Pernil (Puerto Rican Roast Pork)
Slow-roasted pernil is fork-tender, fall-off-the-bone pork shoulder or leg marinated in savory herbs and spices. Underneath its irresistible, crispy, crunchy skin is tender, juicy meat oozing with mouthwatering deliciousness. Such a perfect addition to your holiday spread!
I still remember when I tasted this awesomeness for the first time. My world stopped as I savored its tender goodness. It’s really unique and super addictive. And, of course, I had to learn how to make it.
What’s not to love about this family-friendly, super-affordable dish? It’s effortless to prepare because the oven does most of the work. Aaah! Getting that taste of joy without breaking a sweat is a pretty good deal, right?
What Makes Pernil Irresistible
Sour orange is the key ingredient in the marinade. However, it can be hard to find them outside of the Islands. So I used a regular orange and served it with lemon wedges for a similar effect. A dash of vinegar with orange juice would also do the trick.
This marinated Puerto Rican pork (typically leg or shoulder) is roasted slowly until tender and juicy. Caribbeans, especially in Puerto Rico and Cuba, traditionally serve it at Christmas with arroz con gandules and tostones.
How to Roast Pernil
- Pulse ¼ cup onion, garlic, oregano, and parsley in a food processor, drizzling in the oil and scraping down sides as necessary, until the mixture is pasty. A mortar and pestle also works.
- Mix in cumin, chili, sazon, and paprika. Set aside. (Photo 1)
- Rinse and dry the pork roast with a paper towel. Salt and pepper to taste (½-¾ teaspoon per pound). (Photo 2)
- Rub the marinade all over the pork roast, getting it in every nook and cranny. (Photo 3)
- Marinate it for about 4 hours (up to 2 days) in the fridge. When ready to roast, take the pork out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- Layer the sliced onion and orange on the bottom of the roasting pan. Pour ½ cup of orange juice and ½ cup of stock or water over it.
- Place the pork roast skin-side-up in the pan. Roast for 3 hours or more in a preheated 275℉ (135℃) oven, uncovered.
- Remove it from the oven and increase the oven’s heat to 500℉ (260℃). (Photo 4)
- Roast for another 15-20 minutes until the skin is crisp and puffy, rotating the pan every 5 minutes for even crispness.
- Let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting it so the meat’s juice reabsorbs into the roast. Serve with lime and drippings.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Turn up the heat with a dash of cayenne, ground chipotle for smoky goodness, or chili flakes.
- The internal temperature should be 180-185℉ (80-85℃) on an instant-read thermometer. But no worries if you don’t have a thermometer, because it’s fork-tender when done.
- Turning the oven temperature to 500℉ (260℃) during the last 15-20 minutes will crisp the skin perfectly, the best part of the roast.
- You can also make parallel or diamond-shaped slits through the skin of the pork and halfway through the fat. But try not to cut so deeply that the knife reaches the meat, to allow the flavor to seep in deeper without damaging the meat.
Make-Ahead Instructions
If you want to marinate the meat but won’t be serving it immediately, you can roast it first until the pork becomes tender and evenly cooked. Then allow it to cool before storing it in the fridge.
When you are ready to serve, roast it again in a preheated 500℉ (260℃) oven. To ensure even cooking, you can rotate it four times for 20 minutes (every 5 minutes) until the skin becomes crisp.
Leftover Makeovers
Store leftover pork within two hours of cooking, and it should last in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Pernil leftovers are fantastic in soups, fried rice, sandwiches, tacos, replace the chicken in a Southwest chicken salad, burritos, and chow mein.
What to Serve With Pernil
Aside from arroz con gandules, this sumptuous pernil also pairs well with yellow rice, roasted vegetables, pasteles, and pickled onions.
More Delectable Caribbean Dishes to Try
- One-Pot Puerto Rican Chicken and Rice
- Jibarito Plantain and Steak Sandwich
- Picadillo
- Pastelon
- Jamaican Patties
By Imma
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”FMCqxTqW” upload-date=”Mon Aug 06 2018 20:37:44 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)” name=”Pernil Puerto Rican Roast Pork” description=”Pernil Puerto Rican Roast Pork- Herb and spice marinated pork shoulder slowly roasted in the oven until tender and fall of the bone delicious with an amazing crisp and crackling skin.”]
This blog post was originally published in March 2016 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
Pernil (Pork Roast)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (40g) coarsely chopped onion
- 5-7 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
- 2 tablespoons (7g) fresh oregano (1 tablespoon or 5 grams dried oregano)
- 1 tablespoon (6g) parsley
- olive oil as needed
- 1 teaspoon (3g) ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon (1-2g) chili peppers (adjust to taste)
- 1 tablespoon (5-6g) smoked paprika
- 1 packet Sazon Goya (see notes)
- 5-6 pounds (2.25-3kg) bone-in pork shoulder
- 2 teaspoons (12g) salt (more if needed)
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 medium yellow onion, sliced
- 1 medium orange, sliced
- ½ cup (118ml) freshly squeezed orange juice
- ½ cup (118ml) stock (or water)
- 1 lime, cut into wedges for serving
Instructions
- Pulse ¼ cup of onion, garlic, oregano, and parsley in a food processor, adding oil in a drizzle and scraping down sides as necessary until the mixture is pasty, or use a mortar and pestle to grind the spices.
- Place the mixture in a small bowl, stir in the cumin, chili pepper, smoked paprika, and Sazon Goya, and set aside.
- Remove the pork roast from the packaging and gently rinse it under cold water. Dry with a paper towel, and rub with salt and pepper according to preference (½-¾ teaspoon per pound is a reasonable estimate). Score the fat covering if desired.
- Thoroughly rub the roast with the seasoning mixture, getting into as many of the crevices as you can. Marinate the roast in the fridge for 4 hours or up to 2 days before roasting.
- When ready to roast, preheat the oven to 275℉ (135℃) while the roast comes to room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- Line a roasting pan with foil, then layer the sliced onion and orange on the bottom of the pan. Pour in about ½ cup of orange juice, ½ cup of stock or water, and the spoon any leftover marinade. You might have to add some more liquid as it cooks if you want more sauce to serve on the side.
- Place pork skin side up in the pan. Remove any seasonings stuck to the top of the pork skin.
- Roast it for about 3 hours, uncovered.
- Increase the oven temperature to 500℉ (260℃) and roast for another 15-20 minutes until the skin is crisp and puffy, rotating the pan every 5 minutes for even crispness.
- The internal temperature should be 180-185℉ (80-85℃) on an instant-read thermometer.
- Let the meat rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing; the meat should be tender. Serve with lime wedges and sauce from the marinade.
- If you want super crispy skin, place the pork roast on top of a rack in a pan.
Tips & Notes:
- If you can’t find Sazon Goya, mix ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, and ½ teaspoon ground coriander and call it good.
- Feel free to replace the orange juice and stock with a cup of Mojo marinade.
- The internal temperature should be at least 180-185℉ (80-85℃) on an instant-read thermometer when done.
- Turning the oven temperature to 400℉ (205℃) during the last 15-20 minutes will crisp the skin.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
In step 2 above… Mix cumin, chili, Sazon Goya, and paprika in a small bowl. Set aside.
What do I do with this mixture? it is not mentioned again in the recipe. Should I be adding that into the crevices of the pork? or is it put on at another time? Thanks!
Hi Doug.
Rub the spice mixture thoroughly all over the pork, making sure to get it into any crevices. You can do this right before cooking or let the pork marinate with the spices for a few hours or over night for even deeper flavor.
I want to try this, but am not sure if I can get hold of sazon. Is there something I can substitute it with?
I hear ya. Which is why I made it optional. You can replace it with ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, and ½ teaspoon ground coriander. You could add a dash of oregano, too, if you’d like. Hope that helps:)
Looks delicious! Could I substitute some of the ingredients with Mojo marinade? Water, Salt, Orange Juice Concentrate, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Garlic, Onion, Spices, Sugar,
Sure, that actually sounds really good Kathy.
Happy New Year!
I look forward to making this, but I have a new gas stove and nervous about cooking with gas for several hours…thoughts?
Yess! I have left my gas oven on for hours to deliciously roast pork and beef. Just make sure it’s properly ventilated, and it will be fine.
Do I cover the Pernil while in the oven
Hi Mercedes! Roast the pork in the oven, uncovered. 🙂
I’m going to use this recipe for my my pernil. I’m really excited.
I will definitely let you know how it comes out.
Yes, Leticia! Please let me know how it turns out. Enjoy! 🙂
Fantastic recipe. As someone who married into a Puerto Rican family over 20 years ago, I have been complimented extensively on my first Pernil. Keep in mind my mother-in-law is 80 so the bar was set high. For those using a 9.5 lb shoulder, I cooked at 275 degrees for 5:45 minutes. Then, I increased the temperature to 450 degrees for 35 minutes. The flavor is wonderful. Many thanks.
My pleasure ! Thanks so much.
Thank you for adding additional information on weight & time as I am cooking a 10 pounder today! It smells amazing! I look forward to eating this evening and with another review!
Can I cook it in intapot
Yes you can, and then finish cooking in the oven if you want crispy skin.
Saw your recipe and tried it. Today I will be putting my pork in the oven to cook. Will get back with feedback. It does look delicious in the picture. Hope to get similar results. Thanks to all the other little tips!! Happy new year to all…
Can’t wait for the feedback. Happy New Year to you too!
Thank you for this awesome recipe! I didn’t get it exactly right…but it was still delicious! I’ll be making more attempts soon.
I have a request though…when I was in Africa, while in the military, I had an amazing lentil soup. Do you have any recipes for an authentic African lentil soup?
Thanks again!
Thank you for trying it out. As for the lentil dish, perhaps you could be referring to this Ethiopian Lentil Stew, which uses a berbere spice mix.
Please do let me know how it works for you.
I am doing this with a Fresh Ham. Should I do anything different? It is also 12 lbs.
Nothing different. Just follow the recipe and omit the salt.
Thanks for your recipe, I’ve made it before , but directly. I like to cut up potatoes, but when is a good time to put them in
Hi Michelle,
I usually put it together with the pork. Check for tenderness, If they are cooking too fast remove half way through. Happy Holidays!!!
OMG made this Pernil yesterday delicious. Thank you for recipe
You are welcome Iris. Glad you enjoyed it!
I think she DOES know what peril IS …..maybe you just know it YOUR way and she hers -no need to get snippy when someone is kind enough to take the time out for others to do something nice like put her recipe on and share!
I’ve been looking for a decent recipe for pernil for over 10 years and I have yet to find one that comes anywhere near as good as my mother’s. This one looks promising and I can’t wait to dig in. I’m curious though, would the pork benefit from brining before marinating?
Hi Victor,
It sure does, if you have the time to do it.
Instead of slicing into the skin or disturbing it by detaching from the meat below, I use a marinade injector – like an industrial hypodermic needle – get get my mojo marinade under the skin and into the meat. I inject it through the skin and fat into the meat below and then from all sides. The balance of the mojo goes into the bowl or bag that I’m using to marinate and coats the outside of the roast until it’s time to cook. I use about 2 cups of mojo for a 10 lb roast.
The reason I detach the skin is so that in can get crisper. I love the syringe for marinating as well.