The article - Pernil – Authentic Puerto Rican Slow Roasted Pork - appeared first on Analida's Ethnic Spoon - Analida's Ethnic Spoon - Create easy ethnic recipes from around the world and learn about the best international cuisine.. Enjoy!

 Originally published: January 2014  Updated: December 2, 2018 by Analida

Pernil (per neel) is a typical Puerto Rican dish consisting of a Pork roast/shoulder that has been marinated overnight and slow roasted  at  300 F. The result is a flavorful, and tender meat that will fill your house with a delicious aroma, and your belly with a whole lot of “piggy goodness.”

This recipe came from my friend Eimy from Puerto Rico. I tried this dish at her house, many years ago, and instantly fell in love with it. You could say that pernil is the Puerto Rican version of America’s pulled pork minus the barbeque sauce. In my humble opinion it is better, much better!!!  I have made one small adaptation from her recipe, since I prefer to use my homemade sofrito instead of the store bought sofrito.

It’s a Christmas thing

Pernil is a common and expected sight at the Christmas table in Puerto Rico and in other Latin American countries also.  I remember Christmas dinner at relative’s houses where pernil was always on the menu. The one I remember most fondly was pernil with a crispy skin. Perhaps not the best dietary choice, but during Christmas, who is being good?

Everyone has their version

As with most recipes, we tend to gravitate to the version we were first introduced to. I am guilty of that with my, or rather my friend’s pernil recipe. Lately, however, I  have been talking to some Hispanic friends and they do not use the Goya sazon, but a mixture of dry spices such as cumin, oregano and cilantro, and paprika.  I will most definitely have to try this before I share with you.

Pernil is very versatile.

You can definitely serve it as a main course with the typical sides of rice and beans and tostones (fried plantains), or you can make great tacos, or a fantastic sandwich on a nice  Kaiser roll.  Either way you choose to eat it , you will not be disappointed. Slow roasted pork, how can you go wrong?

Tips for standout pernil

• This dish freezes very well so you can make a big batch and separate it out into portions to reheat and use later.  I usually make two full sized pork shoulders since that will fit into my roaster.
• Make it in a slow cooker and it turns out great.
• The key is to get the pork to where it is fork tender.  So roasting it in the oven or using a slow cooker will get the job done.
• If you like to make it a bit crispy you can put the cooked meat on a baking tray and broil it until you see it get nice and brown with those lovely slightly burnt edges.  So good!

Here are the step by step photos to make the perfect pernil in true Boricua style:
Step 1: Layout your ingredients (left to right):
Sofrito, garlic slices, adobo and sazon con culantro y anchiote.  Your pork shoulder should be trimmed of the skin and you can leave some fat on it. You can have it ready in the roaster pan.
Step 2: Start making slits with a sharp knife.
Step 3: Insert the garlic slices into the slits as you go.  Do this all over the entire shoulder: top, bottom and sides.
Step 4: Take the adobo and sazon and sprinkle over all sides of the shoulder
Step 5: Rub in the adobo and sazon as you go. Scoop up and loose spice that falls into the roaster and rub it all in.
Step 6: Take your sofrito and pour it over all sides of the shoulder.
Step 7: Rub in the sofrito all over the shoulder.
Step 8: Cover the shoulder with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Step 9: Roast the shoulder covered at 300 degrees for 5 hours covered.  After three hours flip the shoulder over, cover and continue to cook. You can add a 1/2 cup to 1 cup of water to the roaster during cooking to make some extra juice.  When the shoulder is fork tender it is done as shown below.
Step 10: Place the shoulder on a large cutting board, remove any fat and chop into small pieces.
Step 11: I like to take all the juice from the roaster and put it into a fat separating pitcher.
Step 12: You can serve with the juice and place any extra into containers for freezing and add some of the juice back to the meat.

If you love Hispanic food here are some more great easy recipes to try:
Authentic Mexican pork carnitas are are east to make in the slow cooker and made crispy under the broiler.
Latin style black beans are seasoned with sofrito, recaito and other spices can be made in the microwave!
Sofrito is a flavor base for many Latin dishes and it easy to make and freeze into cubes.
Recaito is another key ingredient in many dishes from Latin America and can also be frozen into cubes.

The article - Pernil – Authentic Puerto Rican Slow Roasted Pork - appeared first on Analida's Ethnic Spoon - Analida's Ethnic Spoon - Create easy ethnic recipes from around the world and learn about the best international cuisine.. Enjoy!