Best Cuban Pork Rub Recipes

HOW TO MAKE AUTHENTIC CUBAN PERNIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. (Once marinated for desired amount of time.)
• In a large mixing bowl, with a sharp knife, carefully lift 3/4 of the skin from the meat. Once skin is lifted, gently poke holes throughout meat.
• Season generously with salt and pepper.
• Fill holes with garlic.
• Make a paste with oil and remaining seasonings. Generously rub pork with paste.
• Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least two hours. After two hours, add in a cup of mojo to bowl, continue to marinate for another hour or overnight in fridge.
• Into a large roasting pan, add pork, skin side up. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 5-7 hours. Remove foil and raise heat to 350 degrees for twenty minutes.
• Remove from heat, let rest for ten minutes. Sprinkle lime juice before serving, if desired.

CUBAN-STYLE ROAST PORK SHOULDER WITH MOJO RECIPE

Steps:

• For the Mojo: Combine garlic, cumin, pepper, oregano, orange juice, lime juice, and olive oil in a large bowl and whisk. Season to taste generously with salt. Transfer half of mojo to a sealed container and reserve in refrigerator. Add pork to remaining mojo and turn to coat. If desired, transfer pork and marinade to a gallon-sized zipper-lock bag and refrigerate 2 hours or up to overnight before continuing.
• For the Pork and to Finish: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 275°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place pork and juices on top and fold up foil, crimping to seal loosely but making sure that there is room for air to circulate inside. Place in oven and roast for 3 hours. Fold back foil, increase oven temperature to 325°F, and continue roasting, basting pork with pan juices occasionally, until pork shows almost no resistance when a metal skewer or knife is inserted into it and the surface is crackly and brown, 2 to 3 hours longer. Remove pork from oven and let rest 10 to 15 minutes.
• Pour accumulated pork juices into a bowl and discard all except 1 cup. Add reserved mojo to pork drippings, along with fresh chopped mint and oregano. Whisk together and season to taste with salt.
• Serve shredded pork, passing mint mojo and lime wedges on the side. Serve rice, beans, and plantains on the side. Reserve any leftovers for sandwiches.

CUBAN PORK TENDERLOIN

Steps:

• Using thin knife, trim silver skin from tenderloin. Mix orange juice, grapefruit juice, cilantro, cumin, oregano, garlic, salt, and hot pepper in gallon-sized zip-top plastic bag. Add pork, close, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours. Meanwhile, make Rice and Black Bean Salad.
• Prepare outdoor grill for direct medium-hot grilling. For a gas grill, preheat grill on high. Adjust temperature to 400°F. For a charcoal grill, build fire and let burn until coals are covered with white ash. Spread coals and let burn for 15-20 minutes.
• Lightly oil cooking grate. Remove pork from marinade, drain briefly, but do not scrape off solids. Place on grill and cover grill. Cook, turning occasionally, until browned and instant-read thermometer inserted in center of pork reads 145°F, about 20-27 minutes. Transfer to carving board and let stand 3-5 minutes. Cut on slight diagonal and serve with rice and black bean salad.
• Rice and Black Bean Salad:
• To make salad, bring a medium saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add rice and cook (like pasta) until tender, about 16 minutes. Drain in wire sieve, rinse under cold water, and let cool.
• In medium bowl, whisk orange zest and 2 tablespoons orange juice, 1 tablespoon vinegar, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Whisk in oil. Add cooled rice, black beans, scallions and cilantro, and mix. Let stand at room temperature for up to 4 hours. (If refrigerated, let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving, or rice will be hard.)

CUBAN DRY RUB FOR BOSTON BUTT OR ROAST

Steps:

• Rinse, dry, and remove as much fat as is reasonable from boston butt, roast, or whatever meat of choice.
• *optional* Cover meat with your base of choice. If using olive oil you'll need about 3 tablespoons and if using mustard or barbecue sauce you'll need around a half a cup.
• Generously coat meat with rub. Don't be stingy! In this case more is more :).
• Using your hands, mix the rub and base together and make sure you get all that flavor into every crevice.
• Cook using your favorite method. An oven preheated to 325º for several hours (depends on lbs) or a crock pot on low overnight are my favorites.

CUBAN PORK CHOPS WITH MOJO

Steps:

• In a gallon-sized resealable plastic bag, combine 1 cup orange juice, 1/2 cup lime juice, and vinegar. Add pork and let it sit and marinate for about 1 hour in refrigerator.
• In a small mixing bowl, combine all dried spices. Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel and rub with the dry spice mixture.
• Heat oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Place the pork chops in the pan and sear on 1 side until brown. Flip over and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add onion and saute for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and continue to cook until garlic begins to brown. Pour in the remaining 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup lime juice, and white wine. Simmer until the liquid is slightly reduced and begins to thicken. The chops should be cooked through.
• Remove the chops from pan and put on a warm plate. Continue to reduce juices in pan by half. Pour over the chops and serve immediately.
• Garnish with watercress, tomatoes and avocado.

SMOKED CUBAN (CUBANO) PORK

Steps:

• 1. Gather your ingredients
• 2. Add all the marinade ingredients to a large bowl and stir until completely dissolved.
• 3. Use a sharp knife to cut a crosshatch pattern into the fat cap, and the bottom of the pork.
• 4. Chef's Note: This will help the marinade to penetrate into the pork.
• 5. Add the pork and the marinade to a large Ziploc bag, or non-reactive bowl.
• 6. Chef's Note: Because of the size of these pork butts, I'm using turkey-basting bags that I got from Williams-Sonoma.
• 7. Place in the fridge for 12, and up to 24 hours.
• 8. Chef's Note: If you're like me, and you like to peek into the fridge every now and then... Well, while you're in there, give the bag a big old squeeze or two.
• 9. Chef's Tip: Ziploc bags have been known to spring a leak. To keep this from becoming a problem, place the bag in a bowl, or on a large plate.
• 10. After 24 hours remove the pork from the marinade, and save about two cups.
• 11. Place the marinade into a small saucepan, and allow it to simmer for about 20 minutes, then remove and reserve.
• 12. Preheat your smoker to 225f (107c).
• 13. Thoroughly coat the pork with the dry rub... Rub it in good.
• 14. Chef's Note: My dry rub consists of equal amounts of black pepper, cumin, paprika, onion powder, salt, and then a pinch or two of cayenne pepper.
• 15. Add the pork butt to the smoker, along with two bricks.
• 16. Chef's Note: The bricks are optional, but I'll explain that later.
• 17. Allow the pork butt to smoke until reaching an internal temperature of 200f (94c).
• 18. Chef's Note: Once an hour, for the first 6 hours, open the smoker, and mop the pork butt with the reserved marinade.
• 19. Chef's Note: Depending on your cut of meat, it could take 12 hours to reach the magic number. But don't hasten the process by raising the heat... have patience.
• 20. Optional Step: Remove the pork butt from the smoker, wrap in foil, then place into a beverage cooler, and place some tea towels around it, plus the two hot bricks. Let it sit for two hours. What this does is finish up the melting of the collagen, and makes this pork melt in your mouth.
• 21. Chef's Tip: I made my own box out of Styrofoam, but a typical Coleman cooler will work just fine.
• 22. Remove from the cooler, and shred. If the meat is a bit dry, add a small amount of the reserved marinade.
• 23. Chef's Note: I tried several ways to cut the meat for a Cubano sandwich; however, shredded is the way to go.
• 24. There you go... the perfect Cuban smoked pork. Keep the faith, and keep cooking.

EVERYTHING PORK DRY RUB

Steps:

• Mix paprika, brown sugar, salt, garlic powder, black pepper, chili powder, cayenne pepper, onion powder, ground chipotle chile pepper, cumin, and mustard powder together in a bowl.

GRILLED CUBAN PORK CHOPS

Steps:

• Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat. Remove excess fat from pork. In small bowl, mix all Cuban Rub ingredients; rub evenly on both sides of pork.
• Cover and grill pork 4 to 6 inches from medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, turning frequently, until pork is no longer pink and meat thermometer inserted in center reads 160°F. Garnish with mango slices.

CUBAN PORK ROAST

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Pour half of the marinade into a large resealable plastic bag; add the pork roast. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 2 hours. Refrigerate remaining marinade., Drain and discard marinade from pork. Place roast in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Pour reserved marinade over the roast. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. , Cover and bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Uncover; baste with pan drippings. Bake 15 minutes longer or until a thermometer reads 145°. Discard bay leaves. Let roast stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

CUBAN PORK RUB

Steps:

• Apply to a pork shoulder and refrigerate for 8 hours to overnight. Cook as you would for pulled pork.