Cochinita Pibil (Achiote Pork)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 225 min
- Level
- Medium
- Servings
- 6 servings
- Ingredients
- 8
About this dish
Achiote paste and lime juice turn the pork shoulder red, and wrapping it in banana leaves inside a lidded pot keeps it braising rather than roasting, and the meat ends up pulling apart with a fork instead of growing a crisp skin.
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It is ready when even the meat near the bone gives way to a fork, and if it is still tough at the end of the stated time, it stays in longer. No overnight marinade is needed, and the red onions pickle in lime while the pork cooks. Look for achiote as a ready-to-use paste, not dried seeds or a hot sauce. Once cooked, the juices get skimmed of fat and, if there is a lot, reduced before being spooned back over the meat.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 150°C.
Work the achiote paste into 0.5 cup lime juice and 2 teaspoons salt with a spoon until smooth. Slice the white onion about 6 mm thick.
- 2
Cut two approximately 60 cm sections of thawed leaf and cross them inside a 6-8 L ovenproof pot about 30 cm across.
Add the pork, coat with all the marinade and top with white onion. Pour 0.5 cup water around the meat, fold the leaves over it and cover with the lid.
- 3
Braise at 150°C for 2.5-3 hours until the meat near the bone releases easily with a fork.
Continue cooking if still tough at the end of the stated time.
- 4
During cooking, thinly slice the red onion and toss with the remaining 0.25 cup lime juice and 0.5 teaspoon salt.
Cover, refrigerate and stir occasionally while the pork cooks.
- 5
Lift out the pork and white onion, removing the leaves and bone.
Skim fat from the juices. If there are 2 cups or more, boil down to about 1 cup. If the bottom is dry, add the reserved 1 cup water and simmer to loosen the cooked-on seasoning.
- 6
Divide the pork and white onion into 6 portions, spoon over the juices and top with the lime-marinated red onion.
References checked
These references were consulted when this page was prepared or corrected. A source check does not mean the recipe was independently kitchen-tested.
- Cochinita Pibil: Oven-Braising Variation
Rick Bayless · Checked: 2026-09-07