Hot and Spicy Cubano Sandwich

Prep: 15 min | Cook: 90 min | Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 2 pound boneless pork loin roast
• 1 pound honey ham, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup Chinese mustard, divided
• 8 whole wheat submarine rolls, sweet rolls, or 7 to 8 inch sections of French or Italian bread
• 3/4 cup red plum, red currant, or raspberry jam or jelly
• 8 slices Swiss cheese
• 2 (7 ounce) cans green chiles, drained and sliced
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and 1/4 cup of the mustard. Spread mixture on all sides of the pork. Place pork, fat side up, in a shallow roasting pan and roast for 15 minutes.
3. Reduce oven to 350 degrees F and continue roasting for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F (medium rare) to 160 degrees F (medium).
4. Remove roast from oven and let rest 10 minutes.
5. Slice very thinly and set slices aside.
6. To prepare the sandwiches, halve the rolls, laying all 16 halves out, and butter the outside of each of them. On half of the halves, spread the remaining mustard (1 1/2 tablespoons). On the other half of the sandwich halves, spread 1 1/2 tablespoons of jam. Arrange ham, roast pork, cheese, and chiles on the mustard halves of each sandwich, then top with the jam halves.
7. Prepare a grill to medium-hot heat. Lay a double layer of foil on the grill, large enough to hold the sandwiches. Place sandwiches on the foil, place bricks over the sandwiches (2 sandwiches per brick), and press down gently.
8. Grill until the bottom of the bread is browned and cheese starts to melt, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn, replace the bricks, and grill for 2 minutes more.
9. Cut sandwiches in half and serve.

Notes

You can also cook the sandwiches on a stovetop griddle or grill—weigh them down with foil-wrapped bricks or other heavy objects, like a plate of canned goods. If you want to make less than 8 sandwiches, use less of everything except for the roast ingredients—then save the leftover roast for another use. And if you like things extra-spicy, try substituting sliced pickled jalapeños for the chiles.

Nutrition

Per serving: Calories: 720 calories Protein: 48g Fat: 30g Sodium: 1870mg Cholesterol: 140mg Saturated Fat: 12g Carbohydrates: 67g Fiber: 7g

Attribution

Recipe and photo used with permission from: National Pork Board