PERNIL

This past Thanksgiving, I was treated to three types of cuisine that just warmed my heart.  Had I not been suffering a hangover, I would have stuffed my face more.  First, I ate a lovely Colombian meal, courtesy of my sister-in-law's mother.  Then, it was the typical Thanksgiving meal at my aunt's.  Finally, we made a trip to the Bronx to celebrate Thanksgiving/the birthday of my brother-in-law's fiance, who is Dominican.  Anytime I hear that I'm about to have Dominican food, there's always one dish that look forward to the most - pernil.  That roasted pork is so delicious.

One thing that stopped me from trying to make my own was the quantity.  Pork shoulders sold at my local supermarket were pretty big, and unless I felt like having a dinner party, which I don't ever feel like doing, I was going to be left with a lot of pork afterwards.  However, on a Friday evening after work, I stopped by the store to try to get ideas for dinner, and eyed a shoulder that was approximately 4lbs.  I'm not sure what came over me, but I grabbed it and said, I'm just going to try to make this pork.

I googled recipes, as I am wont to do, and found the seasoning/marinade to be simple enough.  There's always a chance that I didn't choose an adequate recipe, but the reviews seem to indicate otherwise.  The author of the recipe stated that she has let the pork marinate for up to two days.  I don't normally let meat marinate for that long, but considering its size and similar remarks in other recipes, I decided to go for it.  I started marinating Friday night to cook for Sunday.  It was pretty good timing since we were expecting a day of cold snowy weather.  I added a bit of lime juice to the marinade for no discernible reason - I just thought it would be a good idea.  

Pernil Recipe
8 lbs picnic pork shoulder
12 minced garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons white vinegar
8 teaspoons salt (or 1 teaspoon of salt per pound of meat if you are using a smaller cut of meat)

Directions:
1.  Wash the pork shoulder.
2.  With a sharp knife, make 1 inch deep cuts into the pork.
3.  With mortar and pestle crush garlic, oregano and black pepper together. Add olive oil, vinegar and salt. Mix well.
4.  Spoon some of the garlic mixture inside the small cuts around the pork, and spread remaining mixture all over the pork.
5.  Place pork in an aluminum turkey pan (skin side up); cover with aluminum foil tightly. Refrigerate at least 8 hours. (I have marinated this for as long as two days.).
6.  Bake in pre-heated 325 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 5 to 6 hours.
7.  Remove aluminum foil and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for another hour or until skin is crisp. Closely watch this so you don't burn the skin (chicharrone).
8.  Pork should be well-done and tender.

garlic, salt, pepper, and oregano. i don't have a mortar and pestle, so i used a food processor

marinating the shoulder

after a day and a half of marinating

not gonna lie.  this looks pretty gross

done.  and missing almost all of the skin.

Since my shoulder was smaller, I reduced the cooking time to 4 hours at 325.  Unfortunately, when I went to remove the foil, I took almost all of the skin with it.  I wasn't planning on eating the skin anyways (I know it's the favorite part for a lot of people), so I just shrugged off the loss.  Once it was done, I set about pulling it apart.  Holy shit, it looked good.  It looked so moist and tender.  Of course, I stole a few bites as I was shredding.  So good.

ate this after i took the picture

I offered some to my roommate because there was so much meat left.  When she asked me how it turned out, I answered, "Fucking good."  She quickly got off her bed and headed to the kitchen.  After her first bite, she said, "Oh yeah, that's good stuff."  Pretty much what any wannabe cook wants to hear.

enough for the week!