Cuban Panini with Quick Pickles

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Take your Cuban sandwich recipe to the next level by roasting your own pork and DIY-ing a batch of quick pickles.

Cuban Panini with Quick Pickles
Photo: Andy Lyons
Prep Time:
20 mins
Grill Time:
6 mins
Total Time:
20 mins
Servings:
4

Ingredients

  • 1 cup thinly sliced cucumber

  • ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion

  • 1 tablespoon lime juice

  • 1 teaspoon snipped fresh oregano

  • 1 teaspoon sugar

  • 1 16 ounce loaf country-style bread

  • 4 ounce sliced Swiss cheese

  • ¼ recipe (6 ounces) Cuban-Style Pork Roast, thinly sliced

  • 2 tablespoon olive oil

Cuban-Style Pork Roast

  • 1 1.5 pound boneless pork top loin roast (single loin)

  • ½ cup orange juice

  • 3 tablespoon lemon juice

  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce

  • 4 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

  1. In a small bowl combine cucumber, onion, lime juice, oregano, and sugar; set aside.

  2. Cut two 3/4-inch-thick horizontal slices from the bread. (Reserve remaining bread for another use.) Top one slice of bread with half of the cheese and all of the pork. Using a slotted spoon place cucumber mixture on pork. Top with the remaining cheese and the second bread slice. Brush outside of sandwich with oil.

  3. For a charcoal grill, arrange medium-hot coals around the outside edge of a charcoal grill. Test for medium heat in the center of the grill. Place sandwich on the grill rack in the center of the grill. Place a baking sheet on top of the sandwich and weigh it down with two bricks. Cover and grill for 6 to 8 minutes or until bread is golden brown and cheese melts, turning once halfway through grilling.* (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Adjust for indirect cooking. Wait for 2 minutes to allow the grill rack to cool slightly. Place sandwich on the burner that is turned off. Grill as above.)

Cuban-Style Pork Roast

  1. Trim the fat from pork. Place pork in a large resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish. For marinade, in a small bowl whisk together orange juice, lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Pour marinade over pork and seal bag. Chill for 3 to 6 hours, turning bag occasionally. Drain pork, discarding the marinade.

  2. For a charcoal grill, arrange medium-hot coals around a drip pan. Test for medium heat above pan. Place pork, fat side up, on grill rack over drip pan. Cover and grill for 45 to 60 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in pork registers 145 degrees F. (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Adjust for indirect cooking. Place pork on grill rack over burner that is off and grill as above.) Remove pork from grill. Cover; let stand 15 minutes before serving.

*Tip:

To turn the panini, remove bricks and baking sheet. Slide the baking sheet under the sandwich to help turn it over.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

287 Calories
19g Fat
12g Carbs
18g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 4
Calories 287
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 19g 24%
Saturated Fat 7g 35%
Cholesterol 51mg 17%
Sodium 193mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 12g 4%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 18g
Vitamin C 3.5mg 18%
Calcium 252.4mg 19%
Iron 0.9mg 5%
Potassium 241mg 5%
Folate, total 36.3mcg
Vitamin B-12 1.2mcg
Vitamin B-6 0.3mg

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

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