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Puerto Rican · Caribbean

Pernil

Non-vegetarian

A whole pork shoulder rubbed with a garlic, oregano and vinegar paste, marinated overnight and slow-roasted until it pulls apart, under a crackling skin (cuero).

Pernil is a Puerto Rican main course from Puerto Rico, ready in about 6 hours 20 minutes and made with pork shoulder and garlic. It serves 12 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking
Platter of slow-roasted pernil pork shoulder with crispy crackling
Photo: Ekem / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-SA-4.0
Prep
20 min
Cook
5 h 30 min
Rest
30 min
Total
6 h 20 min
Serves
12
Level
Intermediate
Calories
728

Plus 12–24 hours marinating in the fridge.

Ingredients

12 servings

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Pound the garlic (opens in a new tab), oregano (opens in a new tab), salt, pepper (opens in a new tab) and cumin (opens in a new tab) to a paste in a mortar, then work in the olive oil (opens in a new tab) and vinegar.

    Spices being ground in a mortar and pestle
    How it looks · Photo: https://kaboompics.com/ on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Lift the skin from the meat with a knife, leaving it attached on one side. Make deep slits all over the meat and push the paste into them and over every surface. Lay the skin back, cover and refrigerate for 12–24 hours.

    • 10 min

    Food safety: Marinate in the fridge, and wash boards and hands after handling raw pork.

  3. Step 3

    Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 160 °C. Put the pork skin-side up in a roasting dish with the water, cover with foil and roast for about 4½ hours, until the meat is very tender (about 90 °C inside).

    A tray of food roasting in the oven
    How it looks · Photo: locrifa on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Uncover, raise the oven (opens in a new tab) to 220 °C and roast for 45–60 minutes more, until the skin is blistered and crackling. Watch closely so it doesn't burn.

    • 60 min
    • 220°C

  5. Step 5

    Rest for 30 minutes, then break the crackling into pieces and pull or chop the meat, spooning over the pan juices.

    • 5 min

About this dish

Origin
Puerto Rico · Commonly attributedRoast pork shoulder is festive food across the Hispanic Caribbean; this garlicky style is closely associated with Puerto Rico.Also popular in Dominican Republic, CubaMore food from Puerto Rico
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Main courses
Cooking method
Marinated / cured, Roasted, Slow-cooked
Taste
garlicky, savoury, salty, rich
Diet
No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Keto-style · Low-carb · High-protein
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Whole-food focused · Paleo-style · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Beef-free · Keto-style · Low-carb · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Festive & celebration · Make-ahead · Batch cooking · Uses leftovers
Cook more with
Pork shoulder · Garlic · Dried oregano · White vinegar
Techniques
Roasting · Marinating · Curing

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

728 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 328 g · recipe makes 12

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 28%
  • Carbohydrate 1%
  • Fat 70%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy728 kcal222 kcal
Protein50.5 g15.4 g
Carbohydrate2.2 g0.7 g
Net carbohydrate1.9 g0.6 g
Sugars0.1 g0 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre0.3 g0.1 g
Fat55.9 g17.1 g
Saturated fat18.7 g5.7 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol207 mg63 mg
Sodium968 mg296 mg
Salt equivalent2.4 g0.7 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
911 mg
Calcium
62 mg
Iron
3.3 mg
Magnesium
56 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
6 µg
Vitamin C
4 mg
Vitamin D
5 µg
Vitamin B12
2.2 µg
Folate (DFE)
15 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: cumin.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Pat the skin very dry before roasting for the best cuero.

Common mistakes

  • Rubbing the paste only on top of the skin — it needs to go into the meat.

Serve with

  • With arroz con gandules, potato salad and pasteles at Christmas.

Storage

  • Refrigerate for up to 4 days; freeze pulled meat for 3 months.

Reheating

  • Reheat covered with some pan juices at 160 °C; re-crisp crackling separately.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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