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Revision as of 18:50, 2 August 2006
Cuban sandwiches (sometimes called "a sandwich mixto", or "Cuban Pressed Sandwich") were common on cafeteria and restaurant menus in Cuba by the 1930s, and there is evidence of them as early as the turn of the century. The sandwiches were popular with workers in Cuba's sugar mills. Locals set up restaurants inside the mills and sold the sandwiches to the workers on their lunch breaks.
The traditional Cuban sandwich is made with Cuban bread. The bread is cut in half and buttered on both sides. Dill pickles, roast pork, ham, and Swiss cheese are cold, added in layers and thinly sliced. The pork is an essential ingredient and it needs to be slow roasted with Cuban spices, giving the pork a distinct garlic and citrus flavor. The sandwich is then lightly toasted in a sandwich press called a "plancha" until the bread is crisp and the cheese is melted. The press both heats and compresses the sandwich. A traditional Cuban sandwich includes yellow mustard, but never mayonnaise, lettuce, or tomato.
The same ingredients are also used on a smaller bread made from a sweeter egg dough and called a medianoche or "midnight" sandwich, so named because of the sandwich's popularity as a midnight snack.
In Tampa, they add Genoa salami to the Cuban sandwich, a variation that is unique to that area. In the early days of Ybor City, where the Cuban sandwich was first popularized in the United States, the only ethnic group as numerous as the Cubans were the Italians. Local sandwich makers catered to their Italian clientele by adding Genoa salami to the traditional Cuban sandwich.
In the mid-90's, a Cuban Sandwich documentary aired on a Tampa public access channel where many older Cuban immigrants claimed that the sandwich actually originated in Tampa at the turn of the century.
In Key West, they serve a version of the Cuban Sandwich called a "Key West Mix." This variation includes mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato, which is very uncommon.
External links
- Cuban Sandwich Recipe
- Cuban Sandwich, Medianoche historical citations by food researcher Barry Popik.