Cuban Pork in the Crock Pot

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I have mentioned before that I have a fondness for Cuban food. I spent seven formative years in Tampa, Florida, where the culture is heavily influenced by nearby Ybor City and the many Cubans who live throughout the state. So, when I see Cuban recipes like this one, I am attracted like ants to sugar. I am rarely disappointed in Cuban food. It has many flavors of Spanish food, but with an influence from the Caribbean -- fruit juices and some different spices.

As much as we really enjoyed this dish, I will admit that this pork is not very pretty. In fact, when we began eating my husband declared that he didn't think it looked very good (how dare he?) -- but, he ate three helpings! The appearance is likely from the use of the crock pot -- cooking slowly in the juices will leave meat looking a tad gray . If that's a problem for you, braise it first (see my note below recipe added after subsequent cookings). But the taste more than offsets the appearance, and with some white rice, and Cuban black beans, and a green salad, it was perfectly yummy, in my opinion.

I threw this dish in the crockpot as I was on my way out the door to move my college boy into his apartment. I did not take care to read the recipe before hand and just tossed everything into the crockpot. I truly don't think it lost anything in my carelessness. One ingredient confused me -- the recipe called for 2 t. ground chile pepper. Since it did not call for chili powder (which is more than just ground chile pepper) I subbed 1/2 t. cayenne pepper. I would make it the same way next time.

Cuban Pork Shoulder
serves 8-10

9 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T. salt
4 t. dried oregano
1 T. ground cumin
2 t. black pepper
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
2 dried bay leaves, finely crumbled
1 T. grated orange zest
2 T. vinegar
2 T. fresh orange juice
2 T. lime juice
5 pounds pork shoulder, bone and skin removed and cut into 2-inch cubes
3 onions
1/3 cup vegetable or chicken broth (I used vegetable)

In a large bowl, combine the garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, black pepper, chili pepper, crumbled bay leaves and orange zest. Stir in the vinegar, orange and lime juices to make a coarse paste. (see note below) Add the pork pieces and toss until the pieces are evenly coated with the spice paste. Set aside to marinate while you finish the other preparations.

Trim and cut the onions lengthwise into 1/4 -inch-thick slices. Arrange the slices in an even layer on the bottom of the slow cooker. Pour the broth over the onions. Arrange the pork in an even layer over the onions, pouring over any reserved marinade.

Cover and set the cooker to high heat and cook 4 to 4 1/2 hours until the pork is fork-tender. Remove from heat and crack the lid to allow the mixture to cool slightly. Gently stir the pork with the onions and serve.

NOTE: The second time I made this dish, I braised the meat first and I think I liked it better than way. Instead of marinating the pork in the spice mixture, I braised it in hot oil (half at a time), just until it had some color on it. Then I placed it in the crock pot on top of the onions and stirred in the spice mixture.

Source: LA Times

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Ham Cubans

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I spent five of my formative teenage years living in Tampa, Florida. Although Tampa has typical hot Florida weather and beaches (sort of -- it's the bay), it really is unlike many Florida cities. It has a culture unlike many other Florida cities, except maybe Miami. At least it did back then (that was just a few years ago -- ha!). Tampa had a greater concentration of Cuban population back then, than most other cities in Florida. Ybor City is in the heart of Tampa, and Ybor City is sort of a Cuban city within an American city.

Because of the greater concentration of Cubans, the culture sort of spilled out into the more suburban areas. For example, because many Cuban women worked in school cafeterias, a taste of Cuba was found in the cafeteria food. Yellow rice, black beans and Cuban sandwiches were frequently on the school menu. Like many other cafeteria foods, they were sort of watered down version of the real thing, but the taste was frequently pretty close.

I still have a love for those Cuban foods, and frequently prepare them for my family. One of those treats is the Cuban sandwich. On the outside, the Cuban sandwich looks like a sub sandwich, but it has very specific flavors and textures which make it a Cuban. Often the Cubans at school were nothing more than a cold lunch meat sandwich, but even then the bread was right and the pickle present.

The traditional Cuban is ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, and dill pickle slices sandwiched between Cuban bread. But, I recently came across a recipe of sorts (really just directions) in an Everyday Food magazine that I now turn to at least once a week for lunch. It's a Ham Cuban -- same flavors and same textures without the time-consuming and expensive roast pork. While I still enjoy a real Cuban once in a while, the Ham Cubans are a great (and inexpensive) weekday treat. I can tell you it beats the pants off a plain ham sandwich any day.

You can read about the history of the Cuban sandwich here -- read it and then go make some.

Ham Cubans
(serve 4)

loaf French or Italian bread (slightly chewy not soft and airy)*
10 oz. smoked deli ham, sliced thin
4 slices Swiss cheese
dill pickle slices (they can be burger dills if that's all you have)

Cut ends off loaf of bread.
Cut loaf into four chunks.
Slice each piece in half so you have a top and bottom.


Place pickle slices on bottom to cover.


Top with ham and slice of Swiss. Repeat with remaining bread, ham, Swiss and pickles.


Heat a skillet over med. high heat.
When skillet is hot, place two sandwiches on skillet.


Top with another skillet and several heavy cans.


Give it a good squish and cook for about two minutes.
Remove cans and skillet, flip sandwich, and replace skillet and cans.
Cook another two minutes and voilà , Cuban sandwich. Yum!





*My Cuban bread

When I am going to make Cubans for lunch, I make the bread that morning. You don't bake bread? Well, you can certainly pick up a loaf -- just make sure it's not sandwich bread. It should be fairly crusty and not soft and airy -- more dense and chewy. But this bread is easy and I know you can do it. This loaf is a variation on my regular French bread. After forming the loaf I pop it into a cold oven and then turn the oven on. The very brief rising time (while the oven is warming) prevents the bread from getting too airy. You can place a pan of water on the shelf below the bread for a really crunchy crust.

1 pkg instant yeast
1-1/4 cups warm water
1 T. sugar
1 t. salt
3 to 3-1/4 cups flour

Combine water, yeast and sugar.
Add 1 c. flour and salt; mix with dough hook until dough forms (or mix by hand).
Add flour, 1/2 c. at a time, kneading at low speed until a smooth elastic dough forms,
about 5 minutes, in mixer (or knead by hand).
Place in a greased bowl, turning once.
Cover and let rise at least one hour, until doubled.
Punch down and roll out a rectangle 15 inches long.
Roll up from long side and pinch edges to seal.
Place on greased baking sheet.
Place pan in cold oven with a dish of hot water on the bottom shelf.
Heat oven to 400 degrees F and set time for 20 minutes.
When timer goes off, check to see if bread is golden brown.
If it is, remove it from oven and place bread on cooling rack.
If not, let it go a few minutes longer.
Remove from oven and cool on rack.

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Cuban Black Beans and Rice

This dish is one of my favorites, mostly because I love almost any kind of bean. I spent many of my formative childhood years in Tampa, Florida, where we found these beans served in many restaurants, even those that were not Cuban. They are just a regional favorite because of the heavy Cuban population. They are not very spicy, so Doug always sprinkles them liberally with Tabasco. I think the fresh chopped onions add plenty of flavor. They are not much too look at, but they are yummy, and very budget-friendly. When I make them on a Friday, I just cut out the meat and use vegetable broth instead of water to cook the beans. They have plenty of flavor.

Cuban Black Beans and Rice

1 lb. black beans, rinsed, picked through and soaked in a pot of water for eight hours
4 ribs celery, diced
1 lrge. onion, chopped
several pieces of ham or bacon, chopped
2 t. crushed red pepper
4 bay leaves
¼ cup parsley, chopped
hot pepper sauce
hot cooked white rice
chopped sweet onion

Drain beans and place with remaining ingredients, except rice and chopped sweet onion, in pot with lid. Barely cover ingredients with water. Simmer 1 - 2 hours, or until tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice and top with chopped onion.

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