The jibarito sandwich is a hunger buster filled with garlic and lime marinated ribeye steak and comes topped with popular sandwich toppings like juicy tomatoes, crisp lettuce, and onions. Its uniqueness comes from its “bun”, which is crafted from two large tostones—twice-fried green plantains. A blend of mayonnaise and ketchup, known as mayo-ketchup, stands in for traditional condiments usually found on sandwiches like this one.
Jibarito Sandwiches Originated in Chicago
Jibaritos are a Chicago recipe with ties to Puerto Rico. Juan “Peter” Figueroa created this plantain and steak sandwich in his Borinquen Restaurant, which was located in the Puerto Rican enclave of Humboldt Park in Chicago, Ilinois. Using ingredients common to traditional Puerto Rican meals, he combined them into a hearty sandwich, which he then named after the beloved countryside dwellers of Puerto Rico: jibaros.
Délice Maison / Ciara Kehoe
Classic Flavors in Jibarito Sandwiches
Puerto Rican cuisine is known for its vibrant and bold flavors. The steak for these jibaritos is marinated in a lime and garlic marinade that is popular in Puerto Rican recipes . Allow the steak to marinate for at least 1 hour before pan frying them to get the most flavor in your sandwiches, but no longer than 12 hours (or overnight) as it tends to become tough when marinated too long.
Adobo is an all-purpose seasoning that gives your dishes tons of flavor with minimal effort. It’s a salt-based spice blend that has heavy notes of garlic, onion, pepper, and cumin. You can make your own at home or purchase it pre-made in bottles. It’s usually located in the Hispanic foods section of the grocery store.
The Base of a Jibarito: Tostones
One of the key components in a jibarito sandwich is the absence of a traditional bun. Instead of using bread to hold the substantial fillings, the sandwich is made with thick twice-fried green plantains, called tostones .
Plantains are the larger, starchier cousins of yellow bananas. Usually, they are sold individually, not in bunches. Selecting the perfect plantains for this recipe is easier than you may think: look for bright green plantains that are firm like a potato when pressed. If your plantains have a bit of yellow on the peel, that’s okay, just avoid any that are mostly yellow or have darkened to black, as they will be too sweet and soft for this recipe.
To prepare them for the recipe, you first need to peel them. If you’re preparing these jibaritos for big appetites, you can slice a plantain down its length and use one per sandwich. For smaller appetites, cut the plantain in half across its girth, then slice the halves in half lengthwise to create 4 slabs.
Délice Maison / Ciara Kehoe
Jibarito Sandwich Toppings
The most popular toppings for jibaritos are green leaf lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, and mayo-ketchup. Cheese is added to discretion, but my family of cheese lovers can’t go without a few slices of mozzarella or gouda on our jibaritos.
You might like to add some of these to your sandwiches:
Crisp dill or bread and butter pickle slices
Ripe avocado slices
Potato matchstick chips (found in the chips section of the grocery store)
A little heat in the form of hot sauce or a spicy relish
Jibarito Sandwich Variations
Jibarito sandwiches are a three napkin (or more) type of meal. Things can get a little messy when you’re eating them, which is why I prefer to make mine with whole ribeye steaks instead of sliced meat. If you prefer the sliced meat version, you can swap the ribeyes in this recipe with flank steak, cooked to medium and sliced across the grain.
Some other meat options:
Skirt steak
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts
Sliced roast beef
For a vegetarian version of the jibarito, consider marinating portobello mushrooms or jackfruit with this recipes marinade before cooking.
Délice Maison / Ciara Kehoe
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