Puerco Pibil
If you've seen the film "Once Upon a Time in Mexico," you may have wondered how "Puerco Pibil" tastes. It's the dish Johnny Depp's character orders again and again, until he finds the perfect version. In one scene, Depp explains to Antonio Banderas' character: "It is a slow-roasted pork. Nothing fancy, just happens to be my favorite, and I order it at every dive I go to in this country, and honestly, this is the best it's ever been. ... It is so good that when I'm finished with it, I'll pay my check, walk straight into the kitchen and shoot the cook, because that's what I do: I restore the balance to this country."
So here's my take on this wonderful, traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from Yucatán. Enjoy, but please, don't shoot the cook!
Puerco Pibil
Ingredient List:
1-1/4 tbs black peppercorns
1-1/4 tbs cloves
6-1/4 tbs annatto (Achioto) seeds
2-1/2 tbs cumin seeds
10 whole allspice
2-1/2 habanero chiles, seeded, veins removed, diced
5/8 cup white vinegar
5/8 cup fresh orange juice
2-1/2 tbs salt
juice of 5 lemons
10 cloves garlic, minced
Generous splash of quality tequila (but not Paddy’s Anejo Patron)
Banana leaves
6 lb boneless pork butt, cut into 2-inch cubes
Instructions:
Place first 5 ingredients in a coffee or spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.
In a blender or food processor, place ground spices and next 7 ingredients and blend thoroughly to make marinade.
Cut pork butt into 2-inch squares and place in a large sealable plastic bag and pour spice marinade over all. Seal bag and turn several times to coat meat. Refrigerate overnight, or up to 48 hours. (If using gallon bags, you may have to use 2 bags, so just divide the ingredients in half).
When ready to cook pork, line a large roasting pan with several banana leaves (or if banana leaves aren’t available, use heavy foil). Pour contents of plastic bag into lined pan and cover with more banana leaves (or foil), sealing the pork. Cover the pan tightly with foil, being careful to crimp foil over edges of pan to prevent escape of steam needed to insure thorough cooking of meat.
Place pan in a 350 deg F oven for 4 hours.
Open pan carefully to avoid being burned by the escaping steam; the meat will be tender enough to shred easily with a fork. Serve with white or Mexican rice and warm tortillas and cold 'ritas, or if you prefer, shred pork, moisten with pan juices and use as taco filling.
Makes 8 servings
So here's my take on this wonderful, traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from Yucatán. Enjoy, but please, don't shoot the cook!
Puerco Pibil
Ingredient List:
1-1/4 tbs black peppercorns
1-1/4 tbs cloves
6-1/4 tbs annatto (Achioto) seeds
2-1/2 tbs cumin seeds
10 whole allspice
2-1/2 habanero chiles, seeded, veins removed, diced
5/8 cup white vinegar
5/8 cup fresh orange juice
2-1/2 tbs salt
juice of 5 lemons
10 cloves garlic, minced
Generous splash of quality tequila (but not Paddy’s Anejo Patron)
Banana leaves
6 lb boneless pork butt, cut into 2-inch cubes
Instructions:
Place first 5 ingredients in a coffee or spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.
In a blender or food processor, place ground spices and next 7 ingredients and blend thoroughly to make marinade.
Cut pork butt into 2-inch squares and place in a large sealable plastic bag and pour spice marinade over all. Seal bag and turn several times to coat meat. Refrigerate overnight, or up to 48 hours. (If using gallon bags, you may have to use 2 bags, so just divide the ingredients in half).
When ready to cook pork, line a large roasting pan with several banana leaves (or if banana leaves aren’t available, use heavy foil). Pour contents of plastic bag into lined pan and cover with more banana leaves (or foil), sealing the pork. Cover the pan tightly with foil, being careful to crimp foil over edges of pan to prevent escape of steam needed to insure thorough cooking of meat.
Place pan in a 350 deg F oven for 4 hours.
Open pan carefully to avoid being burned by the escaping steam; the meat will be tender enough to shred easily with a fork. Serve with white or Mexican rice and warm tortillas and cold 'ritas, or if you prefer, shred pork, moisten with pan juices and use as taco filling.
Makes 8 servings
