Dan Polhamus, Co-Owner
Food & Fire BBQ – Taphouse
Ingredients:
- A loaf of any crusty, long bread
- Pulled Pork (or BBQ Jackfruit for vegan). Substitute: sliced roast pork shoulder, loin, or tenderloin.
- Swiss Cheese, sliced (or vegan cheese).
- Ham, thinly sliced (eliminate for vegan).
- Pickles, dill or spicy, sliced
- Carolina Mustard BBQ. Substitute: your favorite mustard.
- Butter, melted (or olive oil for vegan).
Note on bread: traditionally a Cuban sandwich is prepared on a Cuban bread loaf, but any porous, crusty loaf of bread will work! At Food & Fire we make a pressed sandwich using a ciabatta loaf, but any French or Italian bread loaf can be substituted.
Note on jackfruit: it may be difficult to find an actual jackfruit, but canned/bagged varieties are available, often at Asian food stores. Make sure you start with young/green jackfruit in water. An interesting fruit to cook with, jackfruit can be prepared to closely mimic pulled pork, and is a great vegan/vegetarian substitute for BBQ items! There are many ways to prepare jackfruit, but most recipes call for two at least two steps. 1) Caramellize in a skillet with some oil while “pulling” jackfruit pods into strands. This will help form a crispy/stringy consistency. 2) Simmer/cook or smoke with BBQ spices and seasonings. At home, your favorite BBQ sauce will work perfectly!
Directions:
- Heat a panini press, griddle, or skillet. If you don’t have a panini press, a cast iron skillet is a great substitute. Set to medium heat.
- Cut loaf in half and brush inside with butter (or olive oil for vegan). Place face down and toast inside until golden brown.
- Brush exterior crust with butter/oil and flip on skillet, crust side down. Brush liberally with butter/oil, will help develop a nice crust!
- Time to build the sandwich! Apply mustard to both sides, and top with slices of swiss or vegan cheese.
- Next add the pulled (or sliced) pork (BBQ jackfruit for vegan), sliced ham (skip ham for vegan), and layer of sliced pickles.
- Close sandwich carefully, and either close the panini press or add weight if using a skillet or griddle. Pressing the flavors together, and getting a nice golden crust is essential.
- Once sandwich toasted golden-brown on both sides and cheese is melted, remove from heat. Serve sliced in half, with extra pickles and your favorite side dish. Enjoy!
