Pernil de Ryan

[Charcuteryan]

Wanna see what this thing can do?

Its called a china box. They sell them online, but I made this one myself. Its a cooker. It has yet to fail me. So now its time to put up or shut up. Im going to go David Blaine on some pork shoulder tomorrow for my friend fishawn. I will share the whole process with you as a thank you for all the help you've given me. If your thinking "so what, I dont have a china box," don't pass over this one. The china box is basically a charcoal oven, so if you have an oven, you can do this. Though there is a strange magic about the box that turns out meat like no other cooker Ive seen. I dont know the scientific reason for this, and I dont really care, Its just how it is.
Im going to make authentic Puerto-Rican Pernil. There is prep work to be done tonight so lets get started. Shall we?
First ill make the oil. Its called annatto oil. This needs to cool so that is why it is first. "Whats annatto?" You say. I get it from the spanish market down the street. It comes in two forms: a paste (on the left) and as seeds (on the right). You will need the seeds for this. Ive tried the paste and it doesn't work. Although the paste is good for many things, but thats a different story.
Anatto Oil: place 2/3 Cup of vegetable oil in a small pot on medium heat. After the oil heats up a bit, toss in 1/3 Cup of annatto seeds. Let simmer for 10 minutes. They should sizzle around and turn the oil a dark orange color. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temp.
When the oil is cool, strain out the seeds and pour into a jar. This is "annatto oil." I warn you that this stuff will stain everything it gets on. I mean EVERYTHING! Your hands, counter, cutting board, bowls, and yes, the pork shoulder.
Next I will make the "sazon" aka; adobo, rub
Sazon:
1/3 cup kosher salt
2 Tbsp. White pepper
2 Tbsp. Ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. Dried Parsley
1 1/2 Tbsp. ground cumin
1 Tbsp. Dried Mexican oregano
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp onion powder
Mix this all together to make Sazon
Now its time to prep the pork shoulder. I have a 10 lbs. shoulder. I like to use the arm portion with the skin on. It gets nice and crispy. First I wash it and pat it dry. Then I stab about 10 deep holes into it and press a half a clove of garlic into each one with my thumb. Next score the skin in a criss cross pattern. Now rub the sazon over the entire surface and place into a large plastic bag or dish. Then pour the annatto oil over the whole thing, making sure to coat all of it. It will turn orange. I like to use a bag because its cleaner and I can squish it around to be sure to get it all. Now into the fridge it goes until its time to take it out to rest.
Just one last thing. I know, this is a lot, but its worth it. There is a sour orange injection I will use tomorrow before I place it in the china box, but im going to make it tonight so its ready.
Sour orange injection:
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup orange juice (without pulp so it doesn't clog the injector)
Mix these together and refrigerate until ready to use. I dont like to put that much acid into the meat overnight so thats why I wont use it until right before cooking.
Thats all. Piece o cake right! See ya tomorrow...

[DanMcG]

Interesting so far...I'll be looking forward to the next installment!

[dsgarner06]

So far so good.... I'm gonna have to try that Anatto Oil, sounds delicious. My friend has a rather big china box and has roasted a spring pig in it, which was friggin awesome! Moist, succulent and very tasty. Can't wait to see how your shoulder turns out... but from the looks it sure is promising!

[barkonbutts]

very interesting!!

[bwerth42]

That looks great! I will definitely follow this thread. You have me very interested to learn more.

[Mark R]

Cool start, lookin good! Like that Cajun Microwave too!

[THE ICEMAN]

Should be interesting.

I use the annato seeds all the time when I cook up a batch of Puerco Pibil. An interesting flavor.

[PGSmoker]

That looks awesome!

I am really looking forward to seeing the China box in action!

Can you give us a really good look at the box, maybe rundown how you made it and how it works?

Thanks,

Bill

[Meat Hunter]

I'm liking it so far.

[chefrob]

I use the annato seeds all the time when I cook up a batch of Puerco Pibil. An interesting flavor.

pretty much the same 'cept the pibil is mexican and is wrapped in banana leaves and buried.

[Fishawn]

Sweeet!

Great tutorial

[THE ICEMAN]

Should be interesting.

I use the annato seeds all the time when I cook up a batch of Puerco Pibil. An interesting flavor.

pretty much the same 'cept the pibil is mexican and is wrapped in banana leaves and buried.

I usually serve mine up on a bed of rice bhut to each his own.

[chefrob]

regular funny guy are ya.................

[Mark R]

I usually serve mine up on a bed of rice bhut to each his own.

bhut or bhutt, I just wanna have enough t's on my plate ya know?

[Charcuteryan]

The method

Here is the box. It is constructed of 3/4in plywood. The inside is lined with sheet aluminum. The fire pan is a stainless tray. I did not make the fire pan, because I do not have sheet metal equipment. I found it in a junk pile and kept it with the build in mind. I dont see why you couldnt use a chaffing dish. I screwed the metal onto each panel before assembly and bent it around the four edges. Then I screwed the whole thing together and added legs, hardware, and fire grate.

I got up at 4am and took the pork out of the fridge to warm up. I injected it with the sour orange.
At 8 am I placed the shoulder into the box skin side down because I will be flipping it in 2 hours so it will be right side up when its done. I then placed the fire pan back on and lit a full chimney of briquettes. (This is the only time briquettes are allowed on my property) They work better because they burn longer and more even. When the chimney was fully lit I dumped it into the pan and spread it into an even layer. Cooking time starts now. The box MUST stay closed until flipping time. Its 8:30 am. Outside temp is 39 F.