Cuban Pan con Bistec Recipe (Cuban Steak Sandwich)

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Working Smarter

I’m lazy. There, I said it.  No, it’s really okay. I freely admit it.

Yep, L-A-Z-Y. Which is why I’m not a big fan of spending hours in the kitchen slaving over a hot stove.  I’m going to go out on a limb here and guessing that there aren’t a whole lot of fans of hot-stove-slavery out there, but that’s not important right now.

And when I cook, particularly Cuban food, it’s usually because I’m just craving a particular taste and I’m too lazy to drive a couple of hours on the Los Angeles freeway system to go on a Cuban Food Hunt.

But on the other hand, I do spend time (sometimes a shameful amount of time!) trying to figure out the easiest way to satisfy my current Cuban food craving.

What this means is that you’re totally in luck today.  Because I was craving a fantastic Pan con Bistec – Cuban steak sandwich.  And believe me, not all steak sandwiches are created equal.

Which is why instead of starting with a pounded-within-an-in-of-its-life dry round steak, I started off with a mouth-watering boneless beef rib-eye which makes my steak sandwiches worth the 10 minutes it takes to slice up and cook up those melt-in-your-mouth rib-eye strips.

Now that’s what I call working SMARTER, not harder. 

Pan con Bistec – Cuban Steak Sandwich

Pan-con-bistec1
Pan-con-bistec1

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 Tbsp. Butter
  • 2 Tbsp. Olive oil
  • 1 large white onion, cut in half and sliced
  • 1 24-inch loaf of Cuban bread (or your favorite baguette-type bread)
  • 1 lb. Boneless beef rib-eye steak, sliced into 1/2 inch strips (this cut makes all the difference!)
  • Parsley flakes
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 6 slices Swiss cheese (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1) Slice the bread into four (or six) equal parts – depending on the size of sandwich you prefer.

2) In a large skillet, heat the butter and olive oil together and sauté the onion until slightly soft.  Season with salt, remove cooked onions from skillet and set aside.

Pan-con-bistec-2
Pan-con-bistec-2

3) In the same skillet, over high heat, sear the steak strips until brown. About one minute per side.  NOTE: Do not stir the meat. You want it brown. Use tongs or a fork to flip.

Pan-con-bistec-3
Pan-con-bistec-3

4) Season with salt, pepper, and parsley flakes.

5) Remove steak from heat.

6) Divide steak among your pre-sliced bread.

Pan-con-bistec-4
Pan-con-bistec-4

7) Cover the steak with onions and (if desired) a slice of Swiss cheese.

8 ) Spread a thin layer of butter on the outside of sandwich.

9) Press in a sandwich press (or you can even use a George Forman Grill).

Pretty smart, right?

By the way, If you’d like to follow me on Twitter, I’m @Smrtqbn. 

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