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Garlic-Rubbed Pernil with Crispy Skin and Sofrito

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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 5 hours
Total Time 5 hours 30 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Caribbean, Puerto Rican
Servings 10

Equipment

  • Roasting pan with rack Helps circulate heat around the pork for even cooking. If you don’t have one, use a deep baking dish and elevate the pork on a bed of sliced onions or a foil coil.
  • Sharp paring knife For scoring the pork skin and making incisions for the garlic rub.
  • Blender or food processor To blend the sofrito to a smooth consistency.
  • Meat Thermometer Crucial for checking doneness and ensuring juicy, tender meat.
  • Aluminum foil To tent the pork and avoid burning the garlic rub or drying out the meat early on.

Ingredients
  

For the Pork

  • 1 whole bone-in pork shoulder pernil – about 8-10 pounds, skin on
  • 10 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon smoked paprika optional, but adds depth

For the Sofrito (makes about 2 cups)

  • 1 green bell pepper chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 1 cup cilantro with stems
  • ½ cup culantro if available
  • 2-3 ají dulce peppers or substitute with sweet mini peppers
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions
 

Make the Sofrito

  1. Start by preparing your homemade sofrito. In a food processor or blender, combine bell peppers, onion, garlic, cilantro, culantro, and ají dulce. Add olive oil and pulse until you have a thick, green paste. It should be aromatic, fresh, and slightly sweet. This will infuse the pernil with deep puerto rican flavors.

Prepare the Pork Shoulder

  1. Take your pork shoulder and rinse it under cold water. Pat it dry with paper towels. Using a paring knife, score the skin in a crosshatch pattern to help the fat render and the skin crisp. Then, make deep slits all over the meat – these will hold the garlic rub.

Make the Garlic Rub

  1. Crush the garlic cloves into a paste using a mortar and pestle or the side of a knife. Mix in the salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, olive oil, vinegar, and paprika. The result should be a thick, pungent paste that smells like every authentic pernil recipe puerto rican abuela has ever made.

Season the Pork

  1. Rub the garlic paste deep into the incisions and all over the pork, including under the skin if you can. Massage in a few spoonfuls of the sofrito, making sure it gets into all the crevices. Let it marinate, covered, in the fridge for at least 12 hours – overnight is best.

Roast the Pernil

  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C). Place the pork shoulder on a rack in your roasting pan, skin-side up. Tent with foil and roast for 4 hours. This slow roast melts the fat and tenderizes the meat.
  2. Remove the foil and increase the heat to 425°F (218°C). Roast uncovered for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the skin is puffed, bubbly, and audibly crisp when tapped. Use a meat thermometer – the internal temp should hit about 185°F for fall-apart tenderness.

Rest and Serve

  1. Let the pork rest for 20 minutes before slicing. Shred or slice the meat, serve with crackling pieces of skin (called cuerito), and drizzle with pan juices.