Cuban Roast Pork

I enjoy learning about how different cultures celebrate the holidays, especially regarding food. I like hearing about family traditions and customs around the world…how people come together to share and celebrate in different ways. The world is so wonderfully diverse, but there is a commonality that we share no matter our race, ethnicity or where we live. We celebrate with food. Food is much more than just nutrition. It brings people together and it makes us happy. It provokes memories and expresses love. It is a central part of any celebration. So today, I’m here to share the love from my little corner of the world through this special Cuban Roast Pork.

I come from a half Nicaraguan and half Cuban family. I’ve taken part in both Cuban and Nicaraguan Christmas Eve dinners and I like to think I’m pretty well-versed in both cultures. If there’s one thing to note here it’s that although they share a few similarities, there are quite a few cultural differences, such as holiday food traditions. In Nicaragua, Christmas Eve usually consists of turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, some sort of salad, and a tasty pork and raisin stuffing…similar to a typical Thanksgiving menu.

The traditional Cuban Christmas Eve menu, on the other hand, consists of Cuban Roast Pork, black beans, white rice, and yuca with mojo sauce. This same mojo is used in this flavorful pork. Mojo is a marinade/sauce made with lots of fresh garlic, fresh orange and lime juices (or sour orange juice), oregano, cumin, and coriander (or fresh cilantro). In South Florida, it is widely available pre-bottled like this. However, it is pretty simple to make your own and tastes much better, in my opinion.

Not too many ingredients here: a 4-5 pound pork shoulder, sliced onions, and a mojo marinade. The key to achieving the best flavor in this pork is to cut deep slits all over it allowing for the marinade to soak into the pork. An even better alternative (if you have the right tools), is to inject it with a meat injector/syringe. This would ensure that the marinade is deep inside the meat. Most of the time involved in making this pork is hands-off, since it marinates overnight and then spends several hours roasting in the oven. It takes a while, but the pork works its magic on its own, so it’s easy.

Cuban Roast Pork, or Lechon Asado, was traditionally cooked as a whole pig rotisserie-style. Nowadays, it is often cooked in a type of roaster called a caja china (Chinese box). It is a large rectangular box (big enough to fit a whole pig) usually made of wood with an aluminum interior. It has a drip pan, a grid-like grill where the pork is placed, and a tray for coals, which sits on top. After several hours of slow-roasting, the pork’s skin turns crispy and the meat falls off the bone. It’s also a great roaster for other foods, such as ribs, chicken, and smaller cuts of pork. Although I live in South Florida surrounded by a large Cuban population, I don’t know too many people that have their own caja china (they are usually rented). It doesn’t exactly store easily. No worries though. I don’t have one and this recipe cooks in a regular oven and uses a pork shoulder, not a whole pig.

Here’s the simple oven method – After marinating overnight, the pork shoulder is placed on a rack in a medium-sized roasting pan. For easier clean-up, line your pan with aluminum foil, which I forgot to do this time around…nightmare clean-up. Don’t be like me. For even easier clean-up, use a disposable roasting pan. The pork is tented loosely with foil to avoid over-browning and then roasted for about an hour per pound in a 325 degree oven. Mine took about 4 hours. I wanted to be able to slice it, but if you want it to shred, just leave it in the oven for 1 1/2 hours per pound instead. It is tender and very flavorful either way.

When it comes out of the oven, it rests for about 20 minutes and the remaining mojo is used, along with sliced onions, to make a simple and delicious serving sauce. It is perfect drizzled over the sliced pork. This flavorful and tender roasted pork is a wonderful main course for Christmas Eve dinner or for any special occasion. In Cuban households, it is always served with black beans, rice, and yuca (a starchy potato-like root vegetable) with mojo sauce. If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, Cuban sandwiches are always a good idea. Feliz Navidad!

Other Cuban recipes you might like:

Slow Cooker Cuban Black Beans – Frijoles Negros

Cuban Plantain Soup

Cuban Chicken Fricassee

Cuban Coffee

Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja