The Breakfast Cuban!

A Cuban style grilled pork and egg breakfast sandwich!

     As the regular readers of this food and recipe blog already know, I do post creative breakfast recipes.  So, it was just a matter of time before I created a Cuban style breakfast sandwich!

     Pork is a natural for breakfast.  Why so many people only think of pork sausage for breakfast is beyond me!  Cajuns cook pork grillades for breakfast.  Southern cooks and soul food cooks like pork chops and eggs for breakfast.  Many Germans like pork schnitzel and eggs for a morning meal.  

     Cubans take pride in their perfection roasted pork!  Cuban style roasted pork for breakfast would take a few hours to prepare.  For breakfast, the next best thing is to grill very thin slices of pork with caramelized onions and Cuban roast pork seasonings.  Grilled thin sliced pork and caramelized onions only takes minutes to prepare, so this Cuban breakfast sandwich qualifies as an a la minute breakfast entree.  

     I used paper thin slices of pork loin for this sandwich.  The pork loin must be partially frozen to cut paper thin slices.  It is much easier to cut paper thin slices with an electric meat slicer.  A good butcher can cut pork loin paper thin on request.  Paper thin sliced pork loin can be found at asian markets.  Asian market butchers cut pork paper thin everyday, because many Korean, Chinese and Japanese recipes require paper thin pork slices.

     A Cuban grill or a panini grill is best for making a Cuban sandwich.  If neither is available, then wrap a clean brick with aluminum foil.  Use the brick to press the sandwich on the grill.  The sandwich will have to be flipped once, since only one side of the sandwich cooks at a time.

     Breakfast Cuban Recipe:

     Heat a saute pan over medium heat.

     Add 1 splash of blended olive oil.

     Add 1 tiny handful of sliced onion.

     Saute till the onions become lightly caramelized.

     Add 4 to 5 ounces of paper thin sliced lean pork loin.

     Add 1/2 of a minced garlic clove.

     Add sea salt and black pepper.

     Add 1 pinch of cumin.

     Saute till the pork is fully cooked and lightly caramelized.

     Set the grilled pork and onions aside and keep it warm.

     Heat a non-stick saute pan over medium/medium low heat.

     Add 2 pats of unsalted butter.

     Add 1 egg and break the yolk.

     Cook the egg so it is over hard.  (Till the egg is fully cooked)

     Cut a 6 to 8 inch long Cuban bread in half lengthwise.

     Place a few thin slices of swiss cheese on the bottom half of the bread.

     Place the warm Cuban style grilled pork and caramelized onions on the cheese.

     Place the over hard egg on the pork.

     Place a few thin slices of swiss cheese on the egg.

     Place the top half of the bread on the sandwich.

     Grill the sandwich on a Cuban sandwich grill, a panini grill or on a standard grill under the weight of a brick.

     Be sure to press the sandwich flat as it grills.

     When the bread becomes crusty and the cheese melts, then the sandwich is ready.

     Cut the sandwich in half and place it on a plate.

     Garnish the plate with home fry breakfast potatoes or a regular pickle and green onion sandwich garnish.

     Just when you thought that there were no more new breakfast sandwich ideas, along comes the Breakfast Cuban.  This sandwich is delicious for breakfast!  Yum!  ...  Shawna