How Is this Mexican Street Sandwich Not More Popular?

For the cemita recipe and all of the other bread recipes from "The Sandwich Series", click this link to download my “Ultimate Bread Baking Handbook” for free!
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Living in NYC for the last 8 years, I've seen my fair share of Tortas being served out of Mexican food trucks, but why no love for the Cemita? In episode 5 of the "Sandwich Series", I set out a journey to re-create this Mexican street sandwich from scratch in order to answer that question myself. #sandwichseries #brothersgreeneats
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0:33- Intro
5:03- Salsa Roja
Ingredients:
- Tomato (6-8, medium size)
- Red Onion (1, medium size)
- Dried Chilies (6-10 or more, your preference of chilies)
- Olive Oil
- Cilantro (handful)
- Garlic (2 cloves)
- White Wine Vinegar (2 tablespoons)
- Salt (to taste)
Steps:
1. Grab a baking sheet with parchment paper, drizzle some olive oil and put your tomatoes and red onion on it. Roast them at 450°F for 5-10 mins, until they are nice and soft.
2. Roast the dried chilies (cayenne, chipotle, ...etc) in a cast iron pan on the stovetop to get a little char. Keep your eye on these chilies so you don’t burn them, they burn fairly quickly.
3. Add roasted tomatoes, roasted onion, cilantro, garlic, salt, and roasted chilies (deseeded them if you don’t want the salsa to be too spicy) into the food processor. Blend them all together.
4. And here is your salsa. Smokey and spicy! Enjoy!
10:22- Bistec Milanesa (Fried Breaded Beef Cutlet)
Ingredients:
- Bottom Round Beef
- Red Onion (½ of medium size of onion)
- Garlic (2-3 cloves)
- Black Pepper (to taste)
- Milk (1 cup)
- Flour
- Breadcrumbs
Steps:
1. Marinade -- add the red onion, garlic, and black pepper into food processor. Blend them together, and add in some milk. And blend them together again to a nice mixture.
2. Pour the marinade mixture into a mixing bowl, and add in your steak. Marinate the meat for at least an hour or overnight.
3. Grab a plate or a container, add in flour and breadcrumbs there. Mix it nicely.
4. Coat the marinated meat with flour and breadcrumb mixture, nice and even.
5. Heat up a pan at medium-low heat, fry the coated beef cutlets until they are nice and crispy.
6. Season it with salt.
12:04- Oaxaca Cheese
12:32- Building the Cemita Sandwich
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[@ferburgoa140]

Cemitas poblanas! I can’t believe it! You did good research and a really good job cooking. My guess is the unknown peppers are morita maybe? Congratulations from Mexico city! You did great!

[@LifebyMikeG]

epic, happy I did you proud!

[@DanteeGab]

Yeah looks like Chile Morita. I totally I agree with you, he nailed it. I gonna try it tomorrow Para comer con la familia.

[@ferburgoa140]

Dante Morales I did it already and it’s really good!! Tell us how it turned out for you! 😁

[@tsukiongakugirl]

I love the respect he shows to the recipe and to mexican cuisine. Good job!

[@dedecmds]

Morita and chipotle are the same. Smoked jalapeños.

[@ix8750]

Yes even way up in Minnesota we love Tortas, very thankful for those who immigrate this far up north to brave the cold. Oh man I want one right now, but first I'll watch this because a cemita looks even better!!!

[@Brcc08]

I'm Mexican living abroad (In Sweden) since 3 years ago and I APPROVE THIS! SO SO GOOOOD

[@gabrielduarte3904]

im not surprised that you found all the ingredients, since "pueblayork" is the city with the most poblanos outside of Puebla.. the same goes for "Oaxacalifornia"

[@thelessonroom949]

Where is Oaxacalifornia?

[@mr.tomatohead3709]

Gabriel Duarte I’m from California and I’ve never heard Oaxacalifornia

[@mawlinzebra]

@@mr.tomatohead3709 lmao me neither but it's funny because it's true. Lots of oaxacos here.

[@iluan_]

@@thelessonroom949 The state of California. A large chunk of the Mexican immigrants there came from the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It's not a common therm.

[@frankkelly2245]

Great job on the bread!! That could've been the video by itself.

[@LifebyMikeG]

I love me some baking, this was a fun roll to make as well

[@RoseThistleArtworks]

That bread looked AMAZING!

[@68pointbreak]

Wow! Look at all those layers of deliciousness. Its a party in your mouth. Gotta make this! Tks

[@zhongxina1227]

@@BSERIOUSVTEC cumming? Is that your auto correct at work here? Interesting ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[@Melissa-jf7hd]

Please don’t ever stop making videos!

[@jesse113553]

You should try the Vietnamese roll Banh Mi. Quite a gorgeous sandwich!

[@LifebyMikeG]

im trying to mess with sandwiches that are a little more under the radar to spread the love. The banh mi is certainly not under the radar are this point. Theres already plenty of of youtube videos making it from scratch, a few on our channel even! but it's still a consideration because it's one of the best sandwiches ever

[@jesse113553]

Brothers Green Eats just bouncing off some ideas for you here. There are various regional or obscure variations of banh mi as well, particularly those with fish, pork floss, offal and vegan-alt as the main proteins. Also little dabbling in the dough making process at home would also be a nice touch. Hope this helps sparking some ideas for you.

[@yellowthird9521]

They did make one. Great recipe I tried making it and it was awesome.

[@harashiSAN]

@@LifebyMikeG I've never had one.. lol

[@yolosubmarine]

@@LifebyMikeG great explanation. I'm a new sub and was wondering. too right.

[@juanpablovicario6374]

OMG!!!! Thanks for doing this video!!!! I moved to Italy and missed cemitas sooooo much!!! I tried your recipe and the flavor was just as the ones I used to have in puebla (my hometown) the only thing I couldn’t find here was papalo :(((

[@dreambelieverny]

My mouth is watering. Go simple for the milanesa (only milk, salt and pepper for the marinate) the classic egg & bread crust. And sprinkle a little olive oil + little vinegar on top of the pápalo layer. Greetings from Puebla!

[@garlicgirl3149]

I can't believe this is not shared more either. It looks like a great sandwich for occasions like Super-bowl or birthday party with close friends.

[@Lee_county_slobalt]

This is why I live watching you guys! Everything from scratch! Love it

[@busybee3817]

For your needs. 100grams white flower- 100grams water. let it sit 1-1/2 days. trim half of it out and replace. place in fridge 2 days. refresh half. sour dough is urs to keep ;)

[@RO-qn5xd]

Most underrated sandwich in the world! Papalo is maybe a little outside mainstream US tastes, but it isn’t quite as critical to making the cemita a great sandwich as say cilantro is to a bahn mi. If you don’t like papalo leave it off no problem, but if you can get it, try it-it has a unique taste and is likened to (but definitely different than) cilantro. Great job keeping it authentic right down to the roll. Seek this sandwich out people-it’s worth it!

[@gingerj719]

My mouth is watering! Who the heck would put a thumbs down? I've loved this guy for long time! So informative and down-to-earth!

[@elizabethcen2936]

Da gusto cuando un extranjero se esfuerza e informa, para intentar replicar una receta mexicana, muchas gracias. 😊👏👏

[@alluringstar5910]

I ❤ cemitas poblanas! Gotta give thanks to my parents for introducing me this very special sandwich from their native state of Puebla. 😍😍😍😍🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽

[@airtempo]

I have to tell you, I've always seen other chefs on youtube and on TV attempt to replicate mexican street food and they always fail in some kind of way and I don't really like it because it's just a matter of dedicating a little bit more time into doing research and man you have just NAILED it, your channel is amazing but this cemita was spot on!! you deserve all the success and more coming your way. Cheers from Mexico.

[@sparkyjones560]

Top round and bottom round are from the cow shoulder top cap is top round and bottom round is the cut directly below that top cap meat.

[@Brian96Moore]

I love this series you do a great job diving deep into the culture and soul of each sandwich while making it your own piece of art

[@WisardFish]

Never heard of this sandwich or this place and I’m from Queens. I’m definitely going to try it ASAP.

[@joegarza9505]

On dried chiles, you can also put in hot water and let them rehydrate. You can remove seeds beforehand or even after. I am from McAllen Tx. About 20 minutes from Mexico boarder. We do a lot of Tex Mex food here. Good stuff by the way! Keep up the great food you make!

[@capigdl]

FYI the unknown dried chili it is know as "Cascabel" greetings nice video (a year later LOL)

[@aureeel]

This series is so great, I never thought sandwiches could be so interesting

[@jstvns961]

I’m Mexican and you went above and beyond. Esooooo!

[@jodyandmichelle1]

This is probably one of the most epic sandwiches I have ever seen. Love it. Thanks for sharing the techniques!

[@LifebyMikeG]

I agree! that's why I don't understand how its not a huge hit over here

[@DTWJLife]

This is so special! I'm totally sharing this :-) I know my friends would appreciate this.

[@LifebyMikeG]

thanks! glad you liked and are spreading the sandwich love

[@DTWJLife]

Is there an episode where you make enchiladas con verde? That's one of my favs

[@FRQ360]

I got the best of both worlds. My dad is from Jalisco state where it's city Guadalajara has the Tortas Ahogadas and my mom is from Puebla state, where it's city Puebla has the Cemitas. Amazing sandwiches.

[@georgechino7632]

Good job buddy. I grew up in Puebla and helped my dad with his cemita restaurant. Looks good to me. Better looking than the cemita restaurant from Chicago I had earlier this year.

[@thefoodlord9744]

Wowzers!!! This one is totally off the hook and a keeper for sure!! I reckon I just might add it to The menu of my restaurant named Route 88.....so godamn inspired right now! Lovin' every element of it. Great stuff! Keep it up:)

[@Gr95dc]

Cemita is love Cemita is life. I'm from Puebla, now I live in Mexico City and after watching this I really want to eat one right now!

[@LifebyMikeG]

😊

[@MrGuideMaster]

It's great that you look when everyone does not succeed, which makes cooking just so great a hobby👌👌👌

[@jessereyna9274]

I almost cried from pride when you cut the sandwich...❤️❤️❤️

[@Ren-jc8rz]

You have some real baker's instincts, there! Beautiful rolls!

[@lucyperezgil8333]

We also use panela cheese or queso fresco, olive oil and salt at the very end of the cemita, you made them amazing 👏🏻👏🏻

[@MalyssaAK]

That looks so good!! Can you please make a chorizo torta please?

[@greatrulo]

I lived for a while in Puebla where these tortas are from, I'm glad to see you did good research on how to make them, the papalo herb is a staple and it just wouldn't be the same without it. If anyone here plans on visiting Mexico someday, I recommend starting with Puebla and it's dozens of little towns, they definitely have some of the best food I've tried in the country. And cemitas man, God damnit, they cost 40 pesos a piece, the equivalent of 2 dollars, it's hard to even finish 1 because of the size.

[@bluntaday5439]

You truly are a master of your craft a true artist when it comes to creating sandwiches keep up the great work

[@anaritacostareis9962]

You should do Francesinha from Portugal, it's really good!

[@jnava1994]

Ana Rita Costa Reis true

[@RealConSquared]

Make a Cuban Sandwich! My fav

[@doginasweater.3861]

Heck yeah I said this on the first video, I agree would be epic

[@diamondsdiamonds5188]

Yes please.

[@pjpierce13]

What about a medianoche instead? It’s just a Cuban sandwich on a kind of sweet bread.

[@mawlinzebra]

Lmao what would a Cuban sandwich have, nothing?

[@life_sized]

Yo Josh, i asked you to make this sandwich last episode so thanks so much for making it. Most happy of all is that you now know how amazing the Cemita is!

[@LifebyMikeG]

this is Mike BTW, but thanks for the recommendation...

[@life_sized]

Hi Mike, apologies:)

[@mka8342]

When you cut it in half I was so glad I just finished eating haha!

[@MrMf524]

Thanks for providing this recipe. I am Chinese and once I went to a Mexican Deli in Queens I ordered me a cemita and it was so fresh and delicious, so many Mexican ingredients with different flavors mixed together in a tasty, fluffy unique bread and I just can not stop eating them. I will try this with bean paste as well in there but no Popolo and introduce this sandwich to my Chinese friends. It is definitely better than wendys sandwich haha.

[@chefxcm7210]

Wow you did amaizing job with the bread ! Cemitas .... love them ! Your salsa was a different good option . I do love to eat cemitas with “verduras encurtidas “ ( pickle cauliflower, carrot , onion and Mexican oregano) as a side (it’s very traditional in Puebla ) . Great episode!

[@gelusvenn5063]

Responses like this are the ones I like the most, showing that while a recipe may not be 100% traditional, it can still be appreciated and understood by folks who are used to it being different.

[@timstradley5819]

Cemitas are hands down the most underrated Mexican food there is

[@blindhydra]

I wanted you to make the super torta but now that you did this you made me 1000 times happier

[@alekholm8537]

I suggest you try doing traditional Finnish dark rye bread with butter, fried egg, cheese, sausage and pickles :) 😀 it's the classic sandwich we take to work.

[@georgiaross6741]

Oh, that sounds so good. I'm going to try it. I would have never thought to add pickles. I love a good dark rye.

[@georgiaross6741]

Do you grill the bread?

[@Discotraxx16]

Love cemitas my parents are Poblanos, and growing up we ate these as a treats at the end of the week.

[@Ricopolico]

Neat stuff. You're a born-again baker at heart, hence, the sandwich gig.

[@avrgegmer1396]

As a mexican I approve. Yes my mom showed me that adding milk to red meat before breading really tenderizess it.

[@jcorona984]

Chicago has a couple of Cemitas Puebla restaurants that sell these really good sandwiches. I've only been once, but it is highly recommended.

[@MariaDesidia]

Ya tienes aprobación de los mexicanos! Love your research for Cemitas

[@angeltorivio6246]

Great video Mike! My only suggestion would be a good bean puree. Other than that you nailed it! Great looking salsa!

[@jonv8177]

If your looking for lesser known sandwiches, than a Francesinha from Portugal is a good one. It's the Portuguese take on the French Croque-Madam

[@Balladov]

String cheese is a type of mozzarella. Milk Culture and Rennet are the only ingredients. String cheese is stretched where as most mozzarella is formed into a ball. The stretching allows the milk proteins to line up causing increased stringy-ness :-)

[@johnkawakami8395]

Oaxacan string tastes close to a cow mozzarella. The ones at the store are less milky than mozzarella. It's very melty.

[@Amysdustybookshelf]

I'd like to see you make your own Montreal smoked meat sandwich. One of my favourite sandwiches, although there are several ways to do it.

[@pesusjeraza]

please keep the series up! loving the recipes 😋

Cemitas has 2 key ingredients that "ground" them to the State of Puebla and make them VERY hard to do elswhere: The bread and the VERY cheap meats and cheeses. So... GREAT selection going with "Salsa Roja"... Better that way as you'll allready have several "greens" with the avocado an the papalo in there ;)

[@eljockermanijaa9776]

For a better results on the milanesa. You should tray to deep fry it, so it doesn't get Browning or burning on the edges. And maintain the juices and flavors. And for the marinara of the milanesa, add one or two egg to the mixture.

[@eljockermanijaa9776]

I almost forgot. That meat is not the best for milanesa. Here in Argentina, the best meats for Milanesa are, Nalga or Bola de lomo. Let me find the equivalents in USA, and I will let you know. So you can try it.

[@Tophatjones358]

Just FYI: the heat in peppers mostly comes from the pith or placenta of the fruit, not the seeds. This is a common misconception.

[@joseluiszambranodesantiago947]

You can use the burn pepper for a black salsa.

[@miguelramirez7175]

Holy shit salute man that thing looks beautiful 🔥 viva Mexico 🇲🇽

[@gonchalo95]

Garlic powder is an amazing addition to the breading process.

[@vaunmalone3064]

salsa roja, cemita the green herb wow, this video your presentation and attention to detail is amazing. i absolutely love your videos. a total education and i am now too hungry. lol

[@emilioenriquez5464]

Im a big fan of using Arbol chillis for my salsas &charring my garlic too you should try it some time!

[@LuzKaplanmusic]

Hey Mike, I found this video quite interesting as I didn't know the milanesa was prepared in Mexico as well and eaten as a sandwich. I'm from Argentina and here the milanesa is one of the most typical foods you can eat (in Uruguay as well). It can be eaten in sandwich form with some veggies and condiments (very common street or fast food), by itself with some salad or mashed potatoes on the side, ooor the best combo in my opinion is "a la napolitana", you top the milanesa with tomato sauce, ham, mozzarella and oregano and broil it in the oven for a few minutes. It is best served with fries on the side. What I also found interesting is the marinade you made with the milk, onions and garlic. Here we don't marinate the beef, we just bread it with eggs beaten with garlic and parsley and breadcrumbs. The cut of the beef can vary, the important thing is that it is a relatively tender cut and not too fatty. Oven or fried, delicious either way. Love your channel and this sandwich series!

[@StillSwirling]

This looks so good! I won't be able to find the oaxaca or the papalo but I have some chilis I grew in my garden this year as well as tomatoes. I can nail the bread. I guess I'll have to keep my eyes peeled next time I travel to the "big city" close to me to see if they have anything. Thanks!

[@MalcolmSmall]

I haven't eaten much Mexican food but love what I have had. hard to find it in northern new england.

[@chuchuchuchia]

Never heard of this but it looks hellllaaa good

[@Apathymiller]

I just made this today, but i had to use cilantro and keto friendly chaffles. Absolutely delicious!

As this video is one year old as of now, just as a reference to anyone doing this recipe, the problem with his milanesa is mostly the oil, he used olive oil which tends to burn at high temperature which is used to fry the steak, which adds to a bitter taste to the steak, use canola or any type of oil that is as flavorless as possible and can stand higher frying temperatures, that lets you enjoy the breaded flavor much more. Also, you need to add salt and pepper to the steak and let it sit for a minute or so to absorb it before breading it, and for breading, all you need is a battered egg (add a pinch of salt to the egg) and breadcrumbs, in Mexico we use breadcrumbs from the Bimbo brand which has their own unique flavor, so I'm sure that's also why he couldn't get the flavor exactly as he tasted from the cemita restaurant. He could have bought the Bimbo breadcrumbs from the guy that sold him most of the cemita ingredients, I'm almost sure he sold them if he has most cemita ingredients available.

[@ximenaaltamirano6620]

Don't know if you've ever tried if but you could make peruvian pan con chicharron, it's traditionally a breakfast sandwich that has less layers than a cemita but is still packed with deliciousness

[@LifebyMikeG]

yes, I've had a few requests for this

[@JustinHawthorne]

Hey Mike, what apron are you rocking? It's pretty fresh. Thanks for all the videos!

[@LifebyMikeG]

that would be a @chefsatchel - Great brand, quality aprons

[@FA032]

www.chefsatchel.com

[@EmperorOfSomething]

Those rolls though. My gawd. The true star.

[@TheBoontu]

Gotta get you hip to tranca pecho! Bolivian silpancho in sandwich form basically. Similar to a cemita it contains a beef milanesa with fried potatoes, fried egg, rice, and a tomato/red onion/ jalapeño salad. All stuffed in a cheesy bread roll. Serve with red wine vinegar and your good to go!

[@emmaosborn3231]

That is dedication spending this much time to make a sandwich gooooood lord, Looks amazing tho!

[@eliyang]

I’m not even hungry, but this looks so delicioso. *mouth-watering*

[@mayramelgoza1128]

BRB going to go make one of these bomb sandwiches 🤤

[@Temujim]

Look for the brazilian Bauru. The ingredients dont look like much, but its trully an amazing combo.

[@acpliego]

Great Cemita, I would just miss the beans which are an essential part of any kind of Mexican torta, also I would put less papalo, it’s too strong for me. I’ll try marinating the milanesas, I do them with egg and bread crumbs only. The salsa roja looked great too!

[@thefoodlord9744]

My cafe is based out of Delhi, India and we wanna showcase some great burgers, hot dogs and sandwiches to our guests. We churn out Cubanos, Sloppy Joes, Bahn mi, a German bratwurst style dog, Double decker ( our take on the club s/w), Surf N turf, Philly cheese steak to name a few :)

[@daphlavor]

Well done Mike, that looked killer, especially when those buns came out, I said let’s party! Thanks

[@javierponce3097]

Make a Pambaso please..my favorite Mexican Sandwish that most people don't know outside of Mexico City or Central Mexico

[@paintbynight]

Wow! Awesome! Although, I’m not sure about Oaxaca cheese that isn’t melted.

[@sumantamaitra]

That is one insane sandwich.

[@Mr.Abreu.76]

If you can't find papalo, use a mix of cilantro and watercress

[@lauranaut]

Me looking at the thumbnail: that's a Cemita, omg! Okay, he's gonna go to Sunset Park for sure given that he lives right next to it. [Goes to Sunnyside, Queens] Okay, I guess...

[@hangstrom1886]

glad you omitted the black bean paste

[@adrianportal8635]

The salsa roja looks yummy

[@paulandpedro]

Looks great. Reminds me of a chacarero sandwich. It might be different enough to have its own video. Its an Ecuadorian Sandwich which is spicy and delicious.

[@Killuminati23]

6:40 the spicyness doesnt come from the seeds, it´s in the plant material itself, not especially in the seeds

[@NeverEnuffAmmo]

First off, great video and this looks delicious, but please tell me someone pulled the audio for when he said "I just pull it until I get a mound of string cheese" ..... That shit was hilarious!

[@Betorutzu]

Nice!!, a Cemita! A real mexicana Cemita! Congrats! You have a new subscriber :V you got me on “chipotle” hahaha

[@dkleman]

Your sandwich had my mouth watering. Looks tasty. Very good video.

[@FRQ360]

I don't think I've ever had a cemita with tomato. But still looks delicious !

[@Fadelz]

Anything you make looks so good.

[@jaspersoucoup7870]

I'm loving the sires, thank you!

[@valentinamberg7137]

You did such a good job. Thanks! Have you ever thought about doing some Austrian sandwiches?

[@LifebyMikeG]

anything in particular, im always down to explore new sandwiches

[@valentinamberg7137]

I would go for some cured meat, some mountain cheese (12 months), pumpkin seed oil, maybe a hard boiled egg and some horseradish as well as some pickles. Basically everything that goes into a Brettljause is a great part of a sandwich. Also: One of my favorites is just a roll with warm Schweinsbraten and mustard. Amazing.

[@carolynlilly9753]

You should try the dried chilies from New Mexico. They are known for these chili’s.

[@PeachFlavoredKaiju]

That looks so good. I'm drooling!