Lechon A La Criolla Cuban Style Pork A La Criolla Recipes

RICO'S LECHON PORK CUBAN STYLE

Steps:

• For the pork marinade: Rinse the pork with warm water and place on a half-sheet pan preferably 1 to 2 inches deep. Carefully stab 8 to 10 slits with the tip of a chef's knife in different areas of the meat. (Note: If you are using a pork shoulder instead, cut under the thick cap of fat using a fillet knife, cutting while pulling the fat out of the way to one side, revealing the meat; do not remove the layer of fat, just detach it to make way for stabbing slits with your knife.) Using your hands, fill all the slits with garlic cloves, pressing them down into each slit. Add salt and pepper and spread evenly. Pour lemon and lime juices over the pork. Add the achiote, coriander and oregano. Using your hands, massage and spread evenly. Pour the olive oil and spread evenly. Let the pork rest at room temperature for 2 hours.
• For the blending ingredients: Add the onions, basil, olives, olive oil, green onions, green peppers, lemon, red pepper, yellow pepper and 2 quarts water to a blender. Blend until thick. Set aside.
• For the mojo marinade: Stir together the achiote, lemon and lime juices, olive oil, garlic, coriander, cumin, salt, pepper and orange slices in a bowl.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Transfer the pork to a deeper roasting pan, preferably 4 inches deep. Add the blending mixture by pouring it evenly over the pork. Now pour the mojo marinate evenly over the pork. Add water, making sure to pour on the sides of the pan and not on top of the pork, and fill at least two-thirds of the way. Cover the pork with foil, sealing tight, and place in the oven. Roast 3 1/2 hours, then remove the foil and turn the oven up to 425 degrees F. Continue to roast for an additional hour.
• Serve hot with your favorite rice and beans.

LECHON A LA CRIOLLA (CUBAN STYLE PORK A LA CRIOLLA)

Steps:

• Eliminate grease excess from the pieces of pork.
• In a big refractory tray, season the pork with the sour orange juice, onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper and bay leaf.
• Let marinade in the fridge for 12 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350º F.
• Take the pork out of the fridge two hours before putting it in the oven.
• Bake the pork in the marinade for 2 or 3 hours or until tender.
• Turn the pork from time to time so all sides get well cooked.
• Take out the bay leaf before serving.

PUERTO RICAN PORK A LA CRIOLLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine pepper, garlic, oregano, vinegar, olive oil and salt in a small bowl, then rub this mixture all over the pork roast.
• Place roast in a shallow baking pan and roast, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for about 1-1/2 hours; meat thermometer should read 165 to 170 degrees F.
• Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.

CUBAN GRILLED PORK (LECHON ASADO)

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).

CARBONADA CRIOLLA

Steps:

• Heat butter and oil in heavy casserole or Dutch oven.
• Lightly roll meat cubes in flour; place in casserole and brown on all sides.
• Remove meat; add onions to casserole and sauté until golden.
• Return meat to casserole; add wine, beef broth, tomato paste, bay leaf, thyme, salt, and pepper.
• Cover and simmer gently until meat is quite tender, roughly 45 minutes.
• Add corn, potatoes, and dried fruit, and cook for another 20-30 minutes.
• Add frozen squash, apple, and raisins, and cook for another 10 minutes.
• Serve and garnish with parsley.

CUBAN STYLE PORK ROAST WITH MOJO CRIOLLO AKA LECHON ASADO CON MOJO

Steps:

• 1. THE NIGHT BEFORE: For the Mojo: You will need a large bowl. In a large bowl, pour the sour orange juice or lime juice, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic and sliced onion into the bowl and stir.
• 2. Mix the mojo ingredients and let sit for 30 minutes.
• 3. Prepare pork leg by piercing pork with a sharp knife. Place pork leg, fat side up in large pan. Pour Mojo over and around pork, cover in aluminum foil, and let sit in refrigerator overnight. Reserve some of the mojo for basting.
• 4. DAY OF ROASTING: Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• 5. Place the pork in a large open roasting pan with all the Mojo juices. With a large spoon, pour the juices all over the pork.
• 6. Place the pan in the oven and reduce the temperature to 225 degrees F.
• 7. Check pork occasionally and pour Mojo on sides over the roast pork with spoon.
• 8. Using a meat thermometer, check the internal temperature, when it reaches about 195 degrees F, remove the pork from the oven.The outer skin should be a golden brown and crunchy. Place pork in a large serving pan and cover with aluminum foil. Wait a few minutes to let cool down, then either slice or fork shred and serve. Enjoy!

BISTEC A LA CRIOLLA ( COLOMBIAN STYLE SKIRT STEAK IN SAUCE)

Steps:

• Place steaks between wax paper and pound with a mallet to 1/4 inch thickness; set aside.
• In a large resealable plastic bag, combine oil, mustard, cumin, garlic, cilantro, and salt and pepper; add steaks, seal (squeezing out as much air as possible), and work marinade over all sides of the meat.
• Refrigerate to marinate at least one hour, up to overnight.
• Meanwhile, prepare the hogao; heat oil in a skillet over medium low heat, add tomatoes, green onions, garlic, ground cumin and cook until tomatoes soften, about 15 or 20 minutes.
• Reduce heat to low and add in salt and pepper to taste and cilantro, cook until tomatoes break down, about 10 minutes more; remove from heat.
• Heat a large skillet, over medium heat; add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil.
• Place steaks into skillet and cook 3 minutes per side.
• Add 1 1/2 cups hogao, cover and cook for 7 minutes more; serve.