Moroccan Cubanos
Recipe from Top Chef: The Cookbook
During Season 1 of Bravo's hit reality show Top Chef, Dave and Tiffani, two chefs competing for top honors, were challenged to fuse two of San Francisco's culinary cultures into a new kind of street food. Try this unique pita sandwich for yourself!
Ingredients
Pork:
- 1 bone-in pork butt (4 to 5 pounds), trimmed
- Salt
- 2 Tbsp. ras al-hanout
- 1 cup low-sodium veal stock
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken stock
Pickled Vegetables:
- 3 cups red wine vinegar
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds
- 4 carrots , cut into julienne
- 1 red onion , cut into julienne
- 3 fresh jalapeno chilis , thinly sliced
To Serve:
- 4 fresh pocketless pitas or other flatbread, or fresh corn tortillas
Directions
To make the pork: Preheat the oven to 275°.
Season the pork generously with salt and ras al-hanout.
Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat. Add the pork and cook until well browned on all sides, about 12 minutes total.
Put the pork in a large roasting pan and pour in the stocks and 1/2 cup water. Roast for 4 to 5 hours, until the pork is tender enough to pull apart with a fork.
Remove the pork to a cutting board and pour the cooking juices into a small saucepan. Cook the juices over high heat until reduced to about 3/4 cup; shred the pork into bite-size pieces, discarding the bones. In a large bowl, toss the pork with the reduced juices.
To make pickled vegetables: In a large, nonreactive pot, combine the vinegar, sugar, fennel and 3 cups water, and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Put the carrots, onion, and chilis in a large heatproof bowl. Pour the hot vinegar mixture into the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let the vegetables steam for 20 minutes. Pour out all but about 1 cup of the liquid. Keep the vegetables, covered, in the refrigerator; bring to room temperature when ready to serve.
To serve: In a skillet over medium-high heat, warm the pitas, one at a time.
Pile the pork onto the pitas, top with pickled vegetables, and serve immediately.
Top Chef: The Cookbook © 2008 by Bravo Media, LLC. Used with permission of Chronicle Books LLC, San Francisco. Visit ChronicleBooks.com.
What's your favorite sandwich recipe? Leave a comment below.
Season the pork generously with salt and ras al-hanout.
Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat. Add the pork and cook until well browned on all sides, about 12 minutes total.
Put the pork in a large roasting pan and pour in the stocks and 1/2 cup water. Roast for 4 to 5 hours, until the pork is tender enough to pull apart with a fork.
Remove the pork to a cutting board and pour the cooking juices into a small saucepan. Cook the juices over high heat until reduced to about 3/4 cup; shred the pork into bite-size pieces, discarding the bones. In a large bowl, toss the pork with the reduced juices.
To make pickled vegetables: In a large, nonreactive pot, combine the vinegar, sugar, fennel and 3 cups water, and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Put the carrots, onion, and chilis in a large heatproof bowl. Pour the hot vinegar mixture into the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let the vegetables steam for 20 minutes. Pour out all but about 1 cup of the liquid. Keep the vegetables, covered, in the refrigerator; bring to room temperature when ready to serve.
To serve: In a skillet over medium-high heat, warm the pitas, one at a time.
Pile the pork onto the pitas, top with pickled vegetables, and serve immediately.
Top Chef: The Cookbook © 2008 by Bravo Media, LLC. Used with permission of Chronicle Books LLC, San Francisco. Visit ChronicleBooks.com.
What's your favorite sandwich recipe? Leave a comment below.
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