Jerk green beans tuna melt
ROBBIE MATHER
Robbie Mather created Nice Pickles after embracing his lifelong crush on tangy, crisp condiments.
Jerk Beans, his first preserve, have become a household staple. So much so, that he quit his day job in graphic design and turned to pickling full-time.
Sweet, sour and (sometimes) raucously spicy, Robbie turns any humble vegetable into the missing layer of the panini-puzzle, beer’s brine-fueled best friend and a snack to be plucked straight from the jar.
These jars have found their way into sandwich shops, grocer shelves and restaurant counters across Australia. But nothing beats his own pickle cellar door in Adelaide’s western suburbs, where pickles come and go by the kilo.
This cheesy Tuna Melt is one to be enjoyed in the privacy of your own home, slipping straight into a sweet slumber afterwards.
INGREDIENTS
420g tinned tuna, high quality in oil
80g jerk beans, diced into rounds
2 spring onions, white part finely chopped
1 celery stalk, diced
½ cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp brine from jerk beans
Ground pepper
½ lemon, squeezed
2 tbsp butter
8 slices sourdough bread
4 slices American cheese
METHOD
Combine the onion, celery, mayonnaise and jerk beans in a bowl. Drain tuna and continue to mix, breaking the mixture up with a fork. Add brine. Season with pepper and a good squeeze of lemon.
Heat the butter in a cast iron pan. Once hot, add 4 slices of bread, topping each piece with a slice of cheese, followed by half a cup of the tuna mix. Close the sandwiches with the remaining slices of bread.
Apply pressure with a flat saucepan lid and cook until each side is crispy and golden.Cut diagonally and serve with jerk beans and crisps.
TO SERVE
Jerk beans, crisps or anything pickled.