North American Pork Recipes
A tour of North America through pork: 27 authentic dishes, each tied to a real country and region, each with its cultural story and dietary swaps built in.
27 recipes
Cochinita PibilYucatán, Mexico · medium · 7 h 55 minPork marinated blaze-orange in achiote and sour orange, wrapped in banana leaves and roasted until it shreds itself.
Cochinita Pibil Green Chile StewNew Mexico, United States · easy · 1 h 35 minPork simmered with roasted green chiles and potatoes, the smell of a New Mexico autumn in a pot.
Green Chile Stew Gallo PintoManagua, Nicaragua · easy · 30 minDay-old rice fried with red beans until speckled like a painted rooster, Nicaragua’s twice-daily heartbeat.
Gallo Pinto MangúCibao, Dominican Republic · easy · 40 minSilky mashed green plantains under pickled red onions, the Dominican breakfast that carries the day.
Mangú MofongoSan Juan, Puerto Rico · medium · 45 minFried green plantains mashed with garlic and crackling pork, mounded and filled with garlicky shrimp or stew.
Mofongo CarnitasMichoacán, Mexico · medium · 2 h 45 minPork slow-confit in its own fat with orange and bay until meltingly tender, then crisped, Michoacán’s Sunday-market glory.
Oil DownSt. George's, Grenada · medium · 1 h 55 minGrenada's one-pot national dish: breadfruit, salted meat, dumplings, and callaloo cooked down in coconut milk and turmeric.
Oil Down Saint Lucian BouyonCastries, Saint Lucia · medium · 9 h 55 minA one-pot soup-stew of salted pig tail, beans, ground provisions, dumplings, and greens in a coconut broth.
Saint Lucian Bouyon Cretons sur Pain GrilléQuébec, Canada · medium · 3 h 30 minA Québécois spiced pork-and-onion spread, cold from the fridge, smeared thick on hot buttered toast with a smear of mustard.
Cretons sur Pain Grillé Cuban SandwichHavana, Cuba · medium · 25 minRoast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard pressed in Cuban bread until crisp and molten, the classic cubano.
Cuban Sandwich Arroz con GandulesSan Juan, Puerto Rico · medium · 1 hRice cooked with pigeon peas, sofrito, and pork in one pot, forming a prized crust, Puerto Rico's national dish.
Tamales ColoradosSacatepéquez (Antigua), Guatemala · advanced · 2 h 30 minSoft corn masa tinted with a red recado of tomato, chile, and toasted seeds, wrapped around pork with an olive, and steamed in banana leaf.
Tamales Colorados Pudding and SouseBridgetown, Barbados · medium · 4 hBarbados' Saturday lunch: pickled pork brightened with lime, cucumber, onion, and hot pepper, served cold alongside a spiced steamed sweet potato pudding.
Pudding and Souse TourtièreQuébec, Canada · medium · 1 h 40 minThe Québécois meat pie of the Christmas réveillon: ground pork and beef bound with mashed potato and warm spices, baked in a double crust.
GriotOuest (Port-au-Prince), Haiti · medium · 6 hHaiti's beloved fried pork: shoulder washed in citrus, marinated in epis, simmered tender, then fried until the edges crackle, served with fiery pikliz.
Griot NacatamalManagua, Nicaragua · advanced · 5 hNicaragua's grand Sunday tamal: seasoned corn masa filled with marinated pork, rice, potato, tomato, and mint, wrapped in plantain leaves and steamed for hours.
PernilSan Juan, Puerto Rico · medium · 14 h 30 minPuerto Rico's holiday centrepiece: a bone-in pork shoulder seasoned to the core with garlic, oregano, and adobo, slow-roasted until tender with crackling cuerito.
ChifrijoSan José, Costa Rica · easy · 50 minA layered bowl of rice, beans, crisp fried pork, and pico de gallo with tortilla chips, Costa Rica's favorite bar snack.
Chifrijo Bahamian Peas 'n' RiceNassau, Bahamas · easy · 1 hPigeon peas and rice browned in a tomato and thyme base with bacon, the signature side that anchors nearly every Bahamian plate.
Bahamian Peas 'n' Rice Bermuda Peas and RiceHamilton, Bermuda · easy · 1 h 5 minBlack-eyed peas and rice cooked with bacon, onion, tomato, and thyme; the Bermudian side that shows up beside fish, chicken, and at every summer get-together.
Bermuda Peas and Rice Yuca Frita con ChicharrónSan Salvador, El Salvador · medium · 1 h 5 minA Salvadoran street-food plate: boiled-then-fried cassava with crisp pork chicharrón, crowned with tangy curtido and fresh tomato chimol.
Yuca Frita con Chicharrón Anafre (Honduran Bean, Cheese and Chorizo Dip)San Pedro Sula, Honduras · easy · 30 minRefried red beans, crumbled chorizo and melting quesillo kept bubbling in a clay pot over coals, scooped up with crisp fried corn tortilla chips.
Anafre (Honduran Bean, Cheese and Chorizo Dip) Shucos (Guatemalan Street Hot Dogs)Guatemala City, Guatemala · easy · 40 minA charcoal-toasted roll spread thickly with smooth guacamol, piled with grilled hot dogs and chorizo, soft boiled cabbage, and finished with mayonnaise, mustard and ketchup.
Soupe aux Pois (Québécois Yellow Pea Soup)Québec, Canada · easy · 11 h 20 minWhole yellow peas soaked overnight and simmered for hours with salt pork, onion, carrot, celery, bay and summer savory into a thick golden soup, the first bowl of a sugar shack meal.
Croquetas de Jamón (Cuban Ham Croquettes)Havana, Cuba · medium · 5 h 15 minA thick béchamel with onion, nutmeg and finely ground ham, chilled until firm, rolled into small logs, coated twice in egg and cracker meal and fried deep gold, served with lime.
Chojín (Guatemalan Radish and Chicharrón Salad)Guatemala City, Guatemala · easy · 20 minFinely chopped radishes, tomato, onion and fresh mint dressed with sour orange and lime, tossed at the last moment with crisp crumbled pork rinds and eaten on tostadas or tortillas.
Picadillo de Papa (Costa Rican Potato and Chorizo Hash)San José, Costa Rica · easy · 50 minSmall cubes of potato boiled just tender, then cooked with chorizo, onion, garlic, achiote, grated carrot and cilantro into a soft, orange-tinted picadillo served with rice, beans and tortillas.
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