Gatsby is typically made with meat fillings,

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. Di ...

versions can be found that are usually made by substituting marinated

soy The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu and ...

steak for the meat. Healthier versions can also be found, using ingredients such as beans which are said to significantly reduce

cholesterol Cholesterol is any of a class of certain organic molecules called lipids. It is a sterol (or modified steroid), a type of lipid. Cholesterol is biosynthesized by all animal cells and is an essential structural component of animal cell mem ...

and fat levels.

History

The Gatsby sandwich originated in 1976 in

Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town on the border of County Roscommon and County Westmeath, Ireland. It is located on the River Shannon near the southern shore of Lough Ree. It is the second most populous town in the Midlands Region with a population of ...

, in the

Cape Flats The Cape Flats ( af, Die Kaapse Vlakte) is an expansive, low-lying, flat area situated to the southeast of the central business district of Cape Town. The Cape Flats is also the name of an administrative region of the City of Cape Town, which lie ...

area of Cape Town. Food shop owner Rashaad Pandy wanted to serve a quick but filling meal to workers helping him renovate his store. He filled a large round loaf with "slap chips" (South-African-style chips with vinegar), polony sausage and

achaar South Asian pickles, also known as avalehikā, pachchadi, achaar (sometimes spelled as aachaar), athaanu, loncha, oorugaai, or aavakaai, is a pickled food made from a variety of vegetables and fruits preserved in brine, vinegar, edible oils, and ...

and cut this into wedges. "Froggy", one of the workers, declared the sandwich a "Gatsby smash", alluding to the movie ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts First-person narrative, first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious mil ...

'' which had been screened at an Athlone cinema. The name stuck and Pandy subsequently offered the sandwich in his shop. The sandwich grew in popularity and was adjusted to use a long French-style roll. The gatsby sandwich is a popular hangover cure for Capetonians. File:Tastebud Shack 1.jpg, alt=A store in Cape Town, South Africa, with signage for Gatsby sandwiches, A store in Cape Town, South Africa with signage for Gatsby sandwiches, 2014 Root44 3.jpg, alt=A personal-sized Gatsby sandwich prepared with calamari and chips, being sold at a food stall, A personal-sized Gatsby sandwich prepared with calamari and chips, being sold at a

food stall A food kiosk or food booth (also food stand, temporary food service facility) is generally a temporary structure used to prepare and sell food to the general public, usually where large groups of people are situated outdoors in a park, at a parade ...

for R45 (approximately

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

$3.75), 2014 File:Gatsby (1).jpg, alt=A Gatsby sandwich, A Gatsby sandwich

References

External links

* {{sandwhich French fries Afrikaans words and phrases South African cuisine Sandwiches The Great Gatsby

Recipe

History

See also

References

External links