Yoopers’ Official Sandwich Should Be Official for All Of Michigan

A while back, we discovered that Michigan's official state sandwich was pretty lame. A simple Ham Sandwich was all we apparently needed to make ourselves happy in the realm of sandwiches.

HOWEVER, there is another "unofficial" sandwich of at least PART of Michigan, that I feel like we should adopt across the full state. Introducing, the Cudighi.

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Made with a very specific type of sausage, the Cudighi Sandwich is actually the official sandwich of the Upper Peninsula. Some people in a previous post on our social media claimed that the Pasty might be the official sandwich of Michigan in general, or at least the Upper Peninsula. But, others contested that a Pasty isn't a sandwich.

Debate aside, there's no debating that the Cudighi is definitely a sandwich in the traditional sense, and it gets its name from the sausage used.

Cudighi was developed by Italian immigrants in upper Michigan in the 1930s. Travel Marquette specifically places the origins of the sandwich in and around Marquette County, but the Yoopers en-mass have adopted it as their own.

What's in a Cudighi Sandwich?

It's similar to what Chicagoans call a Freddy, or an Italian Sausage sandwich. But, while theirs uses standard Italian Sausage with peppers, onions, marinara, and mozzarella, there are some slight changes to a Cudighi.

For one, the sausage IS an Italian sausage... but it also has some allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves in it. So think, if an Italian Sausage was throwing a Christmas Party. However, one key ingredient of a traditional Italian sausage is absent - fennel.

Interestingly enough, the version we eat today has the marinara and mozzarella on it, and is served on a bread roll. However, the earliest incarnations of it - once called "gudighi" - were served like a burger patty on a burger bun with chopped onions, ketchup, and mustard.

It's a cool sandwich with a unique history, and in a cool part of our own geography. So why wouldn't we include it as our official sandwich? I feel like Michigan, as a whole, doesn't include the U.P. enough, except when we're quick to point out when Fox News forgets it on a map. So, maybe this is a way we can show our ENTIRE state pride, by including the official Yooper Sandwich - the Cudighi - as the official STATE sandwich of Michigan as a whole?