Cuban Sandwich Cubano Food

THE ULTIMATE CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Begin by braising the pork shoulder. Tie the shoulder in 4 places with kitchen twine so it will hold its shape while being cooked or ask your butcher to do this for you. Season the pork with salt, pepper, cumin and oregano. Set the base of a pressure cooker over low-medium heat and add a 2 count of olive oil.
• Add garlic and chili flakes and as the oil heats up it will become fragrant and infuse the oil. Add the pork. Add onions around the pork and brown slightly before adding orange juice, lime juice, stock and bay leaves.
• Secure the lid of the pressure cooker and cook for 20 to 25 minutes depending on the size of your pressure cooker. The pork should be tender when done. When done allow to cool in juices before removing twine and slicing.
• To prepare Cuban sandwiches, split bread in half then layer the sandwich with mustard, cheese, pickles, ham, pork then cheese again (the cheese glues everything together). Season with salt and pepper in between the ham and pork layers. (Optional: drizzle a little of the pork braising liquid over the meat as well).
• To cook, heat a large cast iron skillet or grill pan over medium heat and lightly coat with olive oil. Place the sandwiches on the skillet and top with another heavy skillet and a couple of heavy weights (bricks, or cans of tomatoes work well). Press down firmly and cook for 5 to 7 minutes per side until the sandwich has compressed to about a third of its original size and the bread is super-crispy. Serve with beans, rice and plantain chips.

GRILLED CUBANO SANDWICH

Steps:

• Cut the pork tenderloin in half crosswise with a sharp knife, creating two 5-inch-long pieces. Make a vertical cut down the middle of each piece, about 3/4 of the way through. Open the pieces like a book. Lay them cut-side down on a piece of plastic wrap, cover with another piece and use a meat mallet to lightly pound the pork to about 1/2 inch thick.
• Add the pork, 1/4 cup of the yellow mustard, olive oil, pickle brine and garlic to a quart- or gallon-size resealable bag. Close the bag, and rub the marinade into the pork. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare a grill or large grill pan for medium-high heat.
• Once the pork has marinated for 30 minutes, transfer it to a plate, shaking off any excess marinade. Lightly oil the grill grates with vegetable oil. Sprinkle both sides of the pork liberally with salt and pepper, and grill until charred on both sides, 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium doneness. Transfer the pork a cutting board, and let it rest for 5 minutes. Reduce the grill heat to medium. Slice the pork across the grain into 1/8-inch-thick slices, and season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Brush the outside of the Cuban loaf with the butter, and lay the loaf halves cut-side up on a very long piece of aluminum foil. Mix the remaining tablespoon yellow mustard with the mayonnaise, and slather the mixture onto both pieces of bread. Layer the ham, pickles, pork and Swiss cheese on one half of the bread. Top with the other half, and wrap the sandwich up in the foil.
• Put the sandwich on the grill, place a large baking sheet on top and weigh it down with a large cast-iron pan or 2 large cans of food. Grill for 5 minutes, remove the baking sheet and weight, flip the sandwich, weigh it down again and grill until the Swiss cheese has melted, about 5 minutes more.
• Unwrap the sandwich, cut into 4 pieces and serve immediately.

CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Slice the bread horizontally in half, leaving 1 edge intact. Lay the bread open and spread each side with the mustard. Divide the ingredients evenly among the slices of roll. Start with the ham followed by the pork, cheese, and dill pickles. Bring the tops and bottoms together.
• Heat your panini maker or sandwich press. Butter each side of the press. Place the sandwiches inside, press down and grill until the cheese is melted and the bread is flat and browned, approximately 10 minutes. If you don't have a sandwich press, you can heat 6 fireplace bricks wrapped in foil, in a 500 degrees F oven for 1 hour and then press the sandwich between them for 10 minutes. Serve warm.

CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• To make the Cuban Roast Pork: Mash the garlic and salt together using a mortar/pestle.
• Place the mash mixture in a small bowl; add in oregano, onion, and sour orange juice; mix thoroughly.
• Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat; add in the mash mixture and whisk to blend.
• Remove from heat and set marinade aside.
• Pierce the pork roast with a sharp knife or fork.
• Set aside a small amount of the marinade for use during the roasting period.
• Pour remaining marinade over the pork, cover, and refrigerate 2-3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325°; remove pork from marinade and place on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Sprinkle reserved marinade over pork.
• Roast until completely cooked and a meat thermometer registers 160° (about 20 minutes per lb).
• Baste occasionally with the pan juices.
• Remove pork from oven and let rest for at least 20 minutes before thinly slicing the meat.
• Bring remaining pan juices to a boil and simmer until juice is reduced by half; use this juice to sprinkle onto the meat in the sandwiches.
• To make the sandwiches: cut the bread into 4 sections, each about 8 inches long; slice these sections in half horizontally; spread butter on the inside of both halves.
• Generously layer sandwiches with filling ingredients in the following order: pickles, roasted pork, ham, and cheese.
• Spread with the optional mustard or mayonnaise if desired.
• Preheat a pancake griddle or large skillet.
• Lightly coat hot griddle or skillet with cooking spray; add in the first sandwich (make sure that your griddle or skillet is not too hot or the crust will burn before the cheese melts).
• Place a heavy iron skillet on top of the sandwich to flatten it (you want to smash the sandwich, compressing the bread to about a third of its original size).
• Grill the sandwich for 2-3 minutes on each side, until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden.
• Repeat the process for each sandwich.
• Slice each sandwich in half diagonally and serve.
• Note--Additions like Genoa salami, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, and onion have become popular in the past forty years but are considered heresy by purists; in the old days, the sandwich was brushed on the outside with a small amount of pork drippings.

CUBANO SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat a sandwich press to medium heat.
• Drizzle the onion and pepper with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Put the onion and pepper on the sandwich press, close and cook until tender and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Slice into strips.
• Brush the outside of the bottom half of the bread with some of the melted butter. Brush the inside of both halves with a generous amount of the Mojo Mustard. On the bottom half of the bread, layer the sliced deli ham and top with the carnitas. Top with the gherkins, grilled onion and peppers and finally the cheese. Top with the top half of the bread and brush with more butter. Slice in half widthwise.
• Place both halves in the sandwich press, close, press down and cook until the bread is crispy and the cheese is melted, 5 to 7 minutes. Cut in half to make 4 sandwiches.
• Mix together the mustard, honey, chili paste, oregano, cumin, orange zest and juice, lime zest and juice, garlic and some salt and pepper in a bowl.
• Set the slow cooker to high. Put the pork cubes in the slow cooker and season all over with the chipotle powder and some salt. Turn any pieces with the fat cap upright. Nestle in the garlic, cinnamon sticks and yellow onion. Pour the orange soda, vegetable oil and orange juice and zest over the pork. Cover and cook on high until super tender, about 4 hours.
• Preheat the oven to broil.
• Transfer the pork chunks to a baking sheet fat-side up. Let the liquid in the slow cooker settle so the fat is on the surface. Scoop off about 1/4 cup of the fat and drizzle over the pork chunks. Broil until the meat is crispy and the fat is bubbly, 1 to 2 minutes.

THE SANDWICH CUBANO

Steps:

• In Cuba it was just called el sandwich it was here in USA that we gave it a country!
• The plancha has to be set to 350 F
• Slice the bread in half lengthwise, spread the mayo on the bottom bread then place the roast pork then the baked sweet ham then the pickle then the cheese. this way the cheese will melt down and blend with the hams.
• Next put the sandwich on la plancha and spread a little melted butter on top of the bread and press down the top part of the plancha. in about 3 minutes raise the top part of the plancha spin your sandwich to the other side and repeat the butter process again
• Your bread should be toasted and the cheese melted. this should be done in about 10-to 15 minutes depending on the plancha
• Any good ham dish starts with the night before. marinating gives all foods that extra punch of flavour. We accomplish this with sour oranges limes alot of minced garlic, ground cumin dried oregano. This mixture gets spread all over the fresh ham and massage into the meat .Put it the fridge covered with plastic wrap. the next day when u are ready Preheat the oven to 350f place the pork in a roasting pan cover fresh ham in salt skin up, this will keep the ham from drying out, cook for about 4 to 5 hours or until your ham reaches an internal temp of 180f. Remember to take off the salt that by now has become hard. Skin should be toasted and crispy.
• Allow the meat to rest and carve when you can't wait any longer!

ORIGINAL CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Cut Cuban bread to desired size, common size is 7 inches. Next, slice open the bread down the middle. On the topside of the bread spread 1-ounce of mustard, evenly across. Then place 4 pickles on top of the mustard. You then place 1 slice of Swiss cheese on top of the pickles. Slice ham to desired thickness, recommended size is 1 1/2 ounces per slice, the thinner the better. Now fold each slice of ham in half and place evenly on bottom of bread. On top of the ham, place slices of roast pork, 1 1/2 ounces per slice. You then join both halves of the sandwich. You are now ready to grill your Cuban sandwich.
• Use a sandwich grill if you have one, a waffle iron if not. Spread butter on top of the bread evenly. Close the grill, smashing the sandwich. Leave sandwich in the grill until top of bread turns to a golden brown, and top is crisp. Approximate time is 4 to 6 minutes. After the sandwich is crispy and the cheese has melted, remove the sandwich carefully and slice it diagonally, from corner to corner. DO NOT USE A MICROWAVE OVEN!

FAMOUS MIAMI CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• ROASTING THE PORK: Mix all of the marinade ingredients together (all of the ingredients except the pork), and rub this mixture over all surfaces of the pork. Cover well, and refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours.
• Place the pork in a roasting pan or ovenproof dish, and roast it in a preheated 425°F oven for 30 to 40 minutes, basting occasionally with the pan juices, until cooked through. Remove the pork from the oven, and cool it completely before slicing thinly.
• ASSEMBLING THE SANDWICH: Slice the Cuban loaves in half horizontally. Brush the cut surfaces of the rolls with olive oil or melted butter. Layer the sandwiches as follows: Swiss cheese, sliced pickle, ham, sliced roast pork, then additional cheese.
• Now comes the somewhat challenging part. You want to grill these sandwiches, top and bottom, while at the same time flattening them slightly. This helps meld all of the filling ingredients. Heat two large skillets, or a griddle, to medium, about 325°F Lightly grease the griddle and/or skillets. Brush the bottoms of the sandwiches lightly with olive oil or melted butter. Place them in the greased pan(s). Brush the tops with oil or butter. Top them with a piece of parchment paper or foil, then a flat sheet pan, or other flat, non-meltable object-the point is to provide a flat surface for a weight. Place something heavy atop the pan-a teakettle filled with water makes a good weight, as does a clean brick wrapped in aluminum foil.
• Grill the sandwiches for 5 to 7 minutes over medium heat, checking often to make sure the bottoms aren't burning. Adjust the heat downward if the bottoms are becoming brown after only a couple of minutes. Turn the sandwiches over and grill for several more minutes, until they're slightly crisp on both sides, and the cheese is melting. Remove from the heat, cut the sandwiches in 2, and serve warm.

CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Spread mustard inside 1 slice of bread.
• Layer with ham, pork, cheese and salami.
• Sprinkle with diced pickle and seasonings. Butter inside remaining slice of bread if desired.
• Follow directions for sandwich or panini maker.