eatbensmeat

This is a Mexican style pulled pork, but not taco-and-burrito-tex-mex Mexican, more like Mayan Mexican, if that makes any sense.  It honestly isn’t like anything else I’ve ever eaten.  The annato seeds are the secret ingredient, if you can call it that.  Great dish.

A note on the banana leaves:  totally optional, but the smell good while they’re cooking, and they are more available then you might think.  I use them because frozen, they are only a dollar or two, and surprisingly easy to find.

Stuff that isn’t the marinade:

5 pounds pork shoulder, cut in to 1-2 inch cubes

Banana leaves (optional)

For the marinade:

5 tablespoons annato seeds (not a misprint, they have a mild flavor and it takes a lot)

3 teaspoons ground cumin

2 tablespoons black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons whole cloves

12 whole allspice berries

2 habaneros, cleaned, minced, seeds removed

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup white vinegar

1-2 heads of garlic, minced

2 tablespoons salt

A few shots of tequila

Juice from 3 lemons

Juice from 3 limes

2 tablespoons brown sugar

First:  make the marinade.  Put all of the dry spices in to a coffee grinder and…you know, grind it up.  Put all of the dry spices in a large gallon bag, and add the garlic, sugar, habaneros, vinegar, and the orange, lemon, and lime juice.  Put the pork in the bag with the marinade.

You’re going to want to marinade this for at least four hours, but overnight is always better.  Turn the pork every few hours if marinating for a long time.

When you’re ready to cook, preheat the oven to 325F.  Take a baking dish (I use a 13×9 dish) and, if you want, line it with banana leaves.  Empty the pork and the marinade in to the dish, and either fold the banana leaves over it or cover the dish with foil.  Put it in the oven and bake for 3-4 hours.  Just like the chinese barbecued pork, you’ll know it’s done when you can grab a piece of meat with a pair of tongs and it crumbles.

Once it’s done, transfer the meat to a large bowl, and pour the remaining juices in to a small pot.  You’re going to reduce the remaining juices down in to a sauce, so start boiling!  Boil on as high a heat as you can for probably 15 minutes, stirring frequently.  At about that time, it should start to thicken , at which point you should turn down the heat to low and continue stirring.  Keep stirring until the sauce has the desired thickness…it should be a little thicker than brown gravy.

Once it’s done, dump the meat over the sauce.

But now how to eat such an awesome thing?

1. Tortillas are always great
2. Pickled onions (recipe to follow)
3. Queso fresco is never, ever a bad idea
4. It makes really good nachos as well.
5. Rice and beans are always good (recipe for smoky rice and beans to follow)