Cuban pulled pork recipes are famous for their special flavor. While some Cuban grandmothers claim such recipes to be among their biggest secrets, in reality it’s rather a matter of trial and error until discovering those ingredients that are the most appealing to your taste. Here’s how the Cuban grandmother of one of my friends used to cook delicious pulled pork:

Ingredients:

• 1 pork shoulder (Boston Butt), about 5-6 lbs, with bone
• 4 onions, chopped
• 15 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 1 bottle of Mojo sauce
• Zest from one orange
• 1/2 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 tablespoons thyme
• 1 tablespoon red chili powder
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons black pepper, ground
• 2 tablespoons salt

Preparation time: 1 day

Cooking time: 12 hours

Serves: 12

Cooking method:

First, you need to prepare the rub: in a bowl, mix the chopped onions, garlic, Mojo sauce, orange juice, orange zest, herbs, salt, pepper and olive oil. You can use a whisk for better mixing everything together, until you get a thick paste. Rub the pork shoulder with the paste, taking care to cover it thoroughly. Put the meat in a plastic bag and let it sit in the fridge over night. This will help the meat marinate a bit and get more flavor from the rub paste. However, if this is not possible, you can skip this step.

Put the pork shoulder in a roasting pot, cover it and let it slowly roast in the oven for about 10 hours, at a temperature of 250 – 300 F. By the end of the cooking, check the internal temperature of the meat: it should be 185 F. When ready, let the meat sit for 15-20 minutes, then pull it apart with two forks. Serve it with Cuban black beans or with saffron rice. Optionally, you can add some barbecue sauce on top of it.

Mexican food is appreciated by many people, thanks to its special ingredients and to the specific preparation methods which can turn a dull chicken breast into a moist and flavored dish. Enchiladas, quesadillas, burritos or fajitas are only a few of the specific dishes that can be found in all Mexican restaurants. What if we don’t always feel like going out for dinner? This Mexican pulled pork recipe can be easily prepared at home, without needing a barbecue grill or a smoker (although it would be nicer if you used one of these).

Ingredients:

• 1 pork shoulder, about 2-3 pounds
• 6 corn flour tortillas
• 1 green pepper, seeded and cut in thin stripes
• 1 red pepper, seeded and cut in the same way
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped small
• 1/2 cup hot chipotle sauce (if you don’t want to food to be really hot, get a milder sauce)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 2 cups salsa
• 1 tablespoon apple vinegar
• 1 tablespoon red chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 8-10 hours

Serves 6

Cooking Method:

Trim the excess fat, then put the pork shoulder in the slow cooker. Mix together 1-2 cups of water with the salsa, vinegar, onions, garlic, cilantro, cumin, chipotle sauce, salt and pepper and pour the liquid over the pork roast, then cover the slow cooker and cook on high for one hour, then set it on low and let it cook for 8-9 more hours. By the end of the interval, you can try the meat with a fork, to see if it is tender enough to pull apart, or it needs more cooking. When the meat is done, shred it with two forks, then stir-fry the peppers and the tomatoes in olive oil for a couple of minutes. Fill the shredded pork into the tortillas, topping it with peppers and tomato dice and serve hot.

Pulled pork is a nice barbecue recipe, but what to do when you don’t have a BBQ grill and an open space where to show off your grilling talents? Roasting the pork butt will eventually tenderize it and make the meat pull apart, so this is a good alternative to outdoor cooking.

Ingredients:

• 1 pork butt or shoulder, about 4-5 lbs weight
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled, crushed
• 2 onions, peeled, chopped
• 1 tablespoon vinegar (apple cider is the best)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon liquid smoke
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Any barbecue sauce of your choice (homemade is always nicer, but if you’re short on time, you can buy the sauce)

Ingredients for the rub:

• 3 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon red chili powder
• 1 tablespoon green chili powder
• 3 tablespoons dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time 8-10 hours

Serves: 6-8 people

How to cook it:

Prepare the dry rub by mixing all ingredients in a bowl. Rub the meat thoroughly on all sides. If you want, you can first coat the meat in a thin layer of yellow mustard, so the rub will get a better adherence, but it’s not a must. Then put the pork shoulder in a roasting dish, add all other ingredients and roast it in the oven for 8-10 hours, making sure to take a look at it every hour or so. If it becomes too dry, you may want to baste it with some juice from the dish, or you can even add 1-2 cups of water. Don’t forget to check the interior temperature with a probe thermometer, so you make sure you cook it safely, with no risk of getting infected with salmonella or trichinosis. If your thermometer reads at least 165 F you are safe. When the meat is done, get it out of the oven and let it rest for a few minutes, then pull it using two forks, as usual. Serve the pulled pork meat in hamburger buns, French baguettes, rolls or taco shells or in any other way you like. This pulled pork recipe goes very well with various salads such as cabbage and carrot salad, pickles salad, tomatoes, cucumbers and onions salad.