Life, food, events, and community in Albuquerque, NM

New Contender for Burque's Best Cubano

Relish, Baggin's, Don Yasmany, Laru ni Hati, Sunshine Bakery, Marble Brewery...

There's a new kid on the block vying for your love of the melty, porky goodness that is the Cubano.

Come by the Downtown Growers Market tomorrow and try the Good Nosh version. We've spent the past couple weeks experimenting and honing a (relatively traditional) version of the sandwich. I'll be making them to order on our grill at the market from 7am-11ish.

Also, we're thinking of doing Cubanos again next week before moving on to our SE Asian menu. Whether you try ours or not, please help us decide what direction to take with next week's sandwiches by taking the poll on the right sidebar of our blog.

Oh yeah - we're doing a vegetarian version with a kick-butt Cuban black bean filling. So if you don't eat meat and have been wondering what all the fuss is about, I can hook you up.

Tags: cubano, farmer's, good, market, nosh

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Permalink Reply by RiRiSynCyr on July 4, 2008 at 11:00am: remind me - where is the downtown grower's market is located? and what time is it open from?

everyone keeps telling me it's great, but i never remember where it is.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Aly Sanchez on July 4, 2008 at 11:10am: The Downtown Market is held in Robinson Park (Central and 8th) on Saturday's from 7am - 11am. It's the City's biggest farmers' market with veggies, cheeses, prepared foods, special events, and live music. Every other week they have a fun jump for kids and I think this week is a jumper week.

I've heard it described as the "social" market, which seems pretty accurate. Lots of people just come, hang out in the grass and enjoy the food and music. Other markets seem to be much more "markety" with people focused on shopping, getting through the booths, etc.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Aly Sanchez on July 4, 2008 at 11:25pm: I'm a fan of Relish's version. I'm not sure we can unseat the champs, especially with a traditional Cubano with mustard. Venturing from standard ingredients like Relish's cilantro mayo can really elevate a Cubano to a whole new level. We're considering doing Cubanos again next week with more... ahem... liberties taken with the ingredient list.

As for rules for sandwich fight club, it's sort of hard to build a following for a menu item when our menu changes every week. So gauche and uncool and immodest as it is, we thought we'd throw the news out there considering how impassioned the DCF crew is about good sandwiches.

Anyhow, mad respect for the Relish Cubano, though I think we've done a pretty good job too.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jennifer Jane on July 5, 2008 at 11:07pm: Try the Cubano with the Grinder mix.

oh man. Why isnt Johnny open late hours on fridays and saturdays?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jennifer Jane on July 6, 2008 at 4:11pm: You must try the cubano with the ginder mix. maybe you just need a little spice in your coffee?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Joe S Sausage on July 4, 2008 at 4:07pm: what are the cubanos' essential ingredients, what is it's native form?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Aly Sanchez on July 4, 2008 at 11:14pm: Cuban bread, ham (specifically jamon dulce), roast pork, yellow mustard, pickles. In some areas of Florida, salami.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by magoo on July 5, 2008 at 3:40am: I'm thinkin' Cubano for breakfast, I'll be there!!!!!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Tina on July 5, 2008 at 10:10pm: I had one today and loved it. I am from Puerto Rico and I thought that all the critical elements were authentic, while others, like the pork, were not traditional, but maybe better than back home. I was a little afraid when I saw the bread, but after the grilling, it was right on. Doughey on the inside, crisp on the outside. Perfect amount of pickle, too.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Aly Sanchez on July 6, 2008 at 10:20am: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Admittedly, we were a little concerned about the bread too. It was soooo beautiful (and fragrant) when we got it from Lee's Bakery. There was no way to get it on Saturday prior to market open so we had to hold it overnight. The commercial kitchen we use does not have dry storage - only walk in coolers. The moisture in the cooler definitely had an effect, but like you said, it crisped right up on the grill. Whew...

You mention the pickle amount. I had noticed that standard American slices are just too thick, so you end up only putting a couple slices on, resulting in bites that are either have no pickles or too much pickle. Our solution was to ditch the planks in jars, and cut pickles down ourselves into nice thin slices.

FYI, we're breaking our normal habit of switching the main item menu, we are going to take another crack at Cubanos this Saturday but take them in a slightly less traditional direction.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Joe on July 6, 2008 at 10:56am: i'm just real curious about this cubano, the jamon dulce, is it somewhat analogous to proscuitto?

What type of pickles?

The bread, is the traditional bread a kind of sweet egg bread similar to italian easter bread? i'm into investigating food that i know nothing about, so thanks for your answers. Which spices are considered clasically Cuban?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Aly Sanchez on July 6, 2008 at 11:14am: Not really analogous to prosciutto. The roots of this sandwich are decidedly working class - a cheap and filling meal for factory workers. The ham is a sugar cured ham that's not available here as far as I know. We substituted Black Forest after also trying brown sugar and honey hams.

The bread, pan Cubano, is also not available here but you can make your own. Here's a recipe. The inclusion of lard or shortening makes it a bit different than most other breads. The usual recommendation for a bread substitute is a soft crusted French bread. We went with a Vietnamese sandwich bread.

Vietnamese bread making was born from French roots (Vietnamese are sometimes called the best French bakers outside of France). The bánh mì bread has a thinner, softer crust and crumb than French. We picked our favorite, Lee's Bakery bread. Lee's is south of Ta Lin on Louisiana and they'll sell you bread. While you're there you may want to get one of their sandwiches (I'm partial to the grilled pork).

The medianoche sandwich, a brother of the Cubano, is indeed on an egg enriched roll. This post bar snack has the same fillings, minus the ham.

Standard dill pickles seem to be the norm. We used the type you get in the refrigerated section of the store to give better crunch and freshness. Store slices are too thick though, so buy whole dills and slice them yourself.

As for spices, cumin, cilantro, oregano, garlic, and bay leaf are common. Much like French food has mirepoix (carrots, onions, and celery), and Chinese has ginger, garlic and scallions, Cuban has it's own holy trinity of starter veggies. The Cuban sofrito is used as a flavor base for many dishes. It can have lots of ingredients or few, but bell peppers, onions, and garlic are almost always present. Spices are often included, as are tomatoes.; ▶ Reply to This