Joe’s Dairy on Sullivan Street has been a New York favorite for mozzarella since the 1930s. Tuesday through Saturday, patrons will find second- generation mozzarella messiah Anthony Campanelli dunking his dairy-weathered hands into a stockpot of scalding water atop a standard Manhattan stove he’s rigged to heat up to commercial kitchen degrees.
He forms and reforms the raw cheese and stretches the long, thick mozzarella rope the full length of his arms, and then ties it off into the familiar balls we see in the latteria. All day he works, making an average of 1,200 pounds of mozzarella, which he sends to various cheese shops and restaurants and sells directly from the shop.
Mozzarella comes fresh or smoked, salted, lightly salted or unsalted. I recently discovered that the counter woman makes fresh cheese sandwiches. When recently picking up a few mozz-knots, I noticed her making a sammy for a customer ahead of me. When it was my turn, I added one to my order. She sliced open a foot-long ciabatta and stuffed in five thick slabs of cheese. Then she loaded it with roasted red peppers. The result was an incredibly simple yet delicious combo. Sauce-free and spice-free, the sandwich depends on the pure flavors and texture of the cheese, the peppers, and the bread. And, indeed, the trifecta works well. And, the beloved counter lady double seals it first in saran wrap and then in a brown bag to the juices and aromas stay where they belong.
This sandwich is the best deal in town. At $6, that’s 50 cents per inch of top quality, uber-fresh mozzarella, not to mention the **homemade** peppers and the Grandaisy bread. By using such incredible ingredients, the simple sandwich is as satisfying as can be.
Recipe
Grandaisy ciabatta, sliced Joe’s mozzarella, sliced in rounds, roasted red peppers in their Juice
1. lay desired amount of cheese and peppers on bread
2. close sandwich, slice in half, and enjoy!
Thanks smoking the internet.
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