Cuba on a plate, where Spanish, African and Caribbean strands are woven together with rice, beans, pork and citrus. Sofrito (onion, garlic, pepper, cumin), oregano and bay set the base, while sour-orange mojo brightens roasted and braised meats. Long gentle braising sits alongside griddled and fried preparations.
These Cuban-style burgers are a vibrant fusion of Spanish and Cuban influences, featuring tender pork patties infused with spicy chorizo, aromatic garlic, and fresh peppers. The patties are griddled to perfection and served with a distinctive potato filling and creamy dressing that makes them distinctly Cuban. The combination of flavors, savory, spicy, and tangy, makes this a signature Cuban comfort food.
Mojo, pronounced moh-ho, is the foundational citrus and garlic marinade of Cuban cooking, and lechon asado al mojo, a whole pig or shoulder marinated in it and roasted slowly, is the centrepiece of Christmas Eve dinners across Cuba and the Cuban diaspora in Miami, Tampa and beyond. The defining ingredient is naranja agria, the sour or bitter orange, whose juice is sharper and more aromatic than regular orange and which provides the acid backbone of the marinade. If you cannot find sour oranges, the universal substitute is two parts fresh orange juice to one part lime juice, with a splash of grapefruit if you have it. The rest of the mojo is generous: a head of garlic crushed into paste, dried oregano (Cuban oregano if possible, regular Mediterranean otherwise), cumin, salt and good olive oil. The pork shoulder is stabbed all over and the marinade pushed deep into the flesh, then left overnight so the acid begins to break down the muscle fibres. The roast itself is forgiving: low and slow, fat-side up, until the meat pulls apart with a fork and the skin crackles. Leftovers become the heart of a Cuban sandwich, layered with ham, Swiss cheese, mustard and pickles in pressed bread. Difficulty is low. The only thing to plan for is time: the marinade needs overnight, and the roast takes most of an afternoon.
Black beans simmer with bay and oregano until tender. Sofrito (onion, pepper, garlic, cumin) cooks in olive oil; the cooked beans plus their liquid join in; rice is stirred through and steamed in the bean broth until tender and tinted.
Very ripe (black-spotted, almost fully black) plantains are sliced thick on the diagonal and pan-fried in oil. The natural sugars caramelise; the inside softens to spoonable. A pinch of salt at the end balances the sweetness.
Cassava boils in salted water until a knife slides through easily. Garlic is crushed to a coarse paste with salt; sour orange juice (or lime + orange) mixes in; hot olive oil is poured over, blooming the garlic. The drained yuca goes into a serving dish; the mojo gets poured generously on top.
