Puerto Rican Pernil
Pernil is a Puerto-Rican-style slow roasted pork shoulder dish that is ultra flavorful because it is marinated overnight in garlic, sofrito and spices.
Equipment
- 1 Aluminum roasting pan or rosaing pan with a rack.
Ingredients
- 6 lb pork shoulder bone-in, skin on
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- ¼ cup kosher salt I use Diamond Crystal
- 2 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon ground back pepper
- ½ cup sofrito
- 10 cloves garlic mashed
Instructions
- Carefully slice the skin to partially separate from the meat, stopping before the end point to create a cap.6 lb pork shoulder
- Place the pork in a large bowl, add vinegar and enough water to cover it and let it sit for about 5 minutes.¼ cup white vinegar
- Pat the pork shoulder dry with paper towels. Make deep cuts all over the meat to create little pockets to insert the marinade.
- Combine the marinade ingredients to form a paste.¼ cup kosher salt, 2 Tbsp dried oregano, 1 Tbsp ground back pepper, ½ cup sofrito
- Rub the meat (not the skin) with the paste and insert the garlic cloves into the pockets you made with the pairing knife.10 cloves garlic
- Cover the pork with plastic wrap and place in a deep dish or sheet pan and place in the fridge overnight.
- When ready to roast the pernil, remove pork from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 300°F.
- Place pernil on a roasting rack or aluminum pan. Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
- Place in the oven and cook for 3-4 hours until internal temperature reaches 185F. I like to rotate the pan in the oven and baste with the juices, about every hour or so.
- Uncover the pork and raise temperature to 400°F cook for another 1 hour until the skin is crispy.
- Allow the pork to rest for about 45 minutes, shred it, serve and enjoy.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!