Lunch / Dinner
Cubano Sandwich with Quick Pickles
If you love a good Cubano when eating out but usually settle for ham and cheese at home, this easy recipe is for you.
The Cubano — a deli specialty in Florida — dates back to the arrival of Cuban immigrants at the turn of the century. It’s basically a roasted pork sandwich piled high with ham and Swiss cheese.
Traditionally, all that meat and cheese is topped with pickles. For more flavor, forgo the ones in a jar and actually pickle cucumber and onion slices yourself. Then assemble everything on a loaf of ciabatta, and use your grill as a makeshift sandwich press to toast the family-sized sandwich. Round out the deli-style dinner with Sweet Potato Hash.
Ingredients
TOSS:
BOIL:
ARRANGE:
Test Kitchen Tip
Peppadew is a brand name of South African sweet piquanté peppers. They look like a cross between a cherry tomato and a very small red bell pepper, and depending on how they’re pickled, they may be mild or hot.
Instructions
Preheat grill to medium-low. Brush grill grate with oil. Heat a large griddle or cast-iron skillet on the grill.
Toss together cucumber, onion, zest, and orange juice.
Boil vinegar, water, garlic, salt, brown sugar, and fennel in a small saucepan, 5 minutes. Immediately pour liquid over cucumber mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit 20 minutes. Drain pickle mixture and remove garlic cloves.
Arrange 4 oz. Swiss on each ciabatta half, then spread 1 Tbsp. mustard on cheese. Layer pork, ham, and pickle mixture on bottom half of ciabatta and cover with top half; brush top of ciabatta with oil.
Place sandwich on grill, then top with hot griddle. Grill sandwich, covered, until heated through and cheese melts, 8–10 minutes. Remove sandwich from grill; let rest 5 minutes. Cut into four servings.
To help trap the heat and speed up the pickling process, cover the cucumber mixture with plastic.
Spread mustard on the cheese rather than the bread to prevent the bread from becoming soggy.
Carefully place a hot griddle on top of the sandwich while grilling to smash it and heat it through.
Nutritional Facts
Nutritional Facts
Per serving
Calories: 646
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 24g 36%
Saturated Fat 12g 60%
Cholesterol 117mg 39%
Sodium 1216mg 50%
Carbs 58g 19%
Fiber 3g 12%
Protein 47g
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.