Rafael Samanez on Sandwich de Chicharrón and Morocho:
"A traditional Sandwich de Chicharron Peruano is made with pork shoulder brazed for a long time. The pork is then sliced and served on a roll, with mayo, salsa criolla—onions, cilantro, lime—and sliced sweet potatoes. In Peru, the sandwich is eaten for breakfast or Sunday brunch.
We started selling the sandwich this year from a mobile food cart. We spend a lot of time at Union Square, but we move around the city and post our location on Facebook and Twitter. We made a slight variation on the traditional sandwich. We started using a different cut of meat—pork belly—which we braze in fish stock to give a more umami flavor. We then glaze it in a sweet passion fruit glaze, slice it and serve it in a brioche bun, with spicy rocoto mayo, salsa criolla, and sweet potatoes, which we fry until very crispy. Our goal is to have every single flavor profile, from sweet to savory, sour to salty, and all the textures, from soft to crunchy, in one sandwich."
"We think the sandwich is accompanied very well by Chicha Morada, a purple corn drink we serve. One of the most wonderful things is when you see a customer who has never tasted something you serve fall in love with it, then continue coming back day after day."
Morocho
Northwest Corner of 52nd and 6th Avenue
New York, NY 10019
Photos by Andrzej Bialuski.