Overview

Seasoned pork belly has found its home-sweet-home on grilled French rolls, next to a slice of cured ham, melted Tillamook Swiss, pickles, and mustard.

"This is our version of the classic South Florida and Cuban midnight snack. We use our house-cured and slow roasted pork belly to make this sandwich, but you can also use a piece of pork shoulder (which may be easier to source) in its place." – Tommy Habetz of Bunk Sandwiches

Ingredients

1-2 lbs naturally raised pork belly (cured for 2-3 days with pork cure: 1 cup kosher salt, 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon chopped garlic, and 1 teaspoon each ground fennel seed, nutmeg, chili flakes)
1 tablespoon molasses
4 - 8” French rolls
½- ¾ cup (4-6 oz) prepared mayonnaise
1-1¼ cup (8-10 oz) yellow mustard
Mexican hot sauce
8 slices Tillamook^® Swiss Cheese (or Tillamook^® Medium Cheddar Cheese)
8 oz smoked ham, thinly sliced
16 slices of kosher dill pickles
2 tablespoons Tillamook^® Unsalted Butter, softened

Preparation

Pork Belly
Heat a convection oven to 275°F. Brush the pork belly with the molasses, place in a roasting pan, and roast for 3-4 hours until tender. If the belly starts to get too dark, cover it in foil. Take it out of the oven and let it rest.

Assembly of Sandwiches
Open the French rolls and lightly spread mayonnaise on one side. Squeeze the yellow mustard liberally over both sides. Throw down a few splashes of hot sauce. Split the slices of Swiss (or Medium Cheddar) on the bread. Add a couple of slices (2 oz) of roast pork belly to each sandwich. Add the ham and pickles. Lightly brush melted butter on the outside of the sandwich.

Cooking
Heat a panini press or griddle. Add the sandwiches to the press and cook over moderate heat until the cheese is melted, about 6 minutes. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve.