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Cochinita pibil al horno

Cochinita pibil, a serving variation. Presentation may differ from this recipe. Popo le Chien · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized source thumbnail; display may crop to fit.

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Explore the Yucatán through recados, the seasoning pastes that give many of its dishes their character. In cochinita pibil, achiote and sour orange season pork before a long, gentle cook. Banana leaves bring another layer of aroma.

La Gente

A pib is an earth oven, and cooking in it is part of Maya culinary tradition. This oven adaptation introduces the flavors of cochinita without requiring a pit. Serve the tender pork with pickled onion, then add habanero to taste.

Sabor

The peninsula cooks in earth, acid, and heat, in that order. Achiote for the deep orange and the mineral base, sour orange to cut it, habanero on the side where you can control it. The spices are the warm ones, cumin and allspice and clove, ground into the recado rather than sprinkled on top.

Spice DNA · Acid high · Heat high · Smoke medium · Herb medium · Sweet none

Seasonings to explore

Minced Garlic in Olive Oil. In the marinade. Adds a savory garlic base.
Cumin, ground. The backbone of the recado rojo.
Oregano, whole. In the marinade and in the pickled onions. Yucatán uses its own oregano, larger-leafed and stronger; use ours with a light hand.
Allspice, whole. Pimienta de Tabasco. The peninsula's spice.
Cloves, whole. Two, ground with the rest.
Black Pepper, whole. Ground into the paste.
Sour Orange marinade. Naranja agria is the acid of the peninsula. Fresh if you can find it; this if you cannot.
Habanero Hot Sauce. For the xnipec if you cannot get fresh habaneros. Yucatán would prefer you get fresh habaneros.

From your market: a block of recado rojo (achiote paste). Badia does not make it, and a yucateca would buy it at the market rather than make it anyway. Also banana leaves, a bone-in pork shoulder, red onions, garlic, fresh habaneros, and corn tortillas.

Cocina

Cochinita pibil al horno

Pork shoulder in achiote and sour orange, wrapped in banana leaves, cooked slow. The pib is a hole in the ground. The oven is what the rest of us have.

Serves 8

The marinade

3.5 oz recado rojo (achiote paste), about half a standard block
¾ cup Badia Sour Orange marinade, or the juice of 4 sour oranges
2 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil, or 6 garlic cloves
1 tsp Badia Cumin, ground
1 tsp Badia Oregano, whole
4 Badia Allspice berries, whole
2 Badia Cloves, whole
½ tsp Badia Black Peppercorns, whole
2 tsp salt

The pork

4 lb bone-in pork shoulder, cut into 3 large pieces
Banana leaves, enough to line and cover a roasting pan
1 white onion, sliced

Cebolla curtida

2 red onions, thinly sliced
½ cup Badia Sour Orange marinade or sour orange juice
1 tsp Badia Oregano, whole
1 habanero, sliced, optional
Salt

Xnipec

1 red onion, finely chopped
2 habaneros, finely chopped, seeds in
¼ cup sour orange juice
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
Salt

Toast and grind the spices. In a dry pan, a few seconds: allspice, cloves, peppercorns, oregano, cumin. Grind them fine.
The marinade. Blend the recado rojo, sour orange, garlic, ground spices, and salt until smooth and the color of brick.
Marinate. Cut deep slits into the pork. Rub the marinade into every surface and every cut. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Yucatán would say two nights.
The leaves. Pass the banana leaves over an open flame or a hot burner until they turn shiny and pliable. Line a roasting pan with them, overlapping, with enough hanging over the sides to fold back over the top.
Wrap and roast. Heat the oven to 325°F. Lay the pork and all its marinade on the leaves. Scatter the white onion over it. Fold the leaves over the top and tuck them. Cover the pan tightly with foil. Roast 4 hours, until the meat falls apart when pushed with a fork.
The onions, meanwhile. Put the sliced red onion in a bowl and cover with boiling water for one minute. Drain. Add sour orange, oregano, habanero, and salt. Let it sit at least an hour. It keeps for a week.
The xnipec. Stir everything together. Let it sit 20 minutes. It is meant to be hot.
Shred. Open the leaves. Pull the pork apart with two forks in its juices. Taste for salt.
Warm corn tortillas. Pork, a heap of pickled onion, a spoon of xnipec, and nothing else. Sunday.

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