Cuban Melt
- Level: Advanced
- Yield: 1 serving
- Total: 2 days 17 hr 30 min (includes pickling and brining time)
- Active: 1 hr 30 min
Ingredients
Pork Brine:
4 cups orange juice
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup Tennessee whisky, such as Jack Daniels
3 ounces salt
4 ounces sugar
4 ounces garlic, pureed
1/2 ounce black peppercorns
1/4 ounce thyme, whole
1/4 ounce rosemary, whole
1/4 ounce oregano, whole
1/4 ounce sage, whole
8 bay leaves, fresh
One 6- to 8-pound pork shoulder
Chile Honey Pork Glaze:
2 pounds honey
4 limes, juiced
.1 ounce chile de arbol, toasted and ground
Mojo Pork:
1/4 pound cilantro
1/4 pound mint
4 cups orange juice
1 cup lime juice
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon toasted coriander, ground
1 tablespoon toasted cumin, ground
1 teaspoon clove, ground
2 ounces salt
1 ounce fresh oregano
1 ounce fresh rosemary
1 ounce fresh thyme
8 to 12 garlic cloves, smashed
8 fresh bay leaves
Mojo Mustard:
8 ounces yellow mustard
1 teaspoon Italian herbs
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 ounce honey
1 ounce roasted garlic oil
Cubano Melt:
1 ounce (or generous slathering) butter, melted
1 hoagie roll, preferably Bobby John Henry Lard Cubano Hoagies, sliced in half lengthwise
4 ounces Swiss cheese, sliced
1.2 ounces (2 slices) shaved ham
2 House Garlic-Dill Pickles, recipe follows, sliced lengthwise
House Garlic-Dill Pickles:
1 1/2 ounces chile flakes
1 1/2 ounces mustard seeds
1/2 ounce coriander seeds
.1 ounce bay leaf
4 gallons white distilled vinegar
10 ounces fresh garlic cloves
14 ounces salt
10 ounces sugar
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
40 pounds cucumbers, sliced lengthwise
1 pound fresh dill, chopped fine (stems included)
Toast chile flakes, mustard seeds, coriander seeds and bay leaf
Directions
- For the pork brine: Whisk together orange juice, vinegar, whisky, salt, sugar, garlic, peppercorns, thyme, rosemary, oregano, sage, bay leaves and 3 1/2 cups water. Add pork to brine and add water to cover if necessary. Refrigerate for 12 hours.
- For the chile honey pork glaze: Cook down honey, lime juice and chile in a saucepot until mixture is thick.
- For the mojo pork: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Combine pork, cilantro, mint, orange juice, lime juice, olive oil, pepper, coriander, cumin, clove, salt, oregano, rosemary, thyme, garlic and bay leaves together in a large roasting pan with the pork skin-side up. Cover tightly with foil and roast 3 1/2 hours. Remove foil and cook until skin starts to crisp up, another 30 minutes.
- Turn oven to 450 degrees F.
- Remove pork carefully from braising liquid. Strain braising liquid and set aside for mojo mustard. Pull pork off the bone into large chunks, discarding excess fat. Place pork on a sheet pan and toss in chile honey glaze. Add a little more glaze on top and roast until it starts to caramelize, about 5 minutes.
- For the mojo mustard: Whisk together the yellow mustard, herbs, garlic salt, honey and garlic oil in a bowl.
- Whisk together 2 ounces of this mixture with 2 ounces mojo braising liquid (save the rest for another use).
- For the Cubano melt: Place 2 1/2 ounces mojo pork in a foil pouch and place on a hot griddle weighed down with a hot cast-iron press on top to reheat. Remove from foil.
- Butter bread. Layer 2 pieces Swiss cheese one side of the bread, followed by ham and the heated mojo pork. Add a heavy squeeze mojo mustard, 2 Pickles, 2 more pieces Swiss cheese and top piece of buttered bread.
- Griddle on a flat top or griddle on medium-high heat with a heated cast-iron press on top until cheese is melted ooey gooey, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes on each side. Slice on a bias. Enjoy!
House Garlic-Dill Pickles:
- Heat 1 gallon vinegar in a pot with the toasted spices, garlic, salt, sugar and peppercorns. Whisk until dissolved. Combine add the remaining 3 gallons vinegar and the dill. Layer the cucumbers with the brine so herbs, garlic and spices evenly get distributed. Brine, refrigerated, for 2 days.
Cook’s Note
Glaze by itself is spicier on the back end, but when combined with the pork it really mellows out quite nice.