Lechon Asado...Major Success!

wdan · January 2004

As I mentioned during the December holidays, I did a low 'n slow pork butt called Lechon Asado for New Years' Eve. Oh yeah, baby! If you are looking for yet another excuse to do L&S pork butt, but want it different than traditional Carolina pull, try this! My guests loved it and I actually liked it too (I'm my own worst critic).[p]While this is a Cuban Christmas Eve roast-a-whole-pig thing, I approximated it by doing a 9.5 lb pork butt on the egg.[p]Marinade (do it for 24 hrs):
12 - 15 (as many as you're willing to mince) cloves garlic
1 Tbl kosher salt
2 tsp cumin (ground)
2 tsp oregano (dried)
1 1/2 cups fresh lime juice
1/2 cup orange juice
1 Tbl olive oil
It would be best if you can do this in a food processor and get it to turn out like a thick salad dressing...I was lazy and just hand-blended it all in a bowl...but it seemed to work just fine.[p]After 12- 24 hrs of marinating, egg the pig indirectly at a dome temp of 250-ish until meat internal temp is 200 -- just like you're doing a pull. My 9.5 lb butt needed a little over 20 hrs. I used some peach wood in the lump intead of doing my normal hickory thing. I don't know if it mattered that much as I was trying to make sure it didn't come out tasting like Carolina pull when I use hickory.[p]The meat had a decidedly different flavor than the normal fair and was further differentiated by the Mojo sauce:
1 cup olive oil
12 cloves garlic (sliced thin)
1 cup fresh lime juice
1/3 cup orange juice
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
ground black pepper to taste (~1 tsp)[p]Simmer all this in a sauce pan for about 20 minutes or so. Serve as a side dip for the pork.[p]Embellishments:
The meat is different than traditional pull, but not overwhelmingly so. The mojo does it right, but as someone mentioned when I first posted my intention of doing this cook, traditional Carolina vinegar sauce would be absolutely outstanding with this meat (refer to legendary Elder Ward documentation).[p]If you're looking for a different kind of pull, try this! The Cuban thing was a smash hit at my Anglo house. Black beans and rice were a perfect complement, not to mention the music! [p]

QBabe · January 2004

WDAN,[p]Sounds wonderful! Glad it turned out well for you...[p]Happy Wednesday,
Tonia
:~)

stike · January 2004

WDAN,
this was a great post, i almost overlooked it because i didn't know what 'lechon asado' meant and there weren't a bunch of replies.[p]...i'm going to give this a try.[p]stike

Lechon Asado...Major Success!

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