Brothers and restaurateurs Teddy and Alexis Vejar spent their childhood surrounded by great cooks both in Mexico and the US. Of all the dishes they grew up eating, one remains their favorite all these years later: cochinita pibil. Now, they run the restaurant Jarabe on the city’s Near West Side, where they serve cochinita pibil.
Cochinita Pibil
Yields: 1 oz · 1.0 plate of 1 oz
INGREDIENTS
5 lb Pork Butt- Bone In
1.5 cup Recado Rojo
1 piece White Onions
4 piece Banana Leaves
2 tbsp Kosher Salt
1 oz Bay Leaves
METHOD
1. Trim only any loose pieces of fat or skin from the pork butt. Leave the majority of the fat cap intact, as it helps keep the meat moist during the long cook. Pat the pork dry with paper towels and salt.
2. Coat the Pork with the achiote paste making sure it covers every surface.
NOTE Preferably at this step transfer pork to a non reactive container and leave marinating in the fridge for 6-12 Hours.
3. If using frozen banana leaves, thaw them completely and run over a flame to soften.
4. Line Roasting pan with Banana leaves and add pork and achiote mixture.
5. Slice 1 whole white onion and top the pork with the onion slices.
6. Add Bay leaf to the roasting pan and cover with remaining banana Leaves.
7. Cover pan with foil
8. Pre Heat oven to 225 Degrees
9. Place Roasting pan in the middle rack of the oven and cook 8-10 hours or until the bone pull out cleanly.
10. Unwrap banana leaves and remove Pork from cooking liquid
11. Strain cooking liquid to remove any grainy spices.
12. Add Cooking liquid to a sauce pan and reduce until it becomes slightly thickened about 15–25 minutes.
13. Transfer the pork to a serving container, shred and cover with the reduced cooking liquid
NOTE Serve with warm corn tortillas, pickled red onions and minced habanero peppers.
Recado Rojo
Yields: 5 lb
INGREDIENTS
10 oz Annato Ground
2 oz Mexican Oregano
2 oz Cinnamon Mexican
2 oz Corriander
2 oz Cumin Whole
2 oz All Spice
1 oz Cloves
1 oz Black Pepper Ground
16 oz Ajo/ Garlic
1 qt Guajillo Puree
16 oz Distilled White Vinegar
32 oz Orange Juice
32 oz Lime Juice
1 oz Kosher Salt
METHOD
1. In a dry skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat, toast the cumin. Cook for 2–3 minutes, stirring constantly, until fragrant. Allow to cool slightly.
2. Measure and weigh all spices and combine.
3. Add to a high-powered blender: garlic, orange juice, lime Juice, vinegar, guajillo purée and blend until completely smooth.
4 Add: Ground annatto, Mexican oregano, ground cinnamon, ground coriander, toasted cumin, ground allspice, ground cloves, ground black pepper and Kosher salt. Blend on high until the paste is completely smooth. If necessary, scrape down the sides and blend again.
5 . The finished achiote paste should be thick but pourable. If it’s too thick, add a little more orange juice. If it’s too thin, blend in additional annatto powder, a tablespoon at a time.
6. Transfer to a food-safe container and refrigerate overnight. This allows the spices to fully hydrate