The Cubano Sandwich

Good day! I wanted to pass along a recipe for a sandwich that is probably my favorite sandwich...

From Wikipedia: The origin of the Cuban sandwich (sometimes called a "Cuban mix", "Mixto sandwich", or "Cuban Pressed Sandwich") is somewhat murky. The sandwich became a common lunch food for workers in both the cigar factories and sugar mills of Cuba and the cigar factories of Ybor City around 1900.

At that time, travel between Cuba and Florida was easy, and Cubans frequently sailed back and forth for employment, pleasure, and family visits. Because of this constant and largely undocumented movement of people and culture and ideas, it’s impossible to say exactly when and where the Cuban sandwich first became a common worker’s meal. By around 1910, however, workers’ cafés in Ybor City, Key West, and Cuba were serving many such sandwiches daily.

In Cuba (where it is more commonly known as a mixto), the sandwich was served in kiosks, coffee bars and casual restaurants, especially in the big cities such as Havana or Santiago de Cuba. By the 1960s, Cuban sandwiches were also common on Miami cafeteria and restaurant menus, as the city had gained a large influx of Cuban residents after the Fidel Castro's 1959 rise to power in their native land.

I pulled the pics off the net because I didn't take any last night when I made it.



You'll need:
Meat
-Pork Roast
-Sliced Deli Ham
-Swiss Cheese

Condiments:
-Butter
-Mayo
-Yellow Mustard

Other:
-Sub-Rolls
-Sliced Dill Pickles
-Salt/Pepper
-Garlic Powder
-Olive Oil
-Square Pyrex Dish

To make:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Take a skillet and preheat it on the stove, LIGHTLY coating the skillet with Olive Oil
-Take a square glass Pyrex dish and LIGHTLY coat the bottom with Olive Oil... (Not Extra Virigin Olive Oil or EVOO like that Homo Rachel Ray says), but regular Olive Oil....
-Place the 2.5 pound Pork Roast (enough for about 6-8 sandwichs) into the pyrex dish and lightly salt with 2 pinches of salt (don't over salt or it'll be too salty)
-Coat the exterior of the pork roast with black pepper and sprinkle on the garlic powder
-Take the pork roast and place it in the hot skillet... Your goal is to lightly sear the exterior, sealing the spices onto the pork roast. Do this on each side for about 2 minutes each.
-Place the seared pork roast back in the pyrex dish, and place in the oven for 30-50 minutes. Be sure the center of the pork roast reaches 160 degrees using a handy meat thermometer.
-Once it is cooked, pull it out of oven (using oven mits) and let it rest for AT LEAST 15 minutes. (You will want to cut it and eat it probably, but resist at all costs). By resting the meat, you allow the juices to redistribute in the meat and you let it cool and firm up some so you can slice it easier.

Sandwich Prep:
-On a cutting board, slice the pork roast into 1/8 inch thick (or so) slices
-Cut your sub roll open
-Spread butter on one side of the bread
-Spread Mayo on the other side
-Squirt on some mustard
-Add sliced swiss cheese
-Place warm pork roast on top of the cheese
-Add 2-3 slices of sliced ham
-Add sliced dill pickle

Finish:
-I usually close the sandwich and add 2 toothpicks to each side, completing it with a diagonal slide down the center.




-Optional: Some like to put this sandwich in a sandwich press to heat it, but I myself prefer to skip this step.



-If you know how to make a Mojito, I like to serve it with that as well:

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I hate you....This makes me hungry....and I'm not sure where to get a Cuban around here...=\

 

Do a google search... Hell man, you are in Florida!!!

 

x2

 

I made it at home because there are only two places I know that make them around DC (I'm sure there are more).

Just make it dinner... You won't be disappointed!

 

I've seen them on menu's in the St. Pete area, never tried one. Think I will next time I visit my sister in law.

 

This isn't really Florida man-This is lower Alabama- Pulled Pork rules here.

I have a couple ideas tho.

DO IT!!!!! There are some GREAT hole in the wall Cuban places in the Tampa/St Pete area

 

Cuban sammiches FTMFW.

 

SWEET!!!! i just made a marginal pork roast...it didnt come out that great from my experiment!! this is a great idea.

i will foil wrap some bricks, and heat them up for weights.

 

Man I love those things. I use to get them all the time when I lived in FL. Try substituing the dill pickels with sweet pickle's and spicey mustard It's Amazing.

 

i'll have to try these in a restaurant someday, thats just too much work for a sandwich lol.

 

I had one the other day.

 

nothing like a Cuban in Tampa..

 

I just got back from Huntsville AL... The BBQ rocked!!

 

mmmm... i love cubano sandwiches. i was in richmond visiting the family over thanksgiving and we went to kuba kuba for lunch. i got a kubanaso sandwich. its exactly the same as a cubano, except it has chorizo on top. so good...

 

kuba kuba is pretty good. my dad is from cuba and is friends with the owner there, but when we visit florida there are some real good places there that kuba kuba can't compare to. but i like them all and that looks like a good recipe, might have to try and make one