Pan con Chicharron Pork and Sweet Potato Sandwich

Name: Pan con Chicharron Pork and Sweet Potato Sandwich
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 135 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Peruvian
Ingredients: 2 lbs pork belly (skin-on), cut into 3-inch pieces; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 1/2 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground; 1/4 cup fresh orange juice; 2 small sweet potato, sliced 1/4-inch rounds; 2 cups vegetable oil; 1 small red onion, thinly sliced; 2 tbsp fresh lime juice; 2 tsp aji amarillo paste (or 1/2 tsp hot paprika); 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped; 4 crusty sandwich rolls (pan de molde or hoagie rolls), split

A beloved Peruvian breakfast sandwich piled with crispy slow-fried pork belly, sliced sweet potato, pickled red onions, and salsa criolla on a crusty roll. Plan ahead: marinate the pork for at least 2 hours or overnight.

135 minMediumServes 4590 cal/serving

PeruvianBreakfastStovetop and OvenStandardHigh ProteinLow CarbLow-SodiumAlcohol-Free

Cook this free in the appFree. No download, no account. The screen stays awake and each step can run its own timer.

Ingredients

2 lbs pork belly (skin-on), cut into 3-inch pieces
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
2 small sweet potato, sliced 1/4-inch rounds
2 cups vegetable oil
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp aji amarillo paste (or 1/2 tsp hot paprika)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
4 crusty sandwich rolls (pan de molde or hoagie rolls), split

Instructions

1

Rub 2 lbs cut into 3-inch pieces pork belly (skin-on) all over with 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Drizzle with 1/4 cup fresh orange juice, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
2

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Arrange 2 small sliced 1/4-inch rounds sweet potato on a baking sheet, brush with a little oil, and bake 20-25 minutes until tender and lightly caramelized, flipping once.
3

Make the pickled onion: toss 1 small thinly sliced red onion with 2 tbsp fresh lime juice and a pinch of salt. Set aside for 15 minutes.
4

Heat 2 cups vegetable oil in a deep heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the marinated pork belly pieces and cook, turning occasionally, until pork reaches an internal temperature of 160°F (71°C) and the skin is golden and crispy, about 40-50 minutes.
5

Remove pork and drain on paper towels. Slice or roughly chop.
6

Mix 2 tsp aji amarillo paste (or 1/2 tsp hot paprika) into the pickled onion along with 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro to make salsa criolla.
7

Toast 4 split crusty sandwich rolls (pan de molde or hoagie rolls) cut-side down in a dry skillet. Layer each roll with sweet potato slices, crispy pork belly, and a generous spoonful of salsa criolla. Serve immediately.

Cook this free in the appCooking it now? The app keeps the screen awake and times each step. Free, nothing to install.

Keep this recipe

Prints the ingredients and method only.

The Peruvian Kitchen 30 recipes from this kitchen in one printable PDF. $5, no account.

Questions

What temperature do I cook this recipe at?

For this recipe, the oven is set to 400 F (about 205 C) in step 2. The longest stretch at that heat is 25 minutes, in step 2. The target internal temperature is 160 F (about 70 C), given in step 4. A probe thermometer removes the guesswork.

How long should this recipe marinate?

Follow the time in step 4. Shorter still seasons the surface. Much longer is not better with acidic marinades, which turn the outside of meat or fish mushy.

Is there a substitute for aji amarillo in this recipe?

The entry for this recipe calls for 2 tsp aji amarillo paste (or 1/2 tsp hot paprika). In its place: Blend a roasted orange or yellow bell pepper with a little habanero or serrano. It approximates both the fruitiness and the heat.

How many calories are in this recipe?

One serving (the recipe makes 4) is about 590 calories, with 67 g protein, 4 g carbohydrate and 41 g fat, plus 1 g fiber and 219 mg sodium. The figures are estimates computed from the ingredient list.

Can I start this recipe the day before?

Yes. Step 1 is a built-in pause of 2 hours: "Drizzle with 1/4 cup fresh orange juice, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours." Do everything up to that point ahead of time and pick up at step 2 when you are ready to finish.

Serve it with

Cook this free in the app

Textual Chef is 4,544 plain-text recipes, free to read and free to cook from. No account, no paywall, no ads, no life stories. Open this one in the app and each quantity sits inside the step that uses it, so you read once and cook.

Every recipe is curated or public-domain sourced, written to one template and checked before it publishes. Nothing here is a scraped blog post.

Cook this free in the appNo download needed. It opens in your browser. The kitchen tools (planner, shopping list, pantry, import) are $5.33 a month billed annually; the first 30 days are free.