AI-generated image
Pan con bistec
Steak sandwich with potato sticks
Pan con bistec: Cuban mojo minute-steak sandwich with onions and potato sticks
Pan con bistec is the sandwich of Havana cafeterías and Miami's Cuban lunch counters, eaten at any hour but especially as a fast dinner: a paper-thin beef steak quickly soaked in garlic-lime mojo, seared with onions and stuffed into soft Cuban bread with crunchy potato sticks. The common mistake is using a thick steak, which takes too long and turns chewy; ask for palomilla, or bash a thin steak flatter. Chef's tip: deglaze the hot pan with the leftover mojo and pour those juices onto the bread so it soaks up every drop.
- Total time
- 13 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
- 10 ½ oz thin beef steak (palomilla or minute steak)2 pieces, pounded to 5 mm
- 3 cloves garliccrushed
- 1 limejuiced, or use bitter orange
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onionthinly sliced
- 2 pieces Cuban bread or soft baguetteabout 20 cm each
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (5)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Mix 3 cloves garlic, 1 lime, ¼ tsp ground cumin and ½ tsp salt in a shallow dish. Turn 10 ½ oz thin beef steak (palomilla or minute steak) in it and leave for 5 minutes while you slice the onion.
Step 2: Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a high heat and fry 1 onion for 3 minutes until soft and browned at the edges. Push to one side.
3 minStep 3: Lift the steaks out of the mojo and sear for 1 minute a side; thin steaks cook through fast, so cook to your taste. Pour the leftover mojo into the pan and let it bubble for 30 seconds.
3 minStep 4: Split 2 pieces Cuban bread or soft baguette, lay in the steak and onions, spoon over the pan juices and top with a big handful of 1 ⅜ oz potato sticks (shoestring crisps). Press closed and eat at once.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 640 kcal
- Protein
- 42 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 24 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pan con bistec take?
- About 13 minutes in total: 7 minutes to prepare and 6 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of lime?
- Lemon, same amount.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Pork souvlaki
This is a pork recipe. Walk through any Greek town after dark, from Athens to Thessaloniki, and the smell of souvlaki stands drifts down the street; cubes of pork shoulder grilled on thin skewers are the country's favourite cheap supper, eaten standing up or at a plastic-table taverna. At home you marinate the meat in lemon, olive oil, garlic and dried oregano, grill it hard and fast, and pile it on warm pitta with tzatziki, tomato and red onion. Chef's tip: cut the pork into even 2.5 cm cubes and leave a little fat on; lean loin dries out, shoulder stays juicy over high heat.
Greek
Pfälzer SaumagenStuffed pig's stomach
Saumagen is the pride of the Palatinate, served at wine-village festivals and family dinners from the Haardt hills to Ludwigshafen. A cleaned pig's stomach is stuffed with diced pork shoulder, pork sausage meat, potato and carrot seasoned with marjoram and nutmeg, poached slowly, then sliced thick and fried until crusty. The stomach works only as a casing and is ordered from a butcher; if you can't get one, bake the same filling in a covered terrine in a water bath. Serve with sauerkraut and mashed potato. Chef's tip: fill the stomach only three-quarters full, or it bursts as the potatoes swell.
German
Chha goshtLamb in buttermilk gravy
Up in the hill villages of Himachal Pradesh, where flocks are walked to summer pastures, lamb is often cooked in chhaachh, the thin buttermilk left after churning butter. Thickened with a spoonful of gram flour, it makes a pale, gently sour gravy that is milder and lighter than the red curries of the plains, and it is a favourite at dhams, the festive meals of the Kangra and Chamba valleys. Serve it with steamed rice or makki ki roti. Chef's tip: whisk the gram flour into the buttermilk until there are no lumps before it goes near the pot; once it hits the heat, any lumps stay lumps.
Indian