Cuban Burger (Frita Cubana)
A juicy, paprika-spiced beef and chorizo patty grilled hot and fast, tucked into a soft bun and piled high with crunchy shoestring potatoes. Havana's answer to the hamburger, loud with garlic and smoky chorizo.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Mix the meat
In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, chopped chorizo, grated onion, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Mix with your hands just until evenly combined — overworking it makes the patties tough.
- 500 g ground beef
- 150 g chorizo
- 1 small onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
✅ Done when: the mixture looks evenly speckled with spices and feels slightly sticky, not mushy
Shape and chill
Divide the mixture into 4 portions and shape into wide, thin patties about 1 cm thick — slightly bigger than the buns, since they shrink as they cook. Chill them for 15 minutes so they hold together on the grill.
✅ Done when: the patties feel firm and keep their shape when lifted
Crisp the potatoes
Warm the shoestring potatoes in a dry skillet over medium heat (or in the oven at 180°C/350°F), tossing gently, for 3–4 minutes until hot and crackling-crisp again. Set aside near the stove.
- 150 g shoestring potatoes
✅ Done when: the potatoes are hot through and crunchy, not soft
Grill the patties
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the patties for about 4 minutes per side, pressing lightly once with a spatula, until deeply browned outside and cooked through with no pink inside — the chorizo fat means an internal temperature of 71°C (160°F) is the safe mark to look for.
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
✅ Done when: patties are browned and firm, with clear juices and no pink in the center
Toast the buns
Spread the cut sides of the buns with butter and toast them in the same hot pan, cut-side down, for 1–2 minutes until golden.
- 4 burger buns
- 2 tbsp butter
✅ Done when: buns are golden and lightly crisp on the inside
Assemble the burger
Set a patty on each bottom bun, drizzle with ketchup, then pile the warm shoestring potatoes generously on top. Close with the top bun and serve right away, while the potatoes are still crunchy.
- 150 g shoestring potatoes (from step 3)
- to serve ketchup
Mix the meat
In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, chopped chorizo, grated onion, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Mix with your hands just until evenly combined — overworking it makes the patties tough.
- 500 g ground beef
- 150 g chorizo
- 1 small onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
✅ Done when: the mixture looks evenly speckled with spices and feels slightly sticky, not mushy
Shape and chill
Divide the mixture into 4 portions and shape into wide, thin patties about 1 cm thick — slightly bigger than the buns, since they shrink as they cook. Chill them for 15 minutes so they hold together on the grill.
✅ Done when: the patties feel firm and keep their shape when lifted
Crisp the potatoes
Warm the shoestring potatoes in a dry skillet over medium heat (or in the oven at 180°C/350°F), tossing gently, for 3–4 minutes until hot and crackling-crisp again. Set aside near the stove.
- 150 g shoestring potatoes
✅ Done when: the potatoes are hot through and crunchy, not soft
Grill the patties
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the patties for about 4 minutes per side, pressing lightly once with a spatula, until deeply browned outside and cooked through with no pink inside — the chorizo fat means an internal temperature of 71°C (160°F) is the safe mark to look for.
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
✅ Done when: patties are browned and firm, with clear juices and no pink in the center
Toast the buns
Spread the cut sides of the buns with butter and toast them in the same hot pan, cut-side down, for 1–2 minutes until golden.
- 4 burger buns
- 2 tbsp butter
✅ Done when: buns are golden and lightly crisp on the inside
Assemble the burger
Set a patty on each bottom bun, drizzle with ketchup, then pile the warm shoestring potatoes generously on top. Close with the top bun and serve right away, while the potatoes are still crunchy.
- 150 g shoestring potatoes (from step 3)
- to serve ketchup
The Story Behind the Dish
The frita grew out of Havana's street carts in the early 1900s, when vendors stretched ground beef with cured Spanish chorizo for extra flavor and sold the patties in a soft bun, in the same spirit as the American hamburger that was becoming popular across the island at the time. The crowning touch of crisp shoestring potatoes, piled on top instead of served alongside, became the sandwich's signature.
After 1959, Cuban exiles carried the frita to Miami, where small walk-up stands and diners in neighborhoods like Little Havana kept the sandwich alive and made it a beloved symbol of Cuban-American food culture.
⭐ Why It's Famous
It's loved for the contrast of a juicy, deeply spiced patty against the crunch of the fried potatoes on top — a texture and flavor combination unique to Cuban cooking.
💡 Fun Fact
Some of Miami's oldest Cuban diners are built entirely around this one sandwich, serving little else besides fritas and a cold malta or batido on the side.
Havana, Cuba
23.11°N, -82.37°W
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