Annotated Recipe: Cuban Sandwich

Great comfort food is easier to eat than it is to make, and this classic Latin sandwich is no exception: The four-hour-plus roasting is the key to the melting, juicy pork. But you can cheat by using already roasted pork—or stopping by Alma de Cuba and sampling the original on the new lunch menu

By Ashley Primis

: Photography by Brett Thomas

¼ c. tamarind paste
2 tsp. crushed red chili flakes
¼ c. honey
2 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. achiote paste
¼ c. extra virgin olive oil
¼ c. kosher salt
1 3-pound pork butt
4 Cuban sandwich rolls
½ c. Dijon mustard
½ c. sliced hamburger pickles
6 oz. Swiss cheese, sliced
12 oz. domestic smoked ham, sliced
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 200º Fahrenheit. Combine tamarind paste, red chili flakes, honey, pepper, achiote paste, oil and salt in a food processor and blend until smooth. Rub the pork butt liberally with the marinade and place on a rack in a roasting pan. Roast for 4 hours. Increase oven temperature to 400º Fahrenheit and roast for 20 more minutes to give the outside a nice crust. Remove roast from oven, and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice very thinly with an extremely sharp carving knife. Slice Cuban sandwich rolls in half. Spread the Dijon mustard evenly on the cut side of each half, then place an even layer of pickles on the mustard. Cover all halves with slices of Swiss cheese and a layer of ham. Top with a layer of roasted pork butt. Place two halves together, with the roast pork in the center, and lightly press before spreading the butter onto the outside of the bread on the tops and bottoms of the sandwiches. Place in a Cuban sandwich press and cook for 7 minutes or until the center is warm. Serves 4.

Originally published in Philadelphia magazine, November 2007