Afro-Latina Chef Toni Chapman Shares Her Pernil Recipe for the Holidays
Courtesy Nicholas Green
Pernil is everything to Afro-Latina chef Toni Chapman.
Author of the New York Times bestselling cookbook Everything’s Good, she remembers sneaking into the kitchen before heading to her Titi Carmen’s house for New Year’s Eve. Because her Titi migh’ve made the best arroz con gandules, but Chapman’s abuelita made the best pernil. And she couldn’t wait to taste a bit of that crispy cuerito.
As an adult, this love for the food that she grew up with continues. She’s a culinary creator, recipe developer, and now a cookbook author. Known as The Moody Foody on Instagram and TikTok, and with over 4 million followers combined, she leans into nostalgia and homestyle foods that echo what she grew up with.
In Everything’s Good she shares 100 recipes that are approachable and weeknight-friendly. But she also shares recipes that plenty of us grew up with including Pollo Guisado, Creamy White Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde, Juicy Red Sofrito Chicken Empanadas, and a delicious pernil.
To celebrate the release of Everything’s Good, Chapman shared with Remezcla the ultimate pernil recipe that will be the hero of your Thanksgiving, Noche Buena, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve. Maybe when you’ve cooked it, you’ll be the one sneaking into the kitchen to grab some cuerito before the family comes over. If so, heed Chapman’s words, “The cuerito needs to be DRY! Keep it dry or it will NOT get crispy.”
Pernil (Puerto Rican Roast Pork) Recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 2⁄3 cup vegetable oil or extra-virgin
- olive oil
- 16 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- ¼ cup Abuela’s Green Sofrito
- (page 233)
- 2 teaspoons adobo seasoning
- 2 teaspoons Maggi seasoning
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2½ teaspoons Goya Sazón (culantro y
- achiote)
- 1 bone-in pork shoulder roast
- (8 to 10 pounds)
Marinate the pork: In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, garlic, sofrito, adobo seasoning, Maggi seasoning, oregano, 2 teaspoons of the salt, and 2 teaspoons of the Sazón.
Use a sharp knife to carefully peel back the skin of the pork, leaving it partially attached. Use the knife to evenly poke 8 holes all over the top of the meat (deep enough to insert garlic cloves). Flip the pork over and evenly poke 8 holes all over the bottom of the meat. Rub the marinade all over the pork, including underneath the skin, then place the large chunks of garlic inside the holes.
Pat the top of the skin dry with a paper towel. Season the top of the skin with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon Sazón.
Place the pork in a large roasting pan and cover it with aluminum foil. Transfer to the refrigerator and marinate overnight.
Slow-roast the pernil: Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Remove the meat from the refrigerator and pat the skin dry with a paper towel. Re-cover the pork with aluminum foil and bake for 4 to 5 hours, until the meat is knife-tender.
Uncover the meat, increase the oven temperature to 375°F, and continue roasting for 1 hour, until the skin is crispy and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the pork reads 145°F.
Remove the pork from the oven. Let it rest for 15 minutes, then use ovenproof gloves or tongs to pull the meat off the bone and shred it. Serve each portion with a piece of skin on top.
Additional tips and tricks:
- Size matters! Depending on how large your pernil is, you’ll need to adjust how much seasoning you use and the overall cook time. I definitely recommend an 8-to 10-pound pork shoulder, and if you want to serve more people, make two instead of buying a larger piece.
- I’ve made many pernils in my lifetime. Along the way, I picked up a trick to give you more of that crunchy skin and to help it stay crispy: pinning down the skin. You can use potato baking nails, nails that come with injectors, or anything sharp enough to poke holes and secure the skin to the meat. Doing this ensures that the skin doesn’t shrink and allows the skin to stay flat and even so that it gets nice and crispy.