Cochinita Pibil – The Tradition
Traditional Yucatán-style shredded pork tacos (Cochinita Pibil) are a staple of the Yucatán. At the same time, this recipe is not authentic since I don’t have access to the preferred hairless Mexican pork (cerdo pelón) or the Yucatán smoking woods Catzin, Habin, or Kitinche. So instead, the pork is traditionally marinated in a mixture of ground annatto seeds, sour orange (Badia Naranja Agria, Chef Merito, La Lechonera, or Seville orange), lime, and other seasonings overnight. After marinating the pork, the marinade is wrapped in banana leaves and placed into a container with a lid. The container is then out into an underground bbq pit over wood coals and buried. The result of all this care is a treasure of Yucatán. An exquisite taco that is a marvel of Mexico layered with rich flavors and tendered beyond description—traditionally served with thinly sliced pickled red onion and simple habanero salsa.
How To Make Cochinita Pibil At Home
I’m adding the pre-marinated pork shoulder to a smoker for 3 hours at (250°F or 120°C) to compensate for the pit smoking. (SAVE the marinade! The marinade becomes the sauce in the end. The recipe requires the marinade in the following step.) The smoking bumps up the flavor profile that I think many other versions of this recipe are missing. I used cherry wood when I worked out this recipe, but any mild smoking fruitwood or Texas Post Oak will work great.
Another critical ingredient is sour oranges(Naranja Agria/Seville) and annatto seeds. Do not use regular orange juice. Regular orange juice is too sweet and will throw off the flavor. If you can’t find annatto seeds, use a store-bought paste-like El Yucateco, El Mexicano, or La Perla del Mayab.
The third key ingredient is banana leaves. Banana leaves are available in any well-stocked Latin or Asian market. As always, there are links throughout this post or on the Shop Ingredients page.
Last Words
The process may seem daunting to some. Remember all we are doing:
- Make the marinade and marinate the pork for 24hrs.
- Smoke the marinated pork for 3 hours, and then wrap the pork in banana leaves and roast in the oven for 3 hours more.
- Make the habanero salsa, and pickle some red onions.
- Eat the Cochinita Pibil and invite some friends, be a hero!
Cochinita Pibil tacos. Yes, please, and keep them coming.
For the best result, pick a pork shoulder with the bone-in.
Clean off any packing juices with paper towels and place in a 1-gallon ziplock bag. Refrigerate and reserve.
Measure out the dry ingredients for the marinade.
Place the dry ingredients in a blender.
These look like lemons, but in fact, they are fresh, sour oranges. If you are lucky enough to have a Latin store near you, they most likely carry them. For my European/Aussie/New Zealand friends, look for Seville oranges. If they are not available fresh, you can purchase the juice or substitute it with a mix of grapefruit, lemon, and orange juice.
To yield the amount I needed, it took six sour oranges.
I prefer to use Mexican limes when I can. During this photoshoot, Mexican limes were not available due to Covid. Mexican limes taste very similar to Key limes from Florida. Key lime juice makes a terrific substitute.
Place all the juices into the blender with the dry spices. Place on the lid and turn on a low to medium-low speed.
After a few seconds, the annatto seeds break down and turn the marinade into a bright orangish-red. Continue to run the blender for a couple of minutes until the solids in the marinade are smooth.
Pour the marinade into the bag with the pork shoulder. Carefully wrap up the pork shoulder while sealing the ziplock. Try to get most of the air out of the bag.
Place the pork shoulder in marinade into a refrigerator overnight or for up to 24 hours.
After the marinating process is complete, remove the pork shoulder from the marinating liquid. However, save the marinade!
Place the marinade in a container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate.
Place the marinated pork in a preheated smoker at (250°F or 120°C). I used cherry wood, any good-quality fruitwood will work, or you can use Texas Post Oak. Use a mild wood to smoke for 3 hrs. (For smoking tips, please see the Texas Style Brisket recipe in this blog)
This Image is the pork shoulder after 3 hours in the smoker at (250°F or 120°C). The smoke has reacted to the marinade and has the beginning of a BBQ bark.
You can pick up a bundle of banana leaves at your local Latin or Asian grocery stores. Wash the banana leaves thoroughly since, in most cases; they are a raw agricultural product. However, if you can’t find frozen is also available and through the Ingredients Page of this blog.
Remove the woody stems on the inside of the leaves. By removing the stems, will help the ability to fold the banana leaves later on.
Start lining the inside of a large pot or Dutch oven with banana leaves. Overlap the banana leaves as you need to cover the inside fully.
Leave one or two long pieces of banana leaves for wrapping around the top of the pork shoulder.
Pour in one-third of a cup of the reserved marinade.
Place the smoked pork shoulder inside the center of the banana leaves.
Pour the rest of the marinade onto the top of the pork shoulder.
Wrap the longer banana leaves over the top of the pork shoulder and tuck them in along the sides to seal the pork shoulder inside. Place a heavy lid on the pot or Dutch oven and place it inside a preheated oven—Bake at 350° for approximately 3 hours.
At the end of the cooking time in the oven, check the internal temperature of the pork shoulder with an instant-read thermometer.
This pork shoulder is perfect. Cut back the banana leaves to reveal the smoked and roasted pork shoulder.
Use a large spoon to baste the pork with its juices. Then, carefully lift out and set on a sheet pan to catch any juices.
Allow the pork shoulder to cool off and rest.
Remove the rest of the banana leaves from the pot and discard. SAVE the sauce at the bottom of the pot! The pot liquor is worth its weight in gold. Save this sauce to mix back in with the shredded meat.
After the pork shoulder has rested for about 20 minutes, you can start breaking down the meat. I lightly parted the pork shoulder with my hands.
The shoulder bone pops right out without any effort.
Shredded the pork shoulder using your fingers or with the aid of a couple of forks. The resulting pork and sauce can be served straight away or frozen.
Cochinita Pibil can be prepared in advance. Cochinita pibil works well frozen for up to 2 months.
To prepare the pulled pork for serving. Add the reserved sauce and a small amount of chicken or pork stock.
Next, add several chunks of the pulled pork. Reheat with a lid on over medium-low heat. The heat will start the cooled pork shoulder to make it easy to pull apart.
Finally, to serve Cochinita pibil, bring the temperature up to (165°F or 74°C ) briefly and then lower it to (140°-145°F or 60°- 63°C) with the aid of an instant-read thermometer.
The only two traditional condiments needed for Conchinita Pibil are Yucatan style habanero salsa and pickled red onions.
Deliciousness personified!
The only things you need are an appetite and a cold beer.
However, I did add some queso fresco (optional) because my wife, who was waiting for this photo op to be over, loves it.
Behold and taste a true marvel of Mexico. These are seriously delicious tacos! Just like appropriately prepared Texas Style brisket, they deserve your respect. Practice this preparation. It’s not that difficult, just time-consuming.
Beverage Recommendations: Dos Equis Beer Amber, Pacifico, ChupaCabra, or Bohemia beer. Tequilas: Clase Azul Reposado, Esperanto Seleccion Tequila Extra Añejo, or Don Julio 1942
Yucatán-Style Smoked and Shredded Pork Tacos (Cochinita Pibil)
Equipment
- wood smoker
- chef knife
- cutting board
- molcajete or food processor
- roasting pan or large dutch oven with lid
- meat thermometer
- Tongs
- large pot or Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid
Ingredients
Marinade
- 5 tbsp achiote seeds, or store-bought like El Yucateco See Shop Ingredients page
- 1½ cup orange, sour/bitter, juice fresh-squeezed or store-bought like Badia Naranja Agria See Shop Ingredients page/Seville oranges work too
- 1 cup vinegar, white
- ½ cup lime, juiced preferably Mexican or Key lime
- 2 oz tequila, very best quality you can find (optional) I prefer Clase Azul Reposado, Esperanto Seleccion Tequila Extra Añejo, or Don Julio 1942
- ⅓ cup garlic, peeled and roughly chopped (About 14 cloves of garlic)
- 1½ tbsp pepper, black ground
- 1½ tbsp oregano, dry, preferably Mexican
- 1½ tbsp allspice, ground
- 1 tbsp cinnamon, ground
- 1½ tsp salt, kosher
- 1¼ tsp cumin, ground or whole toasted, and ground
- ½ tsp clove, ground
Pork
- 1 whole pork shoulder, preferably bone-in, but boneless will work as well
- 1 lb banana leaves usually come frozen in Latin and Asian markets with tough ribs removed (See Shop Ingredients page)
Quick Pickled Red Onion-Garnish
- 3 whole onion, red peeled, cored, and sliced very thin julienne style
- 1 cup orange, sour juice
- 2 tbsp vinegar, white, or apple
- 2 tbsp lime, juiced
- 2 tsp salt, kosher
Quick Traditional Habanero Salsa
- 12 medium chile, habanero, orange (very hot), or green (hot)
- ½ medium onion, white or yellow, peeled and cored
- 5-6 cloves garlic, unpeeled toasted, and then peeled
- ½ cup vinegar, white, or apple cider
- ¼ cup orange, sour juice
- 2 tbsp lime, juice
- 2 tsp salt, kosher
- ¼ tsp sugar (optional)
Instructions
Marinating
- Remove the pork shoulder/butt from its packaging. Dry off the pork shoulder with paper towels and place into a 1-gallon ziplock bag—Reserve for the marinade.
- Measure out the seasonings and place them into a blender.
- Squeeze the sour oranges and limes (if available); otherwise, use store-bought juice. Add this to the seasonings in the blender and start on low and gradually turn up the power to medium-low. All the blenders to operate for at leasta1 a minute to ensure everything is blended well. Finally, test the marinade using a spoon to see if it is a smooth liquid.
- Pour the marinade over the pork shoulder and carefully seal the ziplock bag, trying to get as much air out of the bag as possible. Refrigerate the pork shoulder overnight (8-12 hours), turning once or twice in the refrigerator. The pork shoulder can remain in the marinade for 24 hours, but overnight is sufficient for the flavors to bloom.s to bloom.
Preheat Smoker
- Preheat the smoker to (250°F or 120°C), and then add enough fuel to last 3 hours. (For more information on smoking, see the Texas Style Brisket post in this blog.) I used cherry wood for this smoke which turned out great. However, any good-quality fruitwood will work. You are looking for mild-flavored smoking wood. Texas Post Oak is another option.
Smoking Pork
- Remove the pork shoulder from the marinade and place it on a cooling rack to warm up to room temperature (about 20 minutes). SAVE the Marinade!!! Once the smoker's temperature has settled to a constant (250°F or 120°C), add the pork shoulder to the center of the smoker. Smoke the pork shoulder for 3 hours. Once the 3-hour smoking process is over, move the pork shoulder back inside to wrap in the banana leaves.
The Banana Leaf Roast
- Preheat the oven to (350°F or 175°C). Make sure to arrange the shelving to accommodate a large pot or Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid.
- While the pork shoulder is smoking, prepare the banana leaves first by giving them a good wash in the sink. Then using a knife, remove the woody strip on the edge of the banana leaf. Cutting this part off will aid in making the banana leaves easier to fold.
- Line the pot with the cleaned banana leaves using a large pot or Dutch oven by overlapping them slightly. Leave one or two banana leaves extra long so they can be wrapped around the top of the pork shoulder.
- When the pork shoulder is done smoking, please remove it from the smoker, place it into the center of the banana leaves and pour the remaining marinade back on top of the pork shoulder. Fold the longer banana leaves over the top of the pork shoulder and tuck the excess down around the sides to completely cover the pork shoulder. Place a heavy lid on top or cover tightly with aluminum foil. Cook the pork shoulder for 3 hours or until the pork has reached the internal temperature of (205°-209°F or 96°-98°C).
- Take the pork shoulder out of the oven and set it on a safe surface to allow it to rest. Next, remove the lid and allow to rest until (150°F or 65°C) before attempting to pull apart.
- Once the pork shoulder has rested, please remove it from the pot and banana leaves and set it on a clean sheet pan. Meanwhile, remove all the banana leaves from the pot and discard them. SAVE the Sauce. During the cooking process, the marinade has combined with the pork to become a delicious sauce. Pour off this sauce and save it to a container.
Traditional Quick Pickled Onions
- Peel, core, and halve each red onion. Next, slice each onion half as thinly (julienned) as you can.
- Using a medium-sized mixing bowl, add the thinly sliced onions and the rest of the ingredients. Toss and store in a container with a tight-fitting lid. Refrigerate until needed.
Traditional Quick Habanero Salsa
- This salsa is spicy hot! There is a milder version of this salsa in this blog. See Habanero Salsa Norte Americano Style.)
- Preheat a broiler, meanwhile prep the chilies and other ingredients for roasting.
- Cut the stems off the habaneros, slice the chilies in half, and lay inside cut down on a tray lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Add the whole garlic cloves with their skins still on, next to the half of white onion, and place under the broiler to blister briefly.
- Add them to a food processor or blender once the chilies, onions, and garlic cloves are blistered. (Remember to remove the skins from the roasted garlic cloves first!) Add the remaining ingredients and process by pulsing until you've reached a slightly smooth consistency. Reserve. (You can do this the day before and allow it to sit overnight in the refrigerator with a tight-fitting lid.)
To Serve Cochinita Pibil Tacos
- Traditionally corn tortillas are used to make this taco, but if you are a bigger fan of flour tortillas, go for it. Warm the tortillas. To do this, add a small amount of oil to iron or non-stick skillet and reheat each tortilla. Cook until they take on a slightly browner edge to them.
- Shred the pork shoulder using your hands or a couple of forks. Toss with the reserved sauce and cook until just piping hot. Place immediately on the freshly cooked tortillas and serve with the habanero salsa and pickled red onions.