Lechon Asado - Slow Cooker Cuban Pork

Lechon Asado is a timeless Cuban roasted pork dish. Traditionally, a whole pig is slow roasted over hot coals. This, unfortunately, is not always practical when you live in an apartment, are feeding two people and it is a weeknight. 

Enter - the lechon asado loving busy professional's best friend - The Slow Cooker (or crock pot, if you are from the south).

Get your own Crock-Pot Here

I have a love-hate relationship with my slow cooker. I love that I can come home after a busy day to a cooked meal, but I hate that sometimes it just tastes like hospital food (No disrespect to hospital cafeterias around the world). I am therefore, on a mission to learn how to cook delicious and easy slow cooker meals and post the recipes here when I have a winner. (This is a different mission from this one, I set a lot of culinary missions, okay?)

So without further ado, here's presenting Lechon Asado!

Lechon Asado served with Yellow Rice and Guacamole

Three guys from Miami are my go to Cuban recipe gurus, and this recipe is heavily influenced by their Lechon Asado recipe.

Instead of cooking a whole pig, I used pork shoulder, or Boston butt. Marinated it in a lovely garlicky citrus marinade (Mojo) . And slow cooked it for about 10 hours on low. 

Ingredients

2 - 3 Lb (1 to 1.5 kg) Pork Shoulder 

12 - 15 cloves, Garlic (The more the better!)

2 - Oranges 

1 - Lime 

1- Onion

1 Teaspoon, Black pepper

1 Teaspoon, Oregano

3 Tablespoons, Olive Oil

Salt

Method

Gather and prep your ingredients:

Clean the garlic.

Juice the oranges and limes.

Slice the onions.

Black pepper and oregano!

In a small blender (I am using a magic bullet here), combine half of the sliced onions, all of the garlic, pepper, oregano, salt, orange juice and lime juice.

Blitz it with all your might. 

Mojo marinade, ladies and gentlemen! (With onions)

Marinate the pork in this sauce overnight.

The next day, transfer this to a slow cooker, fat side up. Drizzle with the olive oil.

Cook on low for about 9-10 hours.

Transfer the pork (leaving the sauce in the slow cooker) to a large plate and using two forks, shred the pork. 

Once shredded, transfer it back in to the slow cooker and mix it in with the sauce.

Fry the other half of the sliced onion and mix it in with the lechon asado.

Serve with Cuban yellow rice and a salad.

Enjoy!

4 comments LABELS: Cuban, Latin, Pork, Weeknight Lifesavers