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Cuban · American

Cuban sandwich

Non-vegetarian

Sándwich cubano

Mojo-marinated roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard layered in Cuban bread and pressed in a buttered griddle until crisp and melting.

Cuban sandwich is a Cuban sandwich, ready in about 1 hour 55 minutes and made with pork tenderloin, crusty bread / baguette and ham. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

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Prep
15 min
Cook
40 min
Rest
1 h
Total
1 h 55 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
770

Ingredients

4 servings

Mojo pork

Sandwich

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Mix the orange juice (opens in a new tab), lime juice (opens in a new tab), garlic (opens in a new tab), oregano (opens in a new tab), cumin (opens in a new tab), salt and oil into a mojo and marinate the pork in it for 1 hour in the fridge.

    • 5 min

    Food safety: Marinate raw pork in the fridge.

    Meat coated in a spiced marinade in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Ip Photographer on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Roast the pork at 200 °C for 20–25 minutes until it reaches 63 °C inside. Rest 10 minutes, then slice thinly.

    Food safety: Pork is safe at 63 °C followed by a short rest.

  3. Step 3

    Spread both cut sides of the bread with mustard. Layer ham (opens in a new tab), pork, cheese and pickles, and close the sandwiches.

    • 5 min

  4. Step 4

    Butter (opens in a new tab) the outside of the bread and press in a hot griddle pan, weighted with a heavy pan, for 3–4 minutes per side until flattened, crisp and the cheese melts. Cut diagonally.

    A flatbread cooking on a hot griddle
    How it looks · Photo: Muhammad Khawar Nazir on Pexels

About this dish

Origin
Not attributed to one place · Origin disputedRooted in Cuban cooking but popularised by Cuban communities in Tampa and Miami, Florida; both claim it, and Tampa versions add salami.Also popular in United States, Cuba
Dish
Lunch · Sandwiches
Cooking method
Marinated / cured, Roasted, Toasted
Taste
savoury, tangy, garlicky, rich
Diet
No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Beef-free · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Uses leftovers · Portable / lunchbox
Cook more with
Pork tenderloin · Crusty bread / baguette · Ham · Orange juice · Lime juice · Garlic
Techniques
Roasting · Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Marinating · Pickling

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom swiss cheese, butter
  • Contains: Wheatfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • Contains: Glutenfrom crusty bread / baguette
  • May contain: Sesamefrom crusty bread / baguette
  • Contains: Mustardfrom prepared mustard, dill pickles
  • May contain: Sulphitesfrom prepared mustard

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

770 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 403 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 30%
  • Carbohydrate 31%
  • Fat 38%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy770 kcal191 kcal
Protein58.3 g14.5 g
Carbohydrate59.9 g14.9 g
Net carbohydrate55.8 g13.9 g
Sugars7.1 g1.8 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre4.1 g1 g
Fat32.6 g8.1 g
Saturated fat13.4 g3.3 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol166 mg41 mg
Sodium2215 mg550 mg
Salt equivalent5.5 g1.4 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
926 mg
Calcium
471 mg
Iron
6.5 mg
Magnesium
106 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
171 µg
Vitamin C
14 mg
Vitamin D
0.6 µg
Vitamin B12
2.1 µg
Folate (DFE)
188 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • A sandwich press (plancha) gives the authentic flat, crackly crust.

Serve with

  • With plantain chips and a café cubano.

Storage

  • Best eaten freshly pressed; the roast pork keeps 3 days refrigerated.

Variations

  • Tampa Cuban (United States): Adds Genoa salami, reflecting Tampa's Italian community.
  • Medianoche: The same fillings on a soft, sweet egg-bread roll.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Mojo pork

Used in step 1

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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