Recipes - The Best Frita Cubana

Frita Cubana

{Cuban Hamburger}

This is my own version of the Frita Cubana popular in the Southern most regions of Florida.  The best ones come from the street vendors and I hope I have done justice to this traditional Cuban master piece. 

If you do not like this wondrous burger, there is something strange going on....

As the Cuban's say this Burger is, "no le cabe un alpiste en el culo".

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

For 6 1/4 lbs patties

1/2 lbs 93% lean hamburger

1/2 lbs Ground Pork

1/2 lbs Spanish Style Chorizo [chopped fine]

2/3 Spanish Onion [1/3 diced fine] [1/3 sliced thin and reserved]

2-3 medium garlic cloves [diced fine]

1/2 Tsp Spanish smoked sweet paprika

1/2 Tsp Cumin

Small palm of dried Oregano ground between your hands

Pulp of 1 Sour Orange

For the sauce:

2 Tb spoons good Olive oil

The last 1/3 Spanish onion diced fine

2 large garlic cloves diced fine

Juice of one Sour Orange [reserved]
2 Tb spoon of tomato paste
3-4 Tb spoons of Goya Sofrito

Juice of one lime

2 Tb spoon honey [or a squeeze or two from the honey bear]

Shoe String French Fries [The amount is up to you]

6 medium sized Cuban Rolls or Brioche hamburger buns [insides grilled golden with butter]

Method:

For the Patties:

Juice the sour orange prior to mixing the meat patty mixture, reserve juice for sauce, add the well drained pulp to the to the meat mixture.

Mix all ingredients for patties in a bowl. 

Using a 6-8 oz ice cream scoop measure out 6 equal balls, do not flatten, place covered in refrigerator for 30 minutes.  

Tip:  At this point you can freeze the patty balls or continue on, they will last 30 days in a well sealed freezer bag.  

For the sauce: 

In a small saute on medium heat add the olive oil and cook the onion until translucent but not browned stirring occasionally, add garlic, stir in, cook for 2 minutes, add remaining ingredients combine well except lime juice.  Increase heat and reduce by 1/3.  Using a hand blender, chop onions until the sauce is lumpy-smooth, continue reduction until the consistency of thick ketchup. Note: If sauce is thick prior to reduction add 1/3 cup of a good chicken stock...not broth...reduce as above. When fully reduced, remove from heat, add lime juice and combine.  Sauce should be sweetly sour to taste, and salt and pepper.

Assembly:

Heat oil for French Fries or oven to 450 degrees....If deep frying wait until the very last minute to cook, you want the fries to be hot and crispy.  If using the oven, follow package directions and adjust cooking the burgers until the last few minutes...it is essential to have hot crispy fries for this dish.

If you have a Comal, now is the time to pre-heat for the buns.

Heat a non-stick skillet to medium high,  add 1 tbl spoon good olive oil. When the oil is just smoking add the ball of meat and smash with spatula until 1/4-1/3 inch thick.  {This part is essential, the original Frita Cubana was made on a flat grill cart and cooked well, not medium or rare}

Do not worry about uniformity here, the burger should not be perfectly round.  It's the street vendor style of the old days in Little Havana.

{Lightly butter the rolls or buns and place on Comal.}

Once smashed place a few thinly sliced Spanish onions on the patty and mush in with the spatula, then top with a tablespoon of the sauce.  When the first side is done, about 2 minutes, flip the burger and add another tbl spoon of sauce to the top.  The burger should be 'brazing' at this point.  Cook until well done and the sauce is beginning to dry up. 

Once the buns or rolls are toasted to a light brown, spread a tbl spoon of the sauce on the bottom bun and work in lightly. [You are making a seal for the juices of the burger] Place burger on the bottom bun with all the juices from the pan...or as much as you can, then a hand full of fries to cover the entire burger, then another tbl spoon of sauce and finally the top bun or roll.  Wrap in wax paper or parchment to retain all the ingredients once bitten into.  I prefer the 'half wrap' method:  https://www.wikihow.com/Wrap-a-Burger

Optional toppings: Tomato slices [lol], mayo lettuce...or whatever you want, the key ingredients are the sauce, the meat mixture, and the shoestring fries.

Serve IMMEDIATELY.  It is important for this burger to be hot and crispy on the first bite.

Drink suggestion:

Saoco.- The best thing one can do with coconut water.  Absolutely delightful, cool and refreshiing!  To make it you just need coconut water, light rum, fresh lime juice, sugar and some ice cubes.  Combine all the ingredients except the ice in a shaer glass and stir until the sugar is dissolved, add ice, shake and pour all into a tall glass.

1 1/2 Oz rum

2-3 tbl spoon fresh lime juice

1 tbl spoon sugar or honey

6 oz coconut water

Please recommend & be sure to follow The Coconut Whisperer