Conchita Banana Song Recipes

COCHINITA PIBIL RECIPE FROM YUCATáN

Steps:

• Roast the banana leaf, if you bought it from the frozen section of the supermarket, wait until it is completely defrosted.
• To roast the banana leaf, place it directly over a medium hot fire of you gas stove, it will start changing color and getting some shiny while in contact with the fire. Make sure not to burn the leaves, we just want them to be pliable.
• Line your roasting pan with the oven bag and arrange the banana leaves overlapping as in the above picture. You can also use aluminum foil instead of the oven bag.
• In your blender, mix the Achiote (annatto) seasoning with the pepper and bitter orange juice. Add salt.
• Place the pork meat on the leaves. Pour the Achiote mixture over. And add the oil/lard to give it more flavor.
• Cover with the sliced onion and herbs. Fold the ends of the banana leaves over the pork.
• Close the oven bag and cut 3 or 4 slits according to packages instructions. If using aluminum foil wrap tightly . Add about 1 1/2 quarter of water to the roasting pan to create a steaming effect. One time, I forgot to add the water and it still came out great.
• Bake 2 1/2 hours in a preheated oven at 350 degrees. Add more water to the pan if needed.
• Remove roasting pan from oven and uncover the meat. The meat should be tender. If it isn't, cover and return to the oven for another 30 minutes.

COCHINITA PIBIL (YUCATáN-STYLE BARBECUED PORK) RECIPE

Steps:

• Light 3/4 chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange coals on one side of charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to medium-high, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes.
• Remove pork from grill and transfer parcels to a deep platter or shallow bowl. Unwrap banana leaves, shred pork with two forks, stir it into drippings, stuff it into tortillas with pickled red onions and salsa, and serve immediately.

COCHINITA PIBIL

Steps:

• Poke holes all over the pork with a fork. Rub achiote paste all over the pork, and set aside. In a large bowl, mix together the orange juice, lemon juice, and habanero peppers. Mix in the cumin, paprika, chili powder, coriander, salt and pepper. Place pork in the mixture, cover, and refrigerate overnight, turning two or three times.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Wrap the pork and marinade in aluminum foil or banana leaves that have been soaked in water for 30 minutes. Place into a casserole dish, and cover.
• Bake for about 2 hours, until the meat falls off the bone. The slower you cook it, the better it is. You could also bake it in a 200 degrees F (95 degrees C) oven for 4 or 5 hours, or in a slow cooker without the foil or leaves.
• While the pork is cooking, make the sauce. Bring the red wine vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan. Add onions, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until tender. Pour sauce over pork, and serve with white rice and corn tortillas. Each person can make tacos or fajitas with the pork, the rice and the sauce.

COCHINITA PIBIL

Steps:

• Score the fat of the pork, evenly salt the meat and set it aside while you make the marinade. In a dry saucepan over medium heat, toast the garlic cloves until they're charred all over, then remove. In the same pan, add cumin, peppercorns, allspice, red-chile powder, cloves and cinnamon. Toast until you can really smell the cumin and pepper. Grind spices, and mix in a food processor until smooth with the oregano, charred garlic, achiote paste, all the citrus zest and about half the juice.
• Place two overlapping banana leaves on your work surface, and put the pork at the center. Rub the spice paste all over the meat, arrange the sliced white onion on top and roll the whole thing up, folding the sides like wrapping paper. (If it unravels, tie it closed with some kitchen twine.) Set the parcel in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight.
• Heat oven to 300. Put the parcel on a rack, or a ring of scrunched-up aluminum foil, inside a heavy pot with a half cup of water at the bottom. Bake with the lid on until the meat is very tender and yields easily to a fork, about 4 hours. Meanwhile, mix the chopped red onion with remaining citrus juices, salt and habanero, and set aside.
• While the meat is still warm, carefully transfer the parcel to a serving dish. Use a fork to shred the meat, spoon over the cooking juices and mix well. Serve with pickled onions, warmed tortillas and halved limes.