Shadowing Practice: Gordon Ramsay Makes Cubano Sandwiches in Havana - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Now, whilst in this beautiful country and being in the middle of Havana, how could I not give you a Cuban-inspired Cubano sandwich?
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Now, whilst in this beautiful country and being in the middle of Havana, how could I not give you a Cuban-inspired Cubano sandwich?
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This thing is off the charts, but more importantly, I've learned so much this week from the Cuban people, the resourcefulness, but more importantly,
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just the sparsity of ingredients.
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But when you get your hands on them, it's second to none.
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And that noise in the background is normal.
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those beautiful 1950s old-fashioned cars is what makes up this beautiful
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country's dna right cubano i've had many of these as i'm sure you have
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so i'm going to sort of change this thing up a
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little bit with a local honey from the caribbean bee
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that has no sting but a lot of flavor the honey it tastes like mango and inside
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that i've got a little bit of tobacco a little bit
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of chili in there first let's start roasting my peppers
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and onions there's no frills here the most exciting thing about
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cooking this way down here is just let the flavors do
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the talking really important peppers i like to start off just going all the way around
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and that way we just cut around the seeds
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don't over trim these things just keep them centimeter thick the secret here is in the amazing flavor of
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that grill now you look behind me i've got
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that what they call the lechon this is a beautiful slow
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roasted pig it's been on there for literally 12 hours
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and it's cooked hammock style wrapped in banana leaves
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and i promise you the flavor is incredible
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so open up up the onions and then get the peppers in there
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and rub that a little bit of olive or salt pepper and I've got little tiny bits of garlic here.
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All you do is just take the garlic and just squash and lightly crush the garlic.
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I'm going to slice it, roast it whole.
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It's so beautiful, really beautiful.
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On and then in.
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This is a sour orange, okay?
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Again, unique locally here.
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I wanna squeeze all that beautiful, sour tartness of that juice over those peppers.
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And what this does now is start to sort of marinate the peppers and the onions.
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Give that a really good mix.
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Take that really nice and crispy.
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And get some of that tobacco-flavored honey with that chile and the beautiful little peppers.
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Again, slice round.
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And let the flavours do the talking.
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So, in, mix.
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I love making sandwiches like this.
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Again, look, it's not even cooked yet, but you can see the kind of flavours we're going to get from there.
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Into the pan, an absolute piping hot pan.
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I want it coloured beautifully.
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Caramelised.
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Now, I'm going to slice my pork.
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Over to the pig.
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So this pig has been roasted for literally 14, 15 hours, and it's been cooked hammock style.
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So it's so tender.
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And then it's been wrapped in the banana leaves and just literally swung.
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So throughout the cooking process, you get the rope, that's why it's called a hammock, and you just sit here in front of the water and you just pull up and let go.
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Pull up and let go.
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And come on, that has to be the most glamorous pig anywhere in a hammock.
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And look at it, it's beautiful.
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So it goes across slowly, roasts, and just swings all day long.
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Now a little touch of olive oil.
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Beautiful.
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Now I want to get some crispiness on the bread.
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Again, hot olive oil.
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Get that bread.
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I want to make a nice, beautiful, big sandwich.
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So this thing is like a meal for two.
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Get this right, and honestly, it's like no other.
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Now, season the inside of the bread.
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Really important, by the way.
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It's always seasoned on the crust.
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But put some salt and pepper onto the bread, get that beautifully frying.
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Look at that.
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Oh boy.
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And then from there start shredding that beautiful lechon.
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I got some nice slices from the shoulder and then that's mixed with all that beautiful pork fat.
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And look, open that up.
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I want to get it nice and crispy, Okay, so by pulling it like this, crisping that up.
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Again, a touch more salt, a touch of pepper, and just a little drizzle of that spicy honey.
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And with the tobacco flavor and that chile in there, it just lifts this pork like no other.
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Now, have a look at this.
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Look.
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Get this pork really nice and crispy.
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The nice thing about this is you don't need the expensive cuts.
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This is the sort of.. the cheap cuts.
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I've got a little bit of shoulder here, a little bit of the butt, a little bit of the neck.
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And look, get that really nice and crispy.
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Bread toasting up nicely.
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You can see that is the start of a beautiful Cubano for those peppers.
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That pork is getting all nice and crispy.
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Look at the bread.
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Again, nice and crisp.
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And this is where the Cubana goes up a notch.
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I'm going to get some really nice mustard.
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Okay.
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And I'm going to spread the mustard on top of my toasted.
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You can hear how crispy that is, the baguette.
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Now I'm going to do this both sides.
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Why?
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because this is a beautiful honey mustard and it's so delicious
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but I don't like that raw sort of flavor from
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that mustard so I go back into the pan now and caramelize that mustard
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and just literally get that on there and it just creates this amazing layer.
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Look at those peppers.
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Beautiful.
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Really nice and crisp.
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They're ready to go, they come off, and then a little lime and zest over those peppers.
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Lime zest, so I'm going to make this a really nice fragrant Cubano.
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Lime squeezed over and honestly just that freshness at the end is just incredible.
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That lime and the zest is just beautiful.
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now look at my uh my pork oh my lord crispy delicious and check this out
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that beautiful caramelized mustard and that puts another layer on there okay we've got my base
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look at that that's so good oh my lord that is so good first off some lettuce
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I just want a touch of texture under here in down
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and on and use the center you're only doing this once
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so make it very special so I love using these little hearts of this little cause lettuce
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then from there I'm going to start the build up that crispy pork okay get that on there Oh my goodness.
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It's so good.
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Beautiful.
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Lots of pork, okay?
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That's the essence here.
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And this is where it starts going up a level.
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Get your onions, peppers, garlic, and sit that on top.
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Try and lay the peppers out so they sort of go red, green, red, green.
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And look at the colors there. So beautiful.
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You see those tiny little speckles of garlic.
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The garlic is so sweet at that age.
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And we've got the peppers the honey laced with
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that tobacco just drizzle that over and just let
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that seep in now a secret ingredient this is a local pollen it's a bee pollen
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and it's from these incredible caribbean bees i'm just going to sprinkle the pollen inside
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and it's going to give this sort of acidic lift to this Cubano.
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It is so good, honestly.
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Finally, bring the heat down.
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I've got some lovely pickled cucumber here, lightly drain them, and then just sit that, intertwine it a little bit,
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sort of lift up the onions and the garlic and just hide that beautiful pickling.
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Look at that.
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I mean, we haven't even finished this sandwich yet, and look Look how good it looks.
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Right, the final coat of arms is the gouda.
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Gouda is a staple in a Cubano.
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So take your slices of gouda or gouda, depending where you are, sit that on top of your bread.
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Give it a touch of seasoning.
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Press that in.
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And just go back into the pan, literally, for 30 seconds.
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I call this the cheese skirt.
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And it is just incredible because, look, this gouda, gouda, melts.
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And we have this beautiful,
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cheesy, delicious, incredible finish to the sandwich. And look. That is ready.
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that's my glue that literally sticks this beautiful cubana together push that down as that gouda
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firms up it sticks the whole sandwich together
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and then watch in and look at that seriously I
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I promise you that has to be one of the most delicious cubanas anywhere in the country.
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And that certifies I am not an idiot sandwich.
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Buon appetito.
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Learning English with a Cuban Sandwich Adventure
If you’re looking to learn English with YouTube while diving into a fun, cultural story, Gordon Ramsay’s Havana Cubano sandwich video is perfect. The dialogue blends casual conversation with vivid descriptions of cooking, making it ideal for practicing real-world language. You’ll hear phrases that mix everyday talk with unique terms, all set against the lively backdrop of Havana’s 1950s cars and slow-roasted pork.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- “Off the charts” – Used to describe something amazing: “That new café’s coffee is off the charts!”
- “No frills” – Simple, with no extra decorations: “I love their no-frills approach to cooking.”
- “Let the flavors do the talking” – Let the quality speak for itself: “With fresh ingredients, you just let the flavors do the talking.”
- “Piping hot” – Extremely hot: “Be careful, the soup is piping hot!”
- “Second to none” – The best: “Her baking skills are second to none.”
Step-by-Step Shadowing Guide for This Video
Shadowing (repeating phrases aloud as you hear them) is a great way to improve pronunciation and fluency. Here’s how to use this video with a shadowing site or app like shadowspeaks:
- Watch once for context: Focus on the story—Ramsay’s excitement about Cuban culture and cooking. This helps you follow the flow.
- Pick 30-second clips: The dialogue has pauses between steps (like slicing peppers or talking about the pig). Use shadow speak tools to loop these sections.
- Copy the rhythm: Notice how Ramsay stresses words like “resourcefulness” and “caramelised.” Mimic his pace—casual but energetic.
- Practice tricky terms: Words like “lechon” (roast pig) or “hammock style” are cultural. Repeat them until they feel natural.
- Record yourself: Compare your version to the video. A shadowspeak tool can help you spot differences in intonation.
This video isn’t just about cooking—it’s a chance to learn English in a lively, memorable way. Grab your phone, find a shadowing site, and start practicing—you’ll be speaking like a pro (and craving a Cubano) in no time!
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.