If you do not like garlic, then I advise you to look away now. Maybe you would like Olive Oil Cake or a Donuts with Coffee and Cream Cocktail, but if you do not like garlic, this recipe is NOT for you.
For those of you who (like me) ADORE garlic and would roll around in it if that wouldn’t offend just about everyone, then you should keep reading.
The recipe for the Lechon Asado – Cuban Roast Pork is from my Mom and I make it regularly. I have to – it never lasts more than a day or two no matter what size roast I make. You can use the recipe and scale it for the size pork roast that you use. My roast of choose is a fresh picnic roast but pork shoulders work as well.
The key to injecting TONS of flavor is to marinate this as long as possible. Three hours is the minimum but really overnight is the best. If you cannot get sour orange juice, I have used regular orange juice and orange juice mixed with lemon effectively and deliciously.
Slather the roast with the garlic and pierce the roast with a knife so you can stuff garlic down into the roast and so that some of the marinade gets right down into the meat.
Side dishes for the Lechon Asado can be black beans and rice (although I prefer black beans and quinoa) and the MUST have condiment/sauce is CHIMICHURRI. Sometimes I skip the black beans and just go for the pork, chimichurri and quinoa!
Warning – MORE garlic coming your way with the chimichurri but I cannot eat Lechon Asado without it and I love to share my addictions.
Pick a day that you are going to be outside since the roast takes about 4 hours for a 9 1/2 lb roast to cook and since it is summer – that is not a kitchen that you want to hang around. But the end result is soooooo worth it. Delectable, juicy, meat just falls apart and when combined with the addictive tang of the chimichurri … heaven.
I think I just talked myself into making this again.
Happy Eating! Let me know how it turns out!
- Fresh Ham, Picnic, Pork Shoulder (about 9.5 lbs - adjust recipe up or down from there)
- 20 cloves of garlic
- 2 tsp salt (I like to use Citrus Fennel Sea Salt for more oooomph)
- 1½ cup of sour orange juice
- 1 cup minced onion
- 1 tsp oregano
- Pierce meat with knife and slather the mashed garlic and salt all over the roast and into the slits. Combine sour orange juice, minced onion and oregano and then pour over the roast.
- Marinate for a minimum of 3 hours but preferably overnight.
- Preheat oven to 450.
- Add Roast to oven at 450 and then immediately reduce to 325.
- Roast approx 4 hours for a 9½ lb roast.
- Rest 10 minutes.
- Perfectly cooked meat is slightly pink with clear juices and should register 160-165 on a meat thermometer.
I am a lechon ADDICT! I can’t get enough of it. Love the orange juice addition. I’ve only tried it marinated that way for the first time last year and now feel it’s incomplete if the taste of citrus is missing. I am definitely giving this recipe a try next time I bring lechon to the house. Bookmarked! Thanks for sharing!
THANK YOU! Ohhh if you love citrus then check out the Citrus Fennel Sea Salt from Pollen Ranch – adds a WHOLE NEW level of flavor!
I will HAPPILY roll in the garlic with you. My hubs will love me for it and maybe even eat me up – like he does with anything that says ‘garlic’ lol!! While I am rolling, can I roll away with this pork piece? Divine divine divine!!
Minnie@thelady8home recently posted..The Top Ten plus Bengali Aloo Dum
You may DEF roll in the garlic and in the lechon asado with me LOL – this is soooo good!
Helpful facts. Fortuitous my family I discovered your website accidentally, with this particular shocked why this coincidence couldn’t took place upfront! My partner and i added the idea.
I just saw this recipe last night and was so excited to print and use it but now it’s not showing up on here? Where can I find it?
Venita – everything is fine now – our host had a database issue! THANK YOU for alerting me!
Making this today! Do you cook the roast in the marinade or no?
Lo recently posted..Meyer Lemon Bites with Candied Ginger and Toasted Coconut Crust
Absolutely LO! Everything goes in 🙂 – THANK YOU!
Hi, planning on making this recipe, going to marinate I think overnight and cook it tomorrow. How long do you think I should roast if it’s 5.5 lbs?
Holy wow this was AMAZING. I almost didn’t make the chimichurri because I didn’t feel like getting out my food processor, but at the last minute, I made it by hand and I AM SO GLAD I DID. Everything was magic. Magic. I had to take a break from eating it to talk about how amazing it was because that’s how good it was. hdlsudjakgfdj. I’m never going back to any other pork again.
For anyone reading–my roast was 6.5 lbs and it took about 3.5 hrs, but my oven sucks so yours might take less. I also used orange juice with a lime squeezed into it instead of sour orange because I live in PA and would probably have to drive a hundred years to find a latin market.