Jambon-Beurre — Ham and Butter Baguette
The French buy something like a billion of these a year, and they contain three things. No leaves, no mustard, no mayonnaise. It sounds austere until you make one with a proper baguette and good butter, at which point it becomes obvious why nobody has improved on it.
Ingredients
Sandwich
- 1 sourdough baguette (wheat)
- 80g cold salted butter
- 6 slices good cooked ham, off the bone if possible
Method
- Split, do not halve. Cut the baguette along one side only, leaving a hinge. It holds together far better and stops the filling escaping.
- Butter properly. Spread cold butter thickly across the whole cut surface, right to the ends. This is not a scraping — you should be able to see it. It is a third of the sandwich.
- Lay the ham. Fold each slice loosely and lay it along the length so there is ham in every bite, including the last one. Do not overfill.
- Press and cut. Close, press along the length, and cut into two lengths on the diagonal.
Every sandwich here is only as good as the bread. Ours starts with a live culture — buy a live sourdough starter and bake your own.
Frequently asked questions
Why is there nothing else in a jambon-beurre?
Because with three ingredients each one has to be good, and adding a fourth hides the fact that one of them is not. It is a test of your bread, your butter and your ham, which is why it remains the benchmark sandwich in France.
What ham should I use?
Jambon de Paris traditionally — a mild, lightly brined cooked ham. Any good ham off the bone works. Avoid heavily smoked or honey-glazed ham, which overwhelms the butter.
Should the butter be salted?
Yes. Salted butter is standard for this sandwich and does the seasoning work. If you only have unsalted, add a very small pinch of flaky salt over the butter.
Can I make it the night before?
It is best within a couple of hours, but it survives overnight better than most sandwiches because butter is a moisture barrier. Wrap it tightly in paper rather than plastic so the crust does not sweat.
