Recipe Yucatán Cochinita Pibil

[AgileMJOLNIR]

I actually made this a couple months back before joining this forum - This is essentially a BBQ Pork wrapped in Banana leaves from the Yucatán Peninsula. This would usually be cooked either in the ground or over an open flame, however I just did it in my kitchen and it was delicious.

For the Marinade:

• 1 whole head garlic, separated into individual unpeeled cloves
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) lard or vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup achiote (annatto) seeds (1 1/2 ounces; 40g)
• 2 tablespoons (about 6g) Mexican oregano
• 3 whole cloves
• 1 (3-inch) Ceylon cinnamon stick, or a 1 1/2-inch piece of cassia cinnamon (see notes)
• 2 tablespoons (about 8g) whole black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon (about 4g) whole cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon (about 4g) whole allspice berries
• 3/4 cup (175ml) bitter (Seville) orange juice, or 1/4 cup (60ml) each lime, orange, and grapefruit juice
• 1/4 cup (60ml) white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) soy sauce
• Kosher salt

For the Pork:

• 4 pounds (1.8kg) boneless pork shoulder or 6 pounds (2.7kg) bone-in pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch-thick slabs
• 4-6 strips of thick cut bacon
• 6 to 8 banana leaves (see notes)
• 2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
• 1 red or green bell pepper, sliced
• 1 white onion, sliced
• 12 bay leaves

Method​

1. Thread garlic cloves onto a metal skewer and grill directly over the flame of a gas grill until completely blackened on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Alternatively, toss in a dry skillet over high heat until blackened. Peel blackened skins when cool enough to handle.
2. Heat oil or lard in a skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add achiote, oregano, cloves, cinnamon, black peppercorns, cumin, and allspice and cook, tossing and stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a blender along with peeled garlic, bitter-orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, and a big pinch of salt. Blend until smooth. Season to taste with more salt. It should be quite salty and have a consistency like ketchup. If too thick, thin it with water until it flows slowly.
3. Pour marinade over meat and rub it in with your hands. Lay your bacon over the meat widthwise until evenly covered. Cover, refrigerate, and let it rest at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
4. Lay out 2 to 3 overlapping banana leaves on a work surface. Place 1 piece of pork in the center and layer with some of the tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, and bay leaves.
5. Form a tight parcel by folding the bottom side up and the top side down, then rolling in the sides. Secure parcel with kitchen twine and transfer pork to an oven-safe baking sheet or disposable aluminum baking tray. Repeat with remaining pork and banana leaves.
6. Light 3/4 chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange coals on one side of charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to medium-high, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes.
7. Place a few large hardwood chunks on coals (no need to soak). Place aluminum tray or baking sheet on the side opposite the fire and close lid. Smoke pork, aiming for a temperature between 250 and 300°F (121-149C) inside the chamber the whole time, until a metal skewer inserted into pork shows no resistance, 4 to 5 hours total. (Adjust heat by adding coals and/or adjusting the air vents.) Add extra wood chunks to coals once per hour.
8. Alternatively place in the oven in a baking dish at 350F (149C). This is what I did and it came out great!
9. Remove pork from grill and transfer parcels to a deep platter or shallow bowl. Unwrap banana leaves, shred pork with two forks, stir it into drippings, stuff it into tortillas with pickled red onions and salsa, and serve immediately.

 

[Morning Glory]

Very good!

Thread garlic cloves onto a metal skewer and grill directly over the flame of a gas grill until completely blackened on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Alternatively, toss in a dry skillet over high heat until blackened. Peel blackened skins when cool enough to handle.

I liked the above step.

Looks as if you used bacon wrapped round the pork? I didn't spot that in the ingredients/method...

It was a big discovery for me when I came across achiote seeds (annatto) some years ago; such colour and intriguing flavour. I made a version of this dish a while back (no banana leaves in this neck of the woods though). I based it on a recipe posted by CraigC and you can see the results in his thread: Recipe Cochinita Pibil

 

[AgileMJOLNIR]

Very good!



I liked the above step.

Looks as if you used bacon wrapped round the pork? I didn't spot that in the ingredients/method...

It was a big discovery for me when I came across achiote seeds (annatto) some years ago; such colour and intriguing flavour. I made a version of this dish a while back (no banana leaves in this neck of the woods though). I based it on a recipe posted by CraigC and you can see the results in his thread: Recipe Cochinita Pibil

Thank you Morning - I was unaware of this recipe and also Achiote seeds up until a couple months before I made this. The recipe I posted is a good online one. My recipe above was very close to that but based on a conversation with someone from the region (a coworker) who really was the one who told me about this, I made some changes based on this posted recipe and her recommendations. But yes, add bacon, I’ll edit the recipe to reflect that. The bacon fat melts over the meat nicely and gives it a nice punch.

I need to keep a better catalog of my recipes and changes I’ve made on my tablet. I tend to post from work and sometimes don’t remember every single ingredient or step and then I leave out the heavenly bacon!

I also made a traditional Orange pepper hot sauce to go with this to add a nice citrus taste and acidity and also made homemade Achiote paste. Those Banana leaves really impart a pleasant taste and aroma to the Pork and now that I know where to get them I’ll be using them more. I’ll take a look at your link right now as well

 

[Morning Glory]

Thank you Morning - I was unaware of this recipe and also Achiote seeds up until a couple months before I made this. The recipe I posted is a good online one. My recipe above was very close to that but based on a conversation with someone from the region (a coworker) who really was the one who told me about this, I made some changes based on this posted recipe and her recommendations. But yes, add bacon, I’ll edit the recipe to reflect that. The bacon fat melts over the meat nicely and gives it a nice punch.

I need to keep a better catalog of my recipes and changes I’ve made on my tablet. I tend to post from work and sometimes don’t remember every single ingredient or step and then I leave out the heavenly bacon!

I also made a traditional Orange pepper hot sauce to go with this to add a nice citrus taste and acidity and also made homemade Achiote paste. Those Banana leaves really impart a pleasant taste and aroma to the Pork and now that I know where to get them I’ll be using them more. I’ll take a look at your link right now as well

No problem. I'm now itching to find new ways to use annatto and wondering if I can source banana leaves. I have used annatto with chicken I think - I need to search to see if I posted a recipe here.

 

[AgileMJOLNIR]

No problem. I'm now itching to find new ways to use annatto and wondering if I can source banana leaves. I have used annatto with chicken I think - I need to search to see if I posted a recipe here.

Out here in the SF Bay Area I can usually only find them at Asian supermarkets. Not sure if you have the same there and if that would work for you. There’s always Amazon I suppose but usually they overcharge for food products.

 

[caseydog]

Out here in the SF Bay Area I can usually only find them at Asian supermarkets. Not sure if you have the same there and if that would work for you. There’s always Amazon I suppose but usually they overcharge for food products.

Yes, I can get banana leaves at the Asian market or the Mexican market here in Texas. An Asian market would be a good place to look in England.

CD

 

[karadekoolaid]

For MG: you can find them in the UK:
plantain leaves in London.
More plantain leaves in the UK.

I actually made this a couple months back before joining this forum - This is essentially a BBQ Pork wrapped in Banana leaves from the Yucatán Peninsula. This would usually be cooked either in the ground or over an open flame, however I just did it in my kitchen and it was delicious

And it does look delicious! I think this is one of the best Mexican recipes in existence. There´s another post somewhere of my experience in a Yucatán cantina in Mexico City, wolfing this stuff down .It´s well worth the time and effort to make. Your recipe looks excellent.

And just for reference, here´s a Yucateca recipe, (which I´ve just translated) from the State government of Yucatán, just to give you an idea of their take:

• 2 kg pork loin.
• 2 cups bitter orange juice
• 1 "piece" achiote paste. (picture attached)
• 
  
  
  
• 5 plantain leaves (Yes, they call them "banana", but they´re actually from the plantain, which has much bigger leaves)
• 1 tbsp dried chile pepper ( most likely, guajillo, or pasilla)
• Salt
• 2 red onions, sliced.
• 1tsp Mexican oregano
• 1 habanero chile
• 1/2 cup white vinegar

They follow your steps almost exactly, AgileMJOLNIR, except that they cook the onions, oregano and habanero in the vinegar until they soften, and then spread them on the pork.

The cochinito is always served with a salsa xnipec (which means "Dog´s Nose" in nahuatl), which is basically habanero chiles, red onions, salt, and lime juice. Add tomato if you want.

 

[AgileMJOLNIR]

For MG: you can find them in the UK:
plantain leaves in London.
More plantain leaves in the UK.

And it does look delicious! I think this is one of the best Mexican recipes in existence. There´s another post somewhere of my experience in a Yucatán cantina in Mexico City, wolfing this stuff down .It´s well worth the time and effort to make. Your recipe looks excellent.

And just for reference, here´s a Yucateca recipe, (which I´ve just translated) from the State government of Yucatán, just to give you an idea of their take:

• 2 kg pork loin.
• 2 cups bitter orange juice
• 1 "piece" achiote paste. (picture attached)
• View attachment 92599
  
  
• 5 plantain leaves (Yes, they call them "banana", but they´re actually from the plantain, which has much bigger leaves)
• 1 tbsp dried chile pepper ( most likely, guajillo, or pasilla)
• Salt
• 2 red onions, sliced.
• 1tsp Mexican oregano
• 1 habanero chile
• 1/2 cup white vinegar

They follow your steps almost exactly, AgileMJOLNIR, except that they cook the onions, oregano and habanero in the vinegar until they soften, and then spread them on the pork.

The cochinito is always served with a salsa xnipec (which means "Dog´s Nose" in nahuatl), which is basically habanero chiles, red onions, salt, and lime juice. Add tomato if you want.

Very interesting, thank you! I think I’ll try that next time. Those Banana leaves are taking up space in my freezer so it may be time for another run at this!