Скачать или смотреть The Unexpected Classic: Torta Cubana

If you’re expecting this robust torta to simply be a Mexicanized version of the classic Cuban sandwich developed in Florida over a century ago, you’re barking up a different tree. Mexico’s torta cubana was, in fact, developed in Mexico, even though there are some shared ingredients with the Florida version.

Here's the recipe: https://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/to...

Like many classics, torta cubana has multiple creation stories, some saying that it was developed by torta vendors on Cuba Street, a group that had been known since the Frenchified Porfiriato of the late 1800s for selling new-fangled, over-stuffed sandwiches in the land of tacos.Or maybe it was created by Don Polo, a fellow who’d started his eponymous restaurant in the ‘50s, who became famous for tortas with toasted teleras. Or it could even have been Fidel Castro himself, as some contend, during his Mexico City residence in the late ‘50s when he was a regular patron of the Casa del Pavo—another of the places that claims torta cubana’s invention.

Torta cubana, like its Florida counterpart, relies on pork in a big way. Most make it with roast pork leg (I’m suggesting the easier-to-find pork shoulder), followed by ham, chorizo, hot dogs, milanesa, head cheese, bacon and/or any other pork products that might be at hand. My favorite version is paired down from the gargantuan version, relying on ham for succulence, bacon for interest, and roasty pork when I have time to make it. Beyond pork, the crispy telera gets layered with cheese, avocado, pickled jalapeños or chipotles, the torta’s customary smear of beans and maybe some crema. But none of Florida’s mustard and pickled cucumbers, ingredients that rarely make an appearance in the Mexican kitchen.

Here's a starter recipe that I encourage you to make your own. This roast pork is inspired by the great cookbook author Martha Chapa, but If it’s more than you want to tackle, leave it out: The torta is great with just ham and bacon. Though that version may lead you to dream about a torta cubana with a little chorizo (maybe scrambled with egg) spread over the beans or layering in tomato slices.

00:10 Rick's Intro to Torta Cubana
01:35 Preparing the Bean Spread
02:20 Making the Roast Port
06:47 Assembling the Torta