Original Cuban Sandwich Food

CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Heat a flattop or pan on medium heat.
• Slice alpine roll in half and butter each side. Set roll on flattop and cook until warm and toasted, approximately 5 minutes. Meanwhile, arrange pork loin and ham on the flattop in piles shaped like the roll and grill until warm, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Flip and place 2 pieces cheese on each pile of meat. Grill until the cheese has melted. Meanwhile, remove toasted roll and spread mayonnaise on both halves, then add mustard to half. Place ham and cheese on one half of the roll, then place the pork loin on the other half. Add pickles (don't be shy-add a lot! They make the sandwich!) to the bottom half and top with the other side of the roll. Cut sandwich in half and enjoy!

CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• In a mini food processor, combine the mayonnaise and chipotles and process until smooth. Spread the cut sides of the rolls with the chipotle mayonnaise. Assemble the sandwiches with the ham, cheese, pickles and roast pork. Top the meat with a spoonful of the pork pan juices and season with salt. Close the sandwiches and tuck in any overhanging filling.
• Using an electric sandwich grill press, grill the sandwiches in batches until crispy and hot.
• Alternately, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Set a large skillet or griddle over moderately low heat. Arrange the sandwiches on the griddle and cover with a large baking sheet weighed down with a heavy skillet. Cook the sandwiches, turning once, until they're crisp on the outside, about 6 minutes.
• Transfer the sandwiches to a baking sheet and bake until the cheese is melted, about 8 minutes. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately; pass the remaining pan juices separately.
• Using a small, sharp knife, make 1-inch-long slashes in the skin of the pork shoulder, about 2 inches apart. Rub the garlic into the slashes and along the underside of the pork.
• In a large glass or ceramic bowl, combine the vinegar, lime juice, grapefruit juice, orange juice, oregano, pepper, adobo seasoning, and salt and pepper. Stir in the green pepper and onion, then add the pork, skin side up. Refrigerate overnight turning the meat once or twice. Bring to room temperature before cooking.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Transfer the pork and its marinade to a roasting pan. Cover with foil and roast until very tender, about 3 hours. Let cool in the liquid. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and discard the skin and fat. Strain the pan juices into a glass measure and skim off the fat. Slice or shred the pork, as desired.

CLASSIC CUBAN SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat a smoker, preferably with pecan wood, to 200 degrees F.
• Coat the ham with the garlic, cumin and liberal amounts of salt and pepper. Rub the seasoning into the meat and place on a roasting rack or wire rack. Place the rack into the smoker and cook until the ham reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F, about 4 hours. Let rest for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
• Cut the flatbread into twelve 8-by-9-inch rectangles and toast with beef tallow on a griddle over high heat until light golden brown. Slice each rectangle in half horizontally, then smear the cut-sides with spicy mustard.
• On baking sheets, make twelve stacks of sliced ham and Swiss cheese; broil until the cheese is melted and the meat is warmed. Then put the stacks on the flatbread bottoms, top with some onions and pickles for sandwiches. Transfer the sandwiches to a hot griddle prepped with beef tallow and grill, pressing down with a weight, until golden brown. Slice the sandwiches on a diagonal to plate.
• Mix together the yeast, sugar and 1 1/2 cups of warm water (just under 110 degrees F) in a large bowl and set aside until tripled in size.
• Place the yeast mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and add the flour, oil, salt and 4 cups of tepid water. Mix on low speed until incorporated, then mix on medium speed for 10 minutes. Remove the hook but leave the dough in the mixer bowl. Let rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide into 4 pieces. Place each piece on an oiled baking sheet and let rest for 30 minutes. Press the dough out to fill the baking sheets, then let rest for another 20 minutes. Press the dough again to fill out the baking sheets; let rest for 20 more minutes. Press the dough for the third time to fill out the baking sheets; let rest for 5 minutes.
• Bake for 18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through.

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.

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.