A po' boy (also po-boy, po boy derived from the non-rhotic southern accents often heard in the region, or poor boy) is a sandwich originally from Louisiana. It traditionally consists of a filling, which is usually roast beef, ham, or fried seafood such as shrimp, crawfish, fish, oysters, or crab on a New Orleans French bread roll cut lengthwise. This "po' boy bread" is known for its crisp crust and fluffy crumb.
Preparation
A po' boy may contain a wide variety of fillings including roast beef, ham, fried shrimp, fried crawfish, fried catfish, Louisiana hot sausage, fried chicken, alligator, duck, boudin, and rabbit listed among possible ingredients.
"Po' boy bread" is a local style of French bread traditionally made with less flour and more water than a traditional baguette, yielding a wetter dough that produces a lighter and fluffier bread that is less chewy. The recipe was developed in the 1700s in the Gulf South because the humid climate was not conducive to growing wheat, requiring wheat flour to be imported and thus less available.
A "dressed" po' boy has shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, sliced pickles, and mayonnaise. Fried seafood po' boys can be dressed with melted butter and sliced pickle rounds. A Louisiana-style hot sauce is optional. Non-seafood po' boys will also often have Creole mustard.
Aside from meat and seafood, cheese has also been a recognized ingredient since the Great Depression,