Medianoche — Cuba's Midnight Sandwich

Ingredients

• 2 soft egg-bread rolls (pan suave) or brioche hot dog rolls
• 8 oz roast pork, thinly sliced
• 4 oz sliced ham
• 4 slices Swiss cheese
• 8 dill pickle chips
• 2 tbsp yellow mustard
• 3 tbsp butter, softened
• 1 tbsp mojo or lime juice

Method

1. Split the rolls and spread mustard on both cut faces. The sweet egg bread is what separates a medianoche from a regular Cubano, so do not swap in a baguette.
2. Toss the pork with the mojo or lime juice, then layer pork, ham, cheese, and pickles so the cheese touches both the meat and the top bun — it is the glue.
3. Butter the outside of the sandwiches generously, top and bottom.
4. Press in a hot skillet with a second heavy pan or a foil-wrapped brick on top, 4 minutes a side, until the bread is compressed to half its height and burnished all over.
5. Cut on a hard diagonal and eat immediately, while the cheese still stretches.