P. R. Pernil
- 2 cups orange juice, divided
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 10 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ancho chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
- 1 (8 to 9-pound) picnic-cut, bone-in pork shoulder
- Water, as needed
- In a large bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the orange juice with the vinegar, olive oil, garlic, cayenne pepper, oregano, cumin, ancho chili powder, black pepper and 1 teaspoon of the salt to form a paste.
- Set aside.
- Wash the pork shoulder and pat the meat dry with a paper towel.
- Put the shoulder, fat side up, on a cutting board.
- Leaving the fat in a single piece and attached at 1 end, use a knife to remove the layer of fat from the shoulder, opening it like a book to reveal the meat.
- Then, use the knife to poke 1-inch deep holes into the meat on all sides.
- Rub the spice paste around the shoulder, working it into the punctures.
- Return the fat back to its original position.
- Score the fat with diagonal cuts and sprinkle the remaining salt over both sides of fat.
- Wrap the shoulder tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 8 hours or overnight.
- Remove the pork from the refrigerator 1 hour before you start cooking.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Pour the remaining orange juice into a roasting pan.
- Unwrap the pork from the plastic and put it in the pan, fat side up.
- Roast, uncovered, for 30 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Roast for 3 hours and 45 minutes longer.
- If the orange juice dries up during the cooking process, add in more juice or water.
- Serve when the internal temperature of the pork reaches 185 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
- The meat should pull away with the prick of a fork and the skin is crispy.
- Remove the meat from the oven to a cutting board and let rest for 20 minutes, under a tent of aluminum foil, before serving.
- Slice the meat, arrange it on a serving platter and serve.
orange juice, white vinegar, olive oil, garlic, cayenne pepper, oregano, ground cumin, ancho chili powder, freshly cracked black pepper, salt, pork shoulder, water
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/p-r-pernil-recipe.html (may not work)