These Mini Cubano Sandwich Skewers are a fun bite-sized appetizer our guests will love dipping into! Best of all, they can be made in advance and can be served cold! If you love these, checkout these other party skewer ideas!
This fun party skewers are one of my most popular recipes on my blog! They are fun, easy and so tasty!!
What Is A Cubano?
A cubano is a Cuban sandwich that typically has ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard. It is then smothered in butter and grilled on both sides. A weight is normally used to press down the sandwich as it cooks. You can also make one in a panini press to give it the same "pressed" result. Check out this cubano!
It is SO delicious. I could eat multiples for lunch, dinner, whenever! With that said, the bread and butter and not exactly healthy. So this skewered version is a fun way to get all the same flavors of the cubano in one bite! Plus, they are gluten free, keto friendly and damn delicious.
Can I Make These Ahead?
Yes! I love serving cold appetizers at my parties because they can be made in advance AND don't need to be reheated! Who would hate that?
Skewering them takes some times to do so I definitely recommend doing your skewering at least few hours prior or better yet, the night before. You can even skewer and prepare them 2-3 days prior to guests arrival. The sauce can be prepared ahead as well. Just cover well and refrigerate.
Make sure you check out these room temperature appetizers!
Tips For Making Skewers
Okay so, they made seem simple, but I do have a few tips that will make sure YOUR skewers not only taste good, but LOOK good! Because people eat with their eyes first, right?
Tip #1
Purchase the pre-cubed Swiss cheese they sell in a bag. (See photo) This will make sure all of your cubes are exactly the same size and will cut down on prep time!
Tips #2
You can use any kind of pickles you prefer! They have sweet, sour, spicy, dill, etc. I like to change up my pickles so feel free to experiment. I used baby dill pickles in the photos but sliced will work too.
Tip #3
If you are on a keto diet, leave out the honey in your 'dijonaisse'. It doesn't NEED it. I enjoy a sweet tangy combination but it is your choice!
Tip #4
When choosing your ham, you can purchase slices like I did. If so, make sure you get thicker slices. Too thin, and the ham will be hard to skewer! You could also purchase pre-cut ham cubes similar to the cheese!
Tip #5
Skewered your ingredients is tricky. If you want them to stand up, place the cheese cube on the bottom! If you want to skewer your ham like I did, you will need to cut your ham lengthwise into strips (about 1" wide first), they skewer it like your folding a fan. (Like we did back in grade school). If your using sliced pickles, use 2-3 pickles and place them between the ham and cheese so they don't slide around.
Don't forget your mini skewers!
Here are the mini wooden skewers I use all the time.
Also, here are round white serving dishes like the one here!
Here are some other cold skewered appetizers you will love!
Mini Cheeseburger Skewers (w/ Burger Sauce)
Grilled Pineapple Skewers With Jalapeno Honey Glaze
Caramelized Pearl Onions With Balsamic Glaze
If you try this recipe, please comment and rate it below! 🙂
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Mini Cubano Sandwich Skewers
Ingredients
- 26 Mini Wooden Skewers
- 7 oz. ham, sliced thick (or cubed)
- 6 oz. Swiss cheese cubes
- 26 pickles kosher baby dill ((16 oz. jar))
Mustard Sauce
- ⅓ cup Dijon
- ¼ cup mayonaisse
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 3 tbsp honey (*Optional)
Instructions
- If using ham slices, cut each slice into 1-1½" strips.
- Trim or cut your pickles.
- Using mini wooden skewers, skewer your pickle, followed by your ham, then your cheese. Fold your ham back and forth (like folding a fan), while you skewer if you want it to look like mine in the images above.
- Mix up mustard sauce in a small bowl and chill.
- Serve chilled with sauce for dipping.
Tried these tonight and they were a big hit. The mustard sauce was delicious. I added the honey and everyone loved it. Thanks for a quick and easy appetizer that appealed to all our guests!
Hi Linda! Thanks so much for your kind review! I'm so glad everyone loved the skewers!
Oh how I love Cubano Sandwiches! I am so excited to try these appetizers! Thank you for this recipe. I can tell they are going to be fantastic! How could they not??
Terry, Me too! 🙂 I hope you enjoy them!
This was delicious! My family loved it and I think this mustard has become a staple whenever we have ham. Love it!
Thanks so much! I am so glad they liked them!
such a nice recipe .. thanks for sharing 🙂