If you are looking to roast a piece of meat for the holidays this year, take a look at this recipe for Mexican pork adobo. This pork leg (or pierna de puerco as we call it in Spanish) is marinated for a few hours and then slathered in homemade adobo sauce. Then, it is roasted in the oven and ready to serve for dinner!
New Year’s Eve is a big celebration in Mexico accompanied by food, music, and fireworks. Families gather to celebrate the end of the old year (“el año viejo”) and to welcome the new one. The firecrackers start just a few minutes before midnight, the glasses of wine start to get filled up, and right at 12:00 am, everyone cheers and toasts to the new year, hugging each other and wishing the best for everyone in the brand new year.
In This Post
Classic Mexican Traditions For New Years
It is also a time when people do some of the many traditions in the Mexican culture, like eating 12 grapes by the time the clock strikes at midnight, which represents 12 wishes, or wearing red underwear to attract love. One thing that many families still do is to clean and paint their houses and get rid of old things to start the new year fresh.
But, there’s one other thing that is also traditional in Mexico which is the “recalentado”, meaning the leftovers that are reheated the next day. Yes, when cooking dinner for New Year’s Eve you keep in mind that the next day, some friends or relatives will stop by to wish you a happy new year and for the recalentado (leftovers), which sometimes tastes better the next day.
Roasted pork leg, tamales, and pork leg in adobo sauce are some of the dishes that many families prefer for New Year’s Eve dinner since the leftovers are really tasty.
Frequently Asked Question About Pork Adobo
Before I share my adobo de puerco recipe, here are a few questions I've been asked about homemade pork adobo.
What kind of meat is used with adobo?
You will typically find adobo sauce being used with pork more than anything. But, with that being said, I have done a pollo asado in adobo in the past and it was delicious!
Can I only use pork leg with adobo sauce?
No, I've also used pork ribs in adobo sauce as well.
Do I have to make my own adobo sauce?
I would highly recommend it you can. If not, you can always find some in a can or jar at your local Spanish market.
Roasted Pork Adobo Leg Recipe
Here is the list of ingredients you will need...
- Pork leg (skin removed)
For The Marinade:
- Garlic cloves
- White onion
- Bay leaves
- Dried oregano
- Ground black pepper
- Ground cumin
- Fresh orange juice
- Cider vinegar
- Coarse salt
- Aluminum foil or baking bag
For The Adobo Sauce:
- Ancho peppers (cleaned and deveined)
- Pasilla peppers (cleaned and deveined)
- Orange juice
- Cider vinegar
- Water
- Coarse salt
- Melted lard
Please note: For exact measurements of the ingredients listed above, scroll down to the recipe card located at the bottom of this post!
How To Make Pierna De Puerco Adobada: Step By Step Tutorial
To make things easier for you, I am going to breakdown the directions to this recipe into sections.
Marinate The Pork Leg
- First, pierce the pork leg with the help of a sharp knife.
- Roast the garlic and onion in a skillet.
- Transfer the roasted onion and garlic along with bay leaves, oregano, black pepper, cumin, orange juice, vinegar, and salt into a blender.
- Process until you have a smooth sauce, almost like a paste.
- Transfer the pork leg to a large baking dish and cover with the marinade, making sure it gets inside the incisions and penetrates the meat.
Make The Adobo Sauce
- Roast the peppers on a griddle or comal over medium heat. Remember that this is a quick step to avoid bitter flavors from burnt peppers.
- Place the peppers in a small saucepan and cover with water.
- Simmer for about 8 minutes until they are soft. Let them cool for about 10 minutes.
- Drain the peppers and place them in your blender with the orange juice, vinegar, and water.
- Puree the mixture until it is smooth and season to taste with the salt.
- After you have made the sauce, remove the pork leg from the refrigerator and let stand until room temperature.
- Preheat oven 20 minutes before roasting at 350F.
Add The Adobo To The Pork Leg
- Using a pastry brush, spread the melted lard on the meat, making sure to cover it all around.
- Then, cover the pork leg all over with half of the adobo sauce and place it in the preheated oven.
- Cover meat with aluminum foil. If using the baking bag, make sure to tie the bag and make the incisions according to the package instructions.
Keep Basting The Pork While It Cooks
- After 1 hour, turn the meat and baste it with its own juices. Baste the meat one hour later and turn the pork leg over.
- Turn the meat at least twice during the cooking process. It is very important to keep the baking dish tightly covered with aluminum foil to have a moistened meat.
- When the meat can easily be pierced by a fork, then it’s almost done. It will take about 5 hours. I like to have a moist, almost falling-apart meat.
Roast The Pork Adobo For The Last 10 Minutes
- When you see that the meat is done, uncover and turn the oven temperature up to 450F. Roast for about 8-10 minutes to have browned meat. Make sure you don’t burn it. It will take just a few minutes.
- Remove meat and let stand about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
What To Serve With Roasted Pork Adobo Leg
When I serve pork adobo, I love to slice it up and serve it with some of the remaining adobo sauce that was unused. To do so:
- Place the leftover juices from the baking pan and the remaining adobo sauce in a medium-size skillet and simmer for about 8 minutes.
- Taste, add more salt if needed, and add more of the spices used for the marinade if you wish to.
Serve a spoonful over the top of the pork and enjoy!
Cooking Tips:
- If you see that it’s getting dry, add more of the adobo sauce.
- The cooking time will depend on the pork leg’s size and weight. The average baking time is 1 hour of baking for every 2 lbs. of meat.
More Authentic Mexican Recipes To Enjoy
If you enjoyed this recipe for pork adobo, take a look at some of these other authentic Mexican recipes:
- Mexican Pork Ribs In Adobo
- Shredded Pork In Achiote Sandwich
- Country Style Pork Ribs In A Spicy Tomato Sauce
- Cochito Al Horno
- Authentic Red Pork Tamales
I hope you make this recipe for Mexican pork leg in adobo sauce! If this recipe was of any help to you, come back to let me know your experience. Please leave us a comment done below and tell us all about it!
¡Buen provecho!
Mely,
📖 Recipe
Pierna de Puerco Adobada
Ingredients
- 1 PORK LEG ABOUT 10 LBS SKIN REMOVED
For the marinada:
- 10 garlic cloves
- ½ large white onion
- 6 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ cup fresh orange juice
- ½ cup cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon of coarse salt
- Aluminum foil or baking bag
For the Adobo Sauce
- 8 Ancho Peppers cleaned and deveined
- 6 Pasilla Peppers cleaned and deveined
- 2 cups of orange juice
- 1 cup cider vinegar
- 1 cup of water
- 1 tablespoon of coarse salt
- 3 tablespoons of melted lard
CHECK THE RECIPE VIDEO
Instructions
- First, pierce the pork leg with the help of a sharp knife.
- Roast the garlic and onion in a skillet. Transfer the roasted onion and garlic along with bay leaves, oregano, black pepper, cumin, orange juice, vinegar and salt into a blender. Process until you have a smooth sauce, almost like a paste.
- Transfer the Pork leg to a large baking dish and cover with the marinate sauce making sure it gets inside the incisions and penetrates the meat.
Now to the Adobo sauce instructions:
- Toast the peppers on a griddle or comal over a medium heat. Remember that this is a quick step to avoid bitter flavors from burnt peppers.
- Place the peppers in a small saucepan and cover with water. Simmer for about 8 minutes until they are soft. Let cool for about 10 minutes.
- Drain the peppers and place them in your blender with the orange juice, vinegar, and water. Puree until mixture is smooth and season to taste with the salt.
- Baking day, remove pork leg from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature. Preheat oven 20 minutes before roasting at 350F.
- Using a pastry brush, spread the melted lard on the meat, making sure to cover it all around. Then cover pork leg all over with half of the Adobo sauce and place in the preheated oven. Cover meat with aluminum foil. If using the baking bag, make sure to tie the bag and make the incisions according to the package instructions.
- After 1 hour, turn the meat and baste with its own juices, baste the meat one hour later and turn the pork leg over. Turn the meat at least twice during the cooking process. It is very important to keep the baking dish tightly covered with aluminum foil to have a moistened meat. If you see that it’s getting dry, add more of the adobo sauce. The cooking time will depend on the pork leg’s size and weight. The average baking time is 1 hour of baking for every 2 Lbs. of meat.
- When the meat can easily be pierced by a fork then it’s almost done. It will take about 5 hours. I like to have a moist, almost falling-apart meat. when you see that the meat is done, uncover and turn the oven temperature up to 450F. Roast for about 8-10 minutes to have browned meat. Make sure you don’t burn it. It will take just a few minutes. Remove meat and let stand about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
- Place leftover juices from the baking pan and the remaining adobo sauce in a medium-size skillet and simmer for about 8 minutes. Taste, add more salt if needed and add more of the spices used for the marinade if you wish to. Use this sauce to pour over the slices of meat when serving.
Video
Notes
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Dave
Wouldn’t this be perfect for a slow cooker? The meat in the oven is basically going to steam anyway, wrapped as it is. With the slow cooker, aluminum foil would be unnecessary.
Mely Martínez
Hello Dave,
Absolutely, you can make it in a slow cooker.
Corey
Hi There!
We are making this for Christmas Dinner. What sides do you recommend that pair well with roasted pork leg + adobo sauce? I read potatoes were common to eat with pork leg? would you recommend just roasted fingerling potatoes?
thank you!
Corey
Mely Martínez
Hello Corey,
People usually serve spaghetti with cream, elbow macaroni with cream or mashed potatoes. Plus a green salad.
Lizabeth
Hello, Mely. I have 2 questions:
#1. Since I can't purchase fresh pork leg where I love, could I substitute a pork shoulder roast (aka Boston butt)?
#2. Could this be prepared in a slow cooker, then browned in the oven?
Thank you in advance for you answers.
Mely Martínez
Hello Lizabeth,
Yes, you can use pork shoulder or even bake a pork loin. The cooking time for this last one will be shorter.
Yes, to your second question, if you have a large slow cooker you can cook it using the low setting to cook for about 5-6 hours.
Jerry Green
Hey! Lovely recipe! Should I be using dried/seco ancho and pasilla peppers or fresh? Thank you!
Mely Martínez
Hello,
The recipe use dried peppers.
Joni Schork
Made this recipe today with a 10# fresh ham (pork leg) I used a cooking bag. It turned out delicious! I made the following changes: I injected the marinade rather than just piercing with a knife. I added about 5 small cloves of garlic to the adobo sauce because I love garlic! Used fresh oregano in the marinade because I have it in my garden. I did not do the high temperature finish, it seemed fine without it. Note: In the US, at least in California, the dry pasilla chilies are called Chilie Negro.
GRuizD
Hola, Mely!
I tried looking for a pork leg at our local meat market. The young men I spoke to asked if I wanted a ham. They didn't have what I wanted to I purchased a pork loin. I hope this will work. I'm not too experienced in cooking large cuts of meat. I'm going to try not to ruin it.
Do you recommend adding more fat to the meat before roasting the loin?
Thank you!
Mely Martínez
Hello GRuizD,
You can use also pork shoulder, pork butt. Only if you want to add some fat, like making small incisions and insert small pieces of bacon.
GRuizD
Thank you! Thank you!
GRuizD
I made this for Christmas dinner and it was delicious! I used a 7 pound pork loin and doubled the sauce recipe. I made cuts in the loin and stuffed them with bacon pieces and marinated overnight. It baked for about 3 hours. I added some of those tiny potatoes about halfway. It was all so very good and special! Everyone loved it and I'll be making it again for a special occasion--- maybe when we can get together with friends and family, again! Gracias, Mely, y felice ano nuevo!
Georgia from New Braunfels, TX.
Mely Martínez
Hello Georgia,
Thank you for sharing how you cooked the pork loin. Happy New Year to you too!
Cynthia
Your recipe for Pork Leg Adobe is as Authentic as I have ever experienced to taste. I am interested in viewing your Cartinas Recipe. I am clearly enjoying your verbal presentation in a simple fashion.
CSwain
Julissa Alcantar
I always have had it with baby potatoes. When do I put these in the bag at the beginning? Midway???
Mely Martínez
Hello Julissa,
At midway of the cooking! Happy cooking!
Jennifer Hernandez
What do you recommend to serve as sides?
mmartinez
Hello Jennifer,
Mashed potatoes, spaghetti with cream, Christmas Apple Salad or any other salad you might like. Also, offer warm crusty rolls. In Mexico, bolillos are sometimes used.
John Cochrane
Good morning Mely;
Instead of Ancho chilies can I use Guajillo and or Mulatto?
mmartinez
Hello John,
If you don't find ancho, use mulato. They are the same poblano pepper, the difference is one is darker than the other. Guajillo has a lighter color and a very distinctive flavor. If you can only find guajillo it will still be delicious.
John Cochrane
Mely, this is arguably the BEST pork recipe I've ever made!!!
Even my wife, who ,loves my southern US pulled pork now asked for this instead!!!
I've tweaked the Adobo recipe a bit because the Ancho is too hot for me wife (but that's another story.:))
I use Pork Butt roast instead of a leg
Instead of the Ancho I use 4 Guajillo and 4 Mulato chilies plus 2 tsp of Ancho powder
I find I do not need the cup of water, but I do add 1 TBSP of sugar.
I also cook the pork over charcoal for an added layer of flavour and authenticity (2 hours per pound at 225F) for the last two hours I wrap in foil and put back over the heat.
After a rest I then pull the pork, mix in the Adodo sauce to lightly coat the pork
Serve with sliced cabbage, tortillas and a wedge of lime - AMAZING!!!
This Sunday is Canada Day - I'm cooking this for 35 of our friends. 🙂
Thank you;
John
mmartinez
Hello John,
Thank you for sharing all the tips and tricks to your adaptation. Your thinking about the smoking part makes my mouth water. I hope this information is helpful for other cooks. Happy cooking!
John Cochrane
There's still time for you to come to Ottawa and join us!!! 🙂
I forgot to mention, I also strain the sauce, for that extra velvety look and taste. . . it also removes any lingering bitterness.
Leftovers are used as the filler for Tamales!!! 🙂
Magdalena
Hola!! Quiero intentar hacer este roast para mi cena de Navidad, he estado preguntando en la tiendas que acostumbro y no tienen "pork Leg" así con ese nombre pero no estoy segura qué otro corte puedo usar. O hay otro nombre para la pierna de puerco? De antemano, gracias!!
mmartinez
Hola Magdalena,
Te conteste por correo. Checa tu correo por favor.
Anonymous
After the ingredients list, there is a note for marinating using a baking bag. What is the process for marinating without a baking bag? Do you just put the pork in a large baking dish, covered with foil, and let it marinate inside the fridge? It sounds delicious!
mmartinez
Hello,
Yes, exactly the way you describe it. Place in a large bowl or baking dish cover with foil. Thank you!
Happy cooking!
Roberto Gutierrez
Hola Mely, felicidades en este fin de ano, y gracias por tanta ayuda en la cocina y mas. Tus recetas son invaluables para conservar nuestra historia y nuestras tradiciones. AHORA: tengo un pedido. En casa de la abuela, (General Zuazua, N.L.) se hacia un cocido llamado "cuajo". Yo pienso que era un plato muy antiguo; La sangre del becerro se separaba de la carne pero luego se utilizaba en una salsa. Lo conoces?
mmartinez
Hola Roberto,
FIjate que lo he comido, de hecho a mi esposo le gustaba mucho ir a comer "cuajo" cuando viviamos en Monterrey. Pero no se la receta. Lo voy a investigar y te aviso. Saludos!
Patricia J Cruz
I have made that recipe. It is very simple. However, I quit preparing it when I was studying Theology. As Christians. We are not supposed to eat/drink the blood of any animal.
gregory anderson
In New Mexico, as well as in Nogales Mexico where we ate at a restaurant past the tourist sections and out in the neighborhoods, the flavors of pork adobada/adovada remain the same. Marinated pork chunks in chile sauce, we like it with papas and onions roasted in it as well, using pork butt though and most often pre-sliced. I think the flavor goes out of this world if one utilizes bay leaf in the recipe.
But I'm anxious to do it like a grown-up now. hahaha Yes, this intrigues me to do the whole leg. To those afraid of breaking God's law, I am a Christian devoted to God and can testify that any modern meat processing first includes the bleeding of blood from the animal, draining it before cold storage/slicing or grinding. That means there is no blood. Myoglobin, a protein that carries oxygen, and turns red when oxygenated, but not blood. Even the Orthodox Jews eat even rare beef steak. God doesn't care anymore about meat offered to idols anymore either unless you have a problem with it. Whatever does not proceed from faith is in, that's what Apostle Paul wrote.
Rare steak shows myoglobin, undercooked chicken shows myoglobin. English blood sausage, however, is made from animal blood.
Mely Martínez
Hello Gregory,
Thanks for stopping by and writing about the Myoglobin. BTW I hope you cook the whole pork leg.
Claudia Quintanilla
Hola Roberto mi esposo es de General Zuazua y el cuajo es de carne de res no lleva sangre es muy parecido a los cuajitos de Cadereyta mas bien es como un cortadillo con mucho oregano y otras especies.
Mely Martínez
Hola Claudia,
Muchas gracias por tu comentario, suena muy rica la receta que mencionas.
Mexiguat
I too put it in an oven bag - I did a 15 pound leg and I left for 5.5 hours but could have took it out sooner but either way it was delicious. Only thing I did different was add some chicken boullion, dried oregano, achiote powder and lemon juice to the sauce both to pour over while cooking and the one you cook on stove.
mmartinez
Hello Mexiguat,
Great additions to the sauce!
The jacka
I made this for new years eve on 2015 and it came out so delicious.... 11lbs took me 5 and a half hours to cook using a turkey bag.... Meat fell right off the bone, with the suace over it. I was a winner. Will do this again!
mmartinez
Hello,
Thanks a lot for coming back and comment about the recipe. I'm sure people will find helpful to know about the cooking time using the bag. I'm so glad you enjoy it!
Happy cooking!
Mexiguat
Ok thank you!
Mexiguat
What is the basting/roasting process if using an oven bag? What about cooking time for a 12 to 13 lb leg?
mmartinez
Hello,
Even though you use a cooking bag, you will have to open it to baste the roast. For a leg that big (12-13 pounds) about 4 to 4 1/2 hours. The best way to find out if it is completely cook, is buying a meat thermometer. Happy cooking!
Whitney Chong
I made this to the T and I'm worried that it's too much vinegar. It smells so good!
mmartinez
Hello Whitney,
The end results shouldn't have a strong vinegar flavor or taste, since it will cook and some evaporate while baking.
Thank you for trying the recipe. 🙂
Rosa Cardenas
Can we cook this in a slow cooker?
Mely Martinez
Hello Rosa,
I had never tried, but it can work out.
Happy Cooking!
Patricia J Cruz
Yes, it can. I have done it b4. Turns out great!!
Patricia J Cruz
Yes, I cook it in a crock pot all the time. Only thing is, you will not get the "toasted" result of baking. Good luck!
This is a New Year's Eve dinner, bake it in the oven!!!
Prieta
Happy New Year Mely! This recalentado looks so delicious, iI wish I was your neighbor!
Mely
hola Prieta, gracias por Los buenos deseos, lo mismo para ti y ti familia.