We’ve designed this recipe to be reminiscent of popular Cuban flavors, including both fruit, cilantro, and mint flavors that will make your dish a sweet-spicy mix of cool and hot undertones. Since this dish does have such a one-of-a-kind flavor, it may not be the best choice for serving small children.
However, for those nights when you’re looking to impress a small group, this dish is a perfect main course to change things up. Although this dish requires quite a bit of marinating time (in our opinion, the closer you get to 12 hours, the better), you can easily pull this meal together in under 30 minutes if you marinate in the morning.
What really makes the flavors of this dish come together is the inclusion of fresh cilantro and mint leaves in the marinade. While it may be tempting to save money and time by using the dried versions of these, we strongly encourage using fresh herbs.
In addition to the boost of flavor, you’ll get by sticking with fresh (especially with the mint), fresh herbs also have the benefit of antioxidants that get lost in the drying process, making this a healthier choice as well.
Since this dish has such a strong presence on the plate, stick with a very flavor-neutral side option so that you don’t get competing flavors. For this dish, we think a great option is simply roasting vegetables of your choice and seasoning them with sea salt and pepper before serving.
Mojo Marinated Cuban-Style Pork Recipe
Serves: 4 Prep: 15 min + 2 h Cook: 20 min
Ingredients
- 2 pork tenderloins
- 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp. orange zest
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup fresh orange juice
- ½ cup cilantro, minced
- ¼ cup mint leaves, minced
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
- Combine the olive oil, garlic, orange zest, orange juice, cilantro, mint, oregano, and cumin; season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Place the pork in a marinating container and pour the marinade on top.
- Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 12 hours.
- Pour marinade into a saucepan and boil for at least 2 minutes; set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
- Remove pork from the marinade and let sit at room temperature.
- Grill the pork for 5 minutes per side, brushing with the remaining marinade after turning.
- Once cooked to desired doneness, let rest for 4 to 5 minutes before carving.
📖 Recipe
Mojo Marinated Cuban-Style Pork Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pork tenderloins
- 8 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tbsp. orange zest
- ½ cup olive oil
- ½ cup fresh orange juice
- ½ cup cilantro minced
- ¼ cup mint leaves minced
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Combine the olive oil, garlic, orange zest, orange juice, cilantro, mint, oregano, and cumin; season to taste with salt and pepper.8 garlic cloves, 2 tbsp. orange zest, ½ cup olive oil, ½ cup fresh orange juice, ½ cup cilantro, ¼ cup mint leaves, 2 tsp. dried oregano, 2 tsp. ground cumin, Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Place the pork in a marinating container and pour the marinade on top.2 pork tenderloins
- Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 12 hours.
- Pour marinade into a saucepan and boil for at least 2 minutes; set aside.
- Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
- Remove pork from the marinade and let sit at room temperature.
- Grill the pork for 5 minutes per side, brushing with the remaining marinade after turning.
- Once cooked to desired doneness, let rest for 4 to 5 minutes before carving.
Leave a Reply