Lechon Asado

Lechon is one of my favorite Cuban dishes. I love it plain or put into a sandwich, even drowned in beans and rice. The entire house smells wonderful when making. Just be aware of the long marinade time. The shortest you can marinade it is 4 hours.

Lechon Asado

1 (8 lb) fresh ham (pork leg or butt)
1 head garlic, broken into cloves, peeled and minced
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup sour orange juice (seville) or orange juice
1/4 cup dry sherry or lime juice
2 large onions, thinly sliced

Make shallow slits all over the pork.Using the tip of a knife; mash the garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, pepper, bay leaf and olive oil to a paste in a mortar then rub this mixture all over the roast, forcing it into the slits. Combine the sour orange juice, sherry, and onions in a small bowl to the side.

Place the roast in a large, heavy plastic bag; add the sour OJ mixture, making sure that the whole roast gets covered with the mixture. Refrigerate and marinate the roast in the bag overnight, turning occasionally during the time.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Drain the roast, and pat dry, reserving the marinade; place it in a lightly oiled, nonreactive, heavy roasting pan; cook the roast for 1 hour, turning once or twice to brown it on all sides.

Reduce the heat to 325 degrees; pour the marinade and onions over the pork; tent the pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil; (tear off a piece that is 1 1/2 times the width of your pan; fold it in half and crease the top; open it up, and place over the pan like a tent, tightly crimping edges to seal). Continue roasting the pork, basting from time to time with the pan juices, until almost cooked, about 1 hour; add a little water or sherry if the pan dries out.

Uncover the roast and continue cooking until the internal temp reads*at least* 150 degrees F on a meat thermometer, about 30 minutes more; (most Cubans like the meat well done, so after sitting, it should be up to 180 degrees--it's safer, also).

Let the roast stand for 10 minutes before carving or pulling apart with your fork.

To reheat add a little olive oil to a fryingpan and cook shredded pork in it until moist and warm. Fresh lime juice sprinkled over it just before serving is excellant!