Pernil

About This Recipe

Pernil is Puerto Rico's most celebrated dish, the centrepiece of Christmas (Nochebuena) and New Year celebrations, and the most beloved pork preparation in the Caribbean. A bone-in pork shoulder is studded with garlic throughout its flesh and marinated overnight (or longer) in adobo — a paste of garlic, oregano, sour orange juice, olive oil, and sazon. It is then slow-roasted for many hours until the meat is impossibly tender and falling off the bone, while the skin (cuero) bubbles, blisters, and transforms into a shattering, crackling crust called chicharrón. The contrast of silky, flavour-saturated meat and glass-crisp crackling is what makes pernil extraordinary. It is served with arroz con gandules (rice with pigeon peas) and pasteles (Puerto Rican tamales) on Christmas Eve.

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 2.5–3 kgbone-in pork shoulder(skin on)
• 8 clovesgarlic(4 minced, 4 sliced for studding)
• 2 tbspdried oregano
• 1 tbspsalt(plus extra for the skin)
• 1 tspblack pepper
• 3 tbspolive oil
• Juice of 2 sour orangesor 1 orange + 1 lime
• 1 packetsazón with achiote(or 1 tsp annatto powder)

Instructions

1. 1

   Stud the pork

   Using a sharp thin knife, make 1.5 cm deep cuts all over the flesh (not the skin) of the pork shoulder. Insert a slice of garlic into each cut.

2. 2

   Make and apply adobo

   Mix minced garlic, oregano, salt, pepper, olive oil, citrus juice, and sazón into a paste. Rub all over the flesh, getting into every crevice. Score the skin in a cross-hatch pattern and rub with extra salt only (no adobo on the skin).

   Salt the skin separately — this draws out moisture and is what creates the legendary chicharrón crackling.

3. 3

   Marinate overnight

   Place pork skin-side up on a rack in a roasting tin. Refrigerate uncovered 12–24 hours. The skin will dry out — this is exactly what you want.

4. 4

   Slow roast

   Bring pork to room temperature 1 hour. Roast at 160°C for 4–5 hours until internal temperature reaches 85°C and meat is completely tender.

5. 5

   Blast for crackling

   Increase oven to 230°C. Roast a further 30–45 minutes until the skin is blistered, golden, and glass-crisp. Watch carefully — it can go from perfect to burned in minutes.

6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Rest for 20 minutes before carving. Pull the meat apart with two forks. Shatter the chicharrón skin and serve pieces alongside the pork.

Variations

• •

  Use a whole suckling pig for a spectacular celebration version.

• •

  Add sofrito to the adobo paste for a more complex marinade.

• •

  Serve pulled in sandwiches with pickled onion for leftovers.

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

Storage

Keeps refrigerated for 4 days. Reheat pulled meat in a pan with a little stock; reheat crackling separately in a hot oven for 5 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions