Cooking Fancy at Home: The Amazing Cuban Sandwich

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Sean is one of the pickiest eaters that I know. I feel that I have made amazing strides to get him to eat banana pudding and fried rice since we have been married. However, I always feel this anxiety coming on when I want Sean to try some new little sandwich shop or a new trendy restaurant. It was a time like this at a local bagel shop, when Sean had to pick from all these gourmet sandwiches for lunch. I knew that the only reason he was even at this joint was because he loved me, and I watched his face as he was mulling over the choices. On this day, Sean picked a Cuban sandwich, and when I looked up, stars were in his eyes. Could it have been… another win for Brandi? From that point on, when we are at a place that serves Cubans, it is Sean’s go to sandwich.

As I developed a love for taking cooking classes, I wanted Sean to participate with me, but this task was just as daunting as taking him into a sandwich shop. Sean is a man with a grill, not a man who eats chicken salad with cranberries on a toasted croissant. However, I was not giving up on Sean experiencing these classes that I loved. One of the classes that was being offered was a Cuban sandwich class. Sean came to the class, even with a twinge of excitement, because Cubans he thought, were complex and fancy. Could it be possible that we could make them at home? That evening, as we took the class, it became very apparent that we could make these amazing sandwiches in our own kitchen. However, in the cooking class, everything was made from scratch, even the marinade. Later, we found a bottled marinade to use and, although not homemade, it is still spectacular. We would like to share our recipe with you on how to make the amazing Cuban within the coziness of your own kitchen.

Cuban Sandwiches

A small pork loin

3 bottles of Badia Mojo marinade

Hoagie rolls

Swiss cheese slices

Yellow mustard

Deli ham

Jar of pickles (we use long sandwich pickles to cover most of the bun).

The key to the Cuban is the pork loin. We use a multi-cooker on the pressure cook setting, but you can use a slow cooker to cook the meat as well, it will just take longer. In the multi-cooker, we place the pork loin and the two bottles of marinade (you may need more marinade if you use a larger pork loin) and we pressure cook the meat for 45 minutes. When it is finished, let the meat rest for about 20 minutes and then shred it with a fork.

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Now it is time to build your sandwich. We use a panini press for best results, but if you do not have a press, toasting the sandwiches in the oven is definitely acceptable.

1. Begin by placing your hoagie rolls on a pan, with both inside pieces facing up.
2. Spread mustard on both sides of the bread.
3. Next, place the ham on the bottom slice of bread.
4. Place a generous helping of your shredded pork loin on top of the ham.
5. Place pickles on top of your pork.
6. Place your swiss cheese on top of your pickles.
7. Close the sandwich with your top bun.
8. At this point, we use the Panini Press to flatten and toast the sandwiches, but you can toast them in the oven as well, just until the cheese has completely melted.

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I would like to mention that neither of my kids like Cubans, but this is a meal that can be altered to fit the needs of picky eaters. Jackson and Lucy typically eat ham and cheese on their sandwiches. Also, if you have left over pork, you can freeze it and make quick sandwiches any time you like. We usually assemble enough sandwiches to eat for several days!

I hope you enjoy your homemade Cuban sandwiches as much as Sean and I do. Enjoy!