Medianoche

Ingredients

Bread

• 4pan suave rolls, soft sweet egg bread

Filling

• 400 groast pork, lechón asado, thinly sliced
• 300 gsweet cured ham, sliced
• 200 gSwiss cheese, sliced
• yellow mustard
• dill pickle slices

To cook

• butter, softened

Equipment

• a sandwich press, or a heavy pan and something heavy to weight it

Directions

1. Slice the pork thinly across the grain rather than in thick slabs. Thin slices are essential in a pressed sandwich, because thick pork stops it compressing and you get a loose, uneven sandwich.
2. Layer in order: mustard, then ham, then roast pork, then Swiss cheese, then pickles.
3. Put the cheese against the pork and the pickles on top of it, so the melting cheese seals the meat and the pickles stay crisp.
4. Butter the outside of the bread, top and bottom, generously.
5. Heat the press or a heavy pan over a medium heat, not high.
6. Press the sandwich down firmly and cook 3 to 4 minutes a side. Without a press, put a second heavy pan on top and lean on it, because the sandwich should come out about half its original thickness.
7. Cut it on the diagonal and serve at once, while the cheese is still molten. It is named the midnight because it was eaten after Havana’s late-night shows and in the small hours, and it is a smaller, softer, sweeter thing than the daytime Cubano.

Technique

• Pan suave is sold in Cuban and Latin bakeries; brioche rolls are the nearest supermarket equivalent.
• It is smaller than a Cubano, which is part of why it works as late-night food.
• Leftover mojo-marinated roast pork is what makes it worth doing.

Substitutions

• Brioche or challah rolls for pan suave.
• Good sliced ham and any mild Swiss-style cheese.

Variations

• The Cubano, on crusty Cuban bread.
• The Tampa version, with Genoa salami added.
• Made with pulled pork rather than sliced.

History

A sandwich like the Cubano but on sweet egg bread, named the midnight because it was eaten after Havana’s late-night shows.

Frequently asked questions

What is Medianoche?

Medianoche is a street food from Cuba: sweeter egg-bread version of the Cuban sandwich. A sandwich like the Cubano but on sweet egg bread, named the midnight because it was eaten after Havana’s late-night shows.

How long does Medianoche take to make?

Medianoche takes 20 min of preparation and 10 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 sandwiches. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Medianoche?

Yes, within limits. Brioche or challah rolls for pan suave. Good sliced ham and any mild Swiss-style cheese.

What is the most important thing to get right in Medianoche?

Slice the pork thinly across the grain rather than in thick slabs. Thin slices are essential in a pressed sandwich, because thick pork stops it compressing and you get a loose, uneven sandwich.