Pork Asado Recipes

Steps:

• Combine pork cubes, 1/2 cup water, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring constantly, until water evaporates. Continue cooking until the pork browns in its rendered fat, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cut tops off the dried chiles and remove seeds. Heat chiles in a large skillet over low heat until they start to soften. Do not toast. Place chiles in a bowl of hot water and soak for 20 minutes.
• Remove pork and set aside. Do not wash, wipe out, or clean the Dutch oven.
• Transfer chiles to a blender, reserving soaking water. Add cilantro, chicken bouillon, peppercorns, garlic, cinnamon stick, Mexican oregano, thyme, cumin seeds, bay leaves, and cloves. Pour in 1 cup soaking water and blend until smooth. Add 1 more cup soaking water, season with salt, and blend until completely smooth.
• Melt lard in the Dutch oven. Carefully add blended chile mixture and scrape up all browned bits. Bring to a boil and add pork. Reduce heat and cover partially, leaving about 1 inch open. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened and reaches the desired consistency, 15 to 20 minutes.

Steps:

• Divide the pork shoulder into 4 pieces. Pat the pieces dry with paper towels and liberally season all over with salt.
• Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot (choose one with a lid, such as a Dutch oven) over medium-high heat. Sear the pieces of pork on all sides until brown, working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding the pot. Transfer the pork to a plate and pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pot.
• Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and garlic to the pot, and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes.
• Deglaze the pot with 4 cups water and the tomato sauce, then add the calamansi juice, soy sauce and bay leaf and stir to combine. Raise the heat to high and bring everything to boil. Add the browned pork and any juices that have accumulated back to the pot, and reduce the heat to medium-low. (You are looking for a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil.) Cover and simmer until the meat is tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove the pot from the heat and let the meat cool in the covered pot until it reaches room temperature.
• Transfer the meat to a separate container, leaving the braising liquid in covered pot. Refrigerate both overnight. The next day, skim the fat off the top of the liquid in the pot; discard the fat.
• Heat the braising liquid to a simmer. Add 1/4 cup of the grated cheese, if using, and the evaporated milk, stirring constantly until well incorporated. Taste and add more cheese if desired to add saltiness and thicken slightly. Season with salt, if needed, and keep warm over low heat.
• Slice the chilled pork shoulder into 1/4-inch slices, cutting against the grain of the meat. Place pork slices in the asado braising liquid and heat until warmed through. Serve hot.

Steps:

• Prepare the marinade
• Mix all marinade ingredients in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.
• Marinate the pork
• If using a flavor injector (see cooking notes), strain half the marinade into a bowl, adding the strained-out garlic to the other half of the marinade. Use the injector to take in some strained marinade, pierce the pork with the tip of the needle, and inject it into the flesh. Do this all over the meat until the strained marinade has been used up.
• If you are not using a flavor injector, use a long, thin knife to create deep gashes all over the flesh and pour the marinade over the pork.
• Place the marinated pork in a deep bowl or container. Generously season the outside of the pork with salt and pour the remaining marinade all over it, spreading the onion rings all over the top.
• Cover well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
• Boil the marinade for basting
• Remove the pork from the marinade and place it on a platter. Transfer the marinade to a saucepan, add the onions, and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Place the boiled marinade and onions in a blender and puree until smooth. The marinade is now ready to use as a basting liquid.
• Grill the pork
• Before heating your grill, remove the pork from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature.
• Heat your grill to 550°F and close the lid. Wait at least 15 minutes before lowering the temperature to 300°F. Oil the grill grates with a vegetable oil-soaked paper towel held with a long pair of tongs.
• If your cut has the skin still attached, begin the cooking process with the skin side up (away from the direct heat).
• Grill your meat about 2 1/2 hours total. Turn the meat over once when you are one quarter through with the cooking time, again when you are halfway through, and once more when three-quarters of the cooking time has elapsed. The pork is ready when it reaches an internal temperature of 150°F on the grill (it will continue to cook when it's off the heat, raising the internal temperature to the desired 160°F).

Steps:

• Cut the pork into 1/2 inch cubes removing any fat. Heat a large pot on medium high and fry the pork allowing it to fry in its own juices. After the meat is browned on all sides, turn the heat to medium low and cover stirring occasional until the meat is fork tender, about 45 minutes.
• Then, add the flour to the pork and stir lightly browning the flour for 2 minutes. Finally, add the tomato sauce, all of the spices and water. Stir to combine and cook on medium heat just until the sauce thickens. Add more garlic salt to taste and chile powder if needed. Also, if sauce gets too thick, you can add another 1/4 cup water until the sauce has the consistency you like. It should resemble a runny gravy.

Steps:

• For the marinade: Mix together all ingredients and set aside to let flavors meld together.
• Procedure for the pernil. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash pork under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. With a sharp paring knife, pierce the flesh. Season with salt and pepper and rub sofrito all over, covering the entire piece of meat. Let marinate for no less than 2 hours but better if overnight. Place pork on an oven rack and place in roasting pan and add enough water to just cover bottom of pan. Put roasting rack in center of the oven and let cook for 20 minutes. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and let cook until juices run clear. The pork should be firm to the touch. Take the pork out of the oven and let rest for about 10 to 15 minutes. Peel away the skin when cool enough to touch and save, for this is a traditional Caribbean delicacy. Slice meat into bite-size pieces and serve with arroz con gandules.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Sprinkle pork all over with salt, pepper and dried oregano. Place pork roast fat-side up in a baking dish that is at least 2 inches deep. Add chicken stock, garlic, lime juice, orange juice and onion to the baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil and bake until meat begins to fall apart, about 4 hours. Remove foil and continue to cook for 30 minutes. Remove pork roast and allow it to rest. Place braising liquid into a saucepan and reduce on low to medium heat until reduced by about half. Strain the braising liquid and serve as sauce for the pork shoulder.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Squeeze enough juice from limes to measure 1 cup. Mince garlic. In a bowl stir together 3 tablespoons lime juice, garlic, 2 1/2 tablespoons salt, oregano, and cumin. Pat pork dry and with a sharp small knife make 1-inch-long by 3/4-inch-deep incisions 2 inches apart in pork skin. Push about 1 teaspoon garlic mixture into each incision and rub remainder on meaty ends not covered by skin.
• Transfer pork to a large roasting pan (about 18 by 12 by 2 inches) and pour remaining lime juice around pork. Roast pork, uncovered, in middle of oven until most of juice is evaporated and brown bits begin to form on bottom of pan, about 30 minutes.
• In a bowl stir together water and vinegar and pour mixture around pork. Cover pan tightly with foil and roast 1 hour. With a small ladle baste meat only (not skin) with pan juices and roast pork, covered, 1 hour.
• With cleaned sharp small knife gently loosen skin from meat (without cutting through skin) and with a spoon baste meat under skin with pan juices. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 tablespoon salt over skin and roast pork, uncovered, basting meat (not skin) every 20 minutes, 1 1/2 hours more, or until skin is crisp. Transfer pork to a cutting board, reserving pan juices, and let stand 20 minutes. Skim fat from reserved pan juices.
• Cut pork into 1/4-inch-thick slices and serve with pan juices.

Steps:

• Rub both sides of chops with adobo.
• Place chops in a deep baking dish. In a separate bowl, mix together orange juice, lemon juice, vinegar, and garlic.
• Pour marinade over chops and turn to coat both sides of chops.
• Let chops marinate in refrigerator for at least one hour or overnight.
• Preheat your grill and grill pork chops over a low to medium low flame. Cook each side for about 10-15 minutes per side.
• The pork chops are done when meat is white and has reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.