- March 10, 2023
- 30 Minute Meals
Muffuletta Sliders
Indulge in a slice of New Orleans with these muffuletta slider sandwiches! They are a mouthwatering blend of cured meats, tangy olive salad, and creamy provolone cheese, all nestled between sweet Hawaiian roll sliders. It’s a flavor explosion that will transport your taste buds to the Big Easy!
You don’t have to go to New Orleans to get your muffuletta sandwich fix. Instead, you can make your own at home and enjoy them with your family or just hoard them for yourself (no judgment here).
These make a great appetizer or game day recipe as well. If you’ve never tried a muffuletta sandwich before, it’s worth giving it a try. You might discover a new favorite sandwich that you can enjoy for years to come!
Love Cajun and Creole recipes? Check out all of my favorites in this 15 Cajun and Creole Recipes for Mardi Gras round-up!
Why This Recipe Works:
Easy: The ingredients for this recipe are simple to find at your local grocery store (we love an uncomplicated recipe). You can easily make your own if you cannot find olive salad
Shareable: Traditional muffuletta sandwiches are made on one large loaf of muffuletta or ciabatta bread. While you can certainly slice them into portions, using the slider buns instead makes it a much easier way to share as an appetizer with friends and family.
Supplies Needed:
- Parchment Paper
- Bread Knife
- Food Processor
- Baking Sheet or Foil Pan
Ingredients:
- Kings Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
- Capicola (ham)
- Genoa Salami
- Mortadella
- Provolone Cheese
- Mozzarella or Swiss Cheese
- Olive Spread
- Melted Butter & Sesame Seeds (for the top)
Muffaletta Olive Salad Recipe With Giardiniera:
Olive salad is a staple mix that really makes a muffuletta what it is; don’t skip it! You can sometimes find olive salad premixed in the store, but I often find it’s easiest to make up my own using staple pantry ingredients.
Here is what you need-
- Black Olives
- Green Olives
- Kalamata Olives
- Capers
- Spicy Giardiniera (a mixture of pickled vegetables)- Use store-bought or try my homemade version of Chicago-style Giardiniera.
- Pepperoncini’s
- Garlic
- Italian Spices
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Red Wine Vinegar
Instructions:
Place all the ingredients together in a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Be careful not to overmix, but it should be a fine texture similar to a relish. Do not add too much oil, or it will make the sandwich too soggy as well.
How To Make Muffuletta Sliders:
Assembling this sandwich isn’t difficult, but there is an order in which to layer everything together. Additionally, this sandwich is traditionally served cold, but I find it works best when it’s baked or smoked so that everything holds together better on the slider buns. See the notes below for both options.
- Start by removing the slider buns from the packaging and, with a bread knife, slicing the Hawaiian rolls to divide them in half. Do not disconnect the buns. Set both halves to the side.
- Make the olive salad mixture (listed above).
- To the bottom half, scoop out some of the oil mixture from the olive salad and use a spoon to lightly dress the bread. This just adds a little flavor to the bottom portion of the bread.
- Next, create an even layer of deli meat across the bread with the capicola (ham), the genoa salami, and then the mortadella.
- Then add the slices of mozzarella and slices of provolone.
- Bake the sliders open-faced without the top on to melt the cheese fully (this also helps prevent the olive mixture from making too much of an oily mess on the bread). It takes roughly 12-15 minutes for the cheese to get nice and melted.
- Once the cheese has melted, remove it from the oven. Finish off the muffuletta sliders with a thick layer of the olive salad mixture, and then place the top half of the Hawaiian roll sliders over the filling.
- Brush the top with melted butter and sesame seeds and bake for a final 5 minutes or so to bring everything together.
- Remove them from the oven and rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
What To Serve With A Muffuletta Sandwich:
Here are some of my favorite sides I like to serve with these muffuletta sliders:
You can also never lose with a side of fries or potato chips and a pickle spear!
Expert Tips:
- Finely chop the olive salad so every bite gets a balanced mix of briny olives, giardiniera, and peppers without the sliders falling apart.
- Make the olive salad ahead of time and let it marinate for a few hours to deepen the flavor if desired.
- Add olive salad, layered meats, then cheese, then more olive mixture to top it off.
- Use sturdy rolls that can hold the filling without tearing. Soft but structured is the goal.
- Gently press the tops down before baking to help the layers bind together.
- Brush the tops with seasoned butter and sesame seeds to be similar to the traditional bread used to make these sandwiches.
- Bake just until the cheese melts, and the tops are lightly browned, to avoid drying out the deli meats.
- Let the sliders rest for a few minutes before slicing so everything stays intact when serving.
More Slider Recipes To Try:
- Pull Apart Cheeseburger Slider Recipe
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Sliders
- Mini Chicago Hot Dog Sliders
- Brie Stuffed Sliders
Muffuletta Sliders
Ingredients
- 1 package Kings Hawaiian Rolls
- 1/4 lb. Capicola Ham
- 1/4 lb. Genoa Salami
- 1/4 lb Mortadella
- 6 slices Provolone or Mozzarella
- 1 tsp. Melted Butter for the top buns
- 2 tsp. Sesame Seeds for the top buns
Olive Salad
- 1/2 cup Green Olives
- 1/2 cup Kalamata Olives
- 1/ cup Black Olives
- 1/2 cup Italian Giardineria
- 1/4 cup Pepperocinis
- 1 tbsp. Capers
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
- 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
- 2 tsp. Red Wine Vinegar
Instructions
- If serving hot (recommended), preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a food processor, combine all the olive salad ingredients and pulse to combine until it forms a relish like texture. Set it aside.
- Remove the Hawaiian rolls from the packaging and slice them in half to divide them, but keep the buns attached. Place the bottom buns onto the parchment paper lined baking sheet to build the sliders on.
- To the bottom half of the bread, spoon out half of the olive salad mixture and spread it across the bread in an even layer.
- Add the slices of deli meat by covering the bottom layer of bread with the capicola, the genoa salami, and the mortadella. Then top with the provolone cheese.
Serving Hot (recommended)
- Bake the sliders uncovered with the top cheese layer open-faced in the oven so everything can melt. This takes about 15-6 minutes. Once melted, remove from the oven. I find baking the top separate also helps the sesame seeds to stick and take on a little extra flavor.
- Once the cheese has melted, add the remaining olive salad over the top. Place the top of the slider buns back over the muffuletta sandwich.
- Carefully slice into individual sliders with a sharp serrated knife to serve.
Serving Cold (traditional)
- This sandwich is traditionally served cold, but I do recommend it hot because it's not made on the traditional bread (both are great though). Brush the top with melted butter and sesame seeds. Press the bread top down to sandwich everything well and let it sit 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
I needed something different by trying new flavors and I’m so happy that I gave this recipe a shot! Not your ordinary Sammy/slider. I am adding this to my list of recipe staples. Thanks you!
Love muffulettas?! 🤤 These sliders have me drooling! Can’t wait to try them out and add them to my favorite sandwich list. Bon appétit! 🍴👌
Please note this recipe calls for 400′ oven but sliders will burn quickly at that temp especially if you’ve coated the rolls with butter. Recommend a lower temp and watch for burning.