Traditional Cochinita Pibil involves slow cooking a banana-leaf-wrapped-pig in a smoldering pit lined with stones. The pig would have previously been marinated, and after, the pig is allowed to cook in its own juices and marinade for hours in the ground. The resulting meat falls apart easily and has a rich seasoned flavor. Often it’s enjoyed simply, with pickled onions and corn tortillas. Often, this pig-roasted-in-a-pit is a part of a big celebration like a wedding or a family get-together.
Annatto – the main spice ingredient:
Cochinita Pibil is easily recognizable by its amazing texture and distinctive red color. The red color comes from the annatto, a spice used in much of the Yucatan. The Achiote paste (pictured below) is a mixture of annatto, garlic, vinegar, spices, and salt, and is pretty commonly sold in the Mexican section of US / Canada grocery stores. It is sold as a hard brick that has to be ground along with the other spices in this recipe.
Our Cochinita Pibil recipe:
Today we are sharing a recipe that accomplishes much of the same flavor as the pig-roasted-in-a-pit in a standard oven! It also allows you to cook a little smaller portion if you desire! We found the results to be delicious, let us know what you think! 🙂
If you live in the States and are looking for ingredients like achiote and banana leaves, try looking at local Mexican, Thai, or other Southeast Asian stores!
Prep Time 3-12 hours
Cook Time 4 hours
Yields enough for tacos for 4 people
Belizean Pibil Ingredients
- 4 lb pork shoulder
- 4 tablespoons – salt
- 1 tablespoon – cumin
- 1 tablespoon – whole black pepper
- 1 tablespoon – whole allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon – whole cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon – cinnamon
- 1/2 tablespoon – Mexican oregano
- 4 tablespoons – achiote annatto (or if you have it red recado)
- 1 1/2 cups – sour orange (or substitute sour orange marinade from your local Mexican grocer)
- Banana leaves
- 1 Large white onion
- Optional: 1 large red onion and distilled white vinegar to make an accompanying quick pickled onion
Belizean Cochinita Pibil Recipe
Preparing the spices and marinading the Pibil
- Score the fat of the shoulder and rub the whole pork shoulder with salt.
- Set aside and begin the marinade: First, toast your whole spices and garlic on the stove until aromatic.
- Next, in a spice grinder (or blender) combine all the dry spices: salt, cumin, whole black pepper, whole allspice, whole cloves, cinnamon, oregano, and achiote.
- Grind until uniform and powdery. Blend garlic, and whisk or mix all ingredients together with sour orange until uniform.
- Place the pork shoulder in a large bowl or large ziplock bag with the marinade.
- Turn the pork to coat it entirely.
- Allow to marinate for at least 2-3 hours, preferably overnight in the refrigerator.
Cooking the Pibil
Get ready to cook!
- Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.
- Brown the pork shoulder on the stove with a little oil. Use the same heavy pot you are cooking it in.
- Next, lay two banana leaves out, overlapping.
- Place the marinaded, browned pork in the middle.
- Chop the white onion and place it on the pork as well as a scoop or two of the marinade. Fold up the leaves around the pork like a present. To tie your present either use strips of banana leaf, or kitchen string.
- In a heavy pot, place a small rack, or, scrunch up a ring on aluminum foil. The foil donut keeps the meat package out of the liquid at the bottom of the span and causes it to steam more than boil.
- Pour the rest of the marinade plus a cup of water in the bottom of the pan.
- Place the wrapped pork on top of the aluminum foil ring or rack. Put in the oven with the lid on the pot.
- Cook for 4-5 hours
Recipe for Quick Pickled Red Onions
- Optional: To make quick pickled onions, place blanched red onion slices in a bowl of distilled white vinegar
- Add salt and pepper to taste. I like about 1 tablespoon of salt for a larger onion
Enjoy, and let us know what you think! You may also enjoy other recipes featuring red recado.
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