Cuban Medianoche Sandwich Recipe

By
María del Mar Cuadra
A headshot of Maria del Mar Cuadra, a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
María del Mar Cuadra
María del Mar Cuadra is a food stylist, recipe developer, and art director. She has written three cookbooks and worked for America's Test Kitchen.
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Updated Sep. 17, 2020
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Miami's sunny landscape is dotted with palm trees and just as many Cuban cafés like La Carreta, Oasis, and Versailles. These are establishments where you can have a seated meal, but what's more charming is the invitation to walk up to an outdoor counter and order a quick breakfast of café con leche and tostadas, an afternoon caffeine lightning bolt of concentrated cortadito or café cubano, and late at night, a medianoche sandwich.

This habit of eating on your feet among a friendly crowd, where everyone seems to know each other, and melodious Spanish is spoken almost exclusively, has its roots in Havana. Cubans who fled to Miami brought with them their unmistakable accent, their food, and their gregarious eating customs.

I've heard that after a long night of dancing, people would stop for a medianoche, so named as an allusion to the time it was often eaten. At midnight. The pressed, toasted sandwich is made with pan suave, a sweet egg bread similar to challah or Hawaiian bread. The filling is lechón, slow-cooked marinated pork, ham, cheese, pickles, butter and mustard.

Sweet, salty, and deeply satisfying, it's a sandwich you'll crave at all times of the day.

For this recipe, I took a slight shortcut, given that I don't have a whole pig on hand. Quick-cooking pork tenderloin is marinated with mojo, a mixture of orange juice, lime juice, lots of garlic, oregano, and a dash of cumin, then roasted. Make sure to press the sandwich either with a spatula or panini press to for the signature compact, crisp look.

Medianoches are usually made with "pan suave," a soft, sweet bread. Since it is not widely available, I've substituted it with 6 inch-long challah rolls, which are sweet and soft like the original.

Recipe Facts

4.5

(2)

Active: 30 mins
Total: 60 mins
Serves: 4 servings

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Ingredients

For the Pork:

  • 1 (3/4 pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed of silver skin and excess fat

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 4 large garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons)

  • 1/4 cup olive oil

  • 2 tablespoons juice from 1 orange

  • 1 tablespoon juice from 1 to 2 limes

  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

For the Sandwiches:

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

  • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard

  • 4 sweet rolls (see note), split in half lengthwise

  • 8 slices deli ham

  • 32 dill or bread-and-butter pickle chips

  • 8 thin slices Swiss cheese

Directions

  1. For the Pork: Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and preheat oven to 450°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. Poke pork tenderloin all over with knife. Season with salt and pepper. Place pork on prepared baking sheet.

  2. Place garlic and olive oil in small bowl or teacup; oil should completely cover garlic. Microwave 45 seconds. Transfer to medium bowl and whisk in orange juice, lime juice, oregano, and cumin.

  3. Pour garlic mixture over pork tenderloin, rubbing into perforations. Roast until temperature reads 145°F on instant-read thermometer, about 15 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Pork may be prepared one day in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container. Thinly slice pork.

  4. For the Sandwiches: Combine 2 tablespoons butter and mustard in small bowl. Spread the cut sides of the rolls evenly with butter-mustard mixture.

  5. Top roll bottoms with a layer of pork, 2 slices ham, 8 pickle chips, 2 slices cheese, and roll tops. Spread exterior of rolls with remaining 2 tablespoons butter.

  6. Cook sandwiches over medium heat, pressing down with spatula, until crisp and golden, about 4 minutes per side. Alternatively, heat panini press according to manufacturer’s instructions and cook sandwiches until crisp and golden.

  7. Allow sandwiches to set about 2 minutes, then serve.

Special Equipment

rimmed baking sheet, foil, cooling rack, large skillet or panini press, instant-read thermometer

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
712 Calories
38g Fat
52g Carbs
40g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 712
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 38g 49%
Saturated Fat 13g 66%
Cholesterol 158mg 53%
Sodium 1681mg 73%
Total Carbohydrate 52g 19%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 40g
Vitamin C 8mg 38%
Calcium 216mg 17%
Iron 5mg 27%
Potassium 778mg 17%
*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.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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