Grill/Barbecue

Caribbean Roast Pork with Pineapple Lime Salsa

by:
March 30, 2010
4.5
2 Ratings
Caribbean Roast Pork with Pineapple Lime Salsa
  • Serves 10-12
Author Notes

This started out as a recipe for pernil I snagged out of the NYTimes a few years back. I've tinkered with it, and added the pineapple lime salsa, although it's great with just a spritz of fresh lime. I prefer to cook it on the grill, as the smell is so divine you'll have everyone in the house hovering over you asking when it will be done. Serve it with your favorite beans-and-rice, and fried plantains, and a talk, fruity drink with an umbrella in it, and Jimmy Buffett on the iPod. —Kayb

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe is fantastic. I will definitely make the pork again, and I'll be adding the salsa to my regular repertoire! The paste slathered on the pork a day before roasting -- a flavorful blend of onions, peppers, garlic, oil, vinegar and spices -- is so fragrant and saucy that it seeps into the roasting meat, making it tender, juicy, and delicious. And it was so easy! The pork literally fell off the bone, shredding in just under 5 hours, exactly as Kayb had described. I recommend mixing some of the pan juices in with the pork before serving, to make it even more juicy and tasty than it already was. The sweet, tangy salsa was a perfect complement to the bold flavors of the pork. I love fruity salsas, but never would have come up with this on my own! The fresh mint is definitely the kicker -- a clean flavor burst that highlights the sweet pineapple, and the garlicky pork. - Loves Food Loves to Eat —The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Roasted pork
  • 6-8 pounds fresh pork shoulder
  • 1 large onion, roughly chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
  • 1 habanero pepper, roughly (and carefully) chopped, optional
  • 1 tablespoon each dried oregano, cumin, mild chile powder (ancho is good) and salt
  • 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • olive oil, as needed
  • 1 tablespoon wine or cider vinegar
  • Pineapple lime salsa
  • 1/2 pineapple, cut in small chunks
  • 2 avocados, diced
  • 1/2 sweet onion, diced small
  • 2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, chopped
  • juice of 2 limes
Directions
  1. Score pork skin in a crosshatch pattern, not cutting through to meat. Salt and pepper shoulder and set aside.
  2. In a food processor, put onion, peppers, garlic and spices and pulse until finely minced. Add olive oil as needed and process to make a paste. Blend vinegar into paste.
  3. Rub paste all over shoulder, being sure to get it inside all the little cracks and crevices. Wrap shoulder tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
  4. The next day, film bottom of a roasting pan with water and place roast skin side up on a rack; roast in 300-degree oven for at least four hours, more likely 5, until very tender. Add more water to bottom of pan if necessary, if pork begins to dry out.
  5. Combine diced pineapple, pepper, onion, mint and lime juice and allow to sit at room temperature for an hour or so to let flavors meld and develop. Just before serving, dice and add avocados and toss.
  6. When pork is fork-tender, remove from oven and allow to rest for at least 30 minutes (this is DIFFICULT!) before serving with salsa.
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  • Victoria Condon
    Victoria Condon
  • Bradley Dispense
    Bradley Dispense
  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames
  • Loves Food Loves to Eat
    Loves Food Loves to Eat
  • Kayb
    Kayb
Kayb
I'm a business professional who learned to cook early on, and have expanded my tastes and my skills as I've traveled and been exposed to new cuisines and new dishes. I love fresh vegetables, any kind of protein on the grill, and breakfasts that involve fried eggs with runny yolks. My recipes tend toward the simple and the Southern, with bits of Asia or the Mediterranean or Mexico thrown in here and there. And a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a float in the lake, as pictured, is a pretty fine lunch!

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7 Reviews

Victoria C.
Victoria C. February 24, 2016
Can I do this in a crock pot? I'm having people over but don't have time to stick it in the oven for so long.
 
Bradley D.
Bradley D. March 17, 2013
I was leery of the habanero, but used only the flesh, gave the marinade a tangy heat that wasn't overwhelming at all. I am using a slow cooker with a boston butt roast, on low for 10 hours. It smells amazing.. No doubt this will be delicious.
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames July 28, 2010
Bet this salsa is terrific on a lot of different things. Will be trying this one soon. Another great recipe, Kayb!! ;o)
 
Loves F.
Loves F. April 13, 2010
Hey Kayb, I noticed that in the salsa directions you say 'dice pineapple, pepper....' but there isn't a pepper listed in the salsa ingredients. I didn't realize that a pepper was maybe included until it was too late, but the salsa was still great w/out.
 
Kayb
Kayb April 13, 2010
Oooops! I'm not a huge pepper fan, and don't always include it, but when I think of it I put in a red bell pepper, as much for color as anything else. You're right; it's fine w/out!
 
Loves F.
Loves F. April 8, 2010
Excited to test this out! Looks like Sunday I'll be inviting a bunch of people over, making some tostones, frijoles, mojitos, and coconut rice with pigeon peas, and having a little Island feast!
 
Kayb
Kayb April 8, 2010
You might want to try Comida Central's "Sunday Beans," recipe here courtesy of the NY Times....http://kayatthekeyboard.wordpress.com/2009/08/29/heat-squared/. Hope you enjoy it!