Braised Pork in Orange Sauce (Carne de Puerco a la Naranja)

Updated Oct. 11, 2023

Total Time
1 hour 40 minutes
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
1 hour 20 minutes
Rating
5(21)
Comments
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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • 3pounds boned pork shoulder, cut in 1-inch cubes
  • 2tablespoons vegetable cooking oil
  • 2tablespoons caramel coloring (see recipe)
  • 3cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
  • 6green onion or scallion tops, sliced on the diagonal
  • Peel of 1 orange, white part discarded, cut in thin juliennes
  • Peel of ½ lemon, white part discarded, cut in thin juliennes
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • 2cups of freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 13-inch stick cinnamon
  • ½teaspoon freshly ground allspice
  • 1sprig fresh thyme, or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2bay leaves
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • ½teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • 1tablespoon flour, mixed with 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
  • Unpeeled orange slices or wedges for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oil in a large pot, add pork cubes and saute over medium-high heat until cubes start to brown, about 10 minutes. The cubes may give off a lot of water; if so, continue cooking and stirring until water evaporates. Add caramel coloring and continue cooking and stirring until pieces are a rich brown. Do not let caramel coloring burn.

  2. Step 2

    Add all the remaining ingredients except the flour and orange juice paste. Stir to mix well. Then add flour paste and mix well so there are no lumps in the sauce. Lower heat to barely simmering, cover pan and leave to cook 1 hour or longer, until pork cubes are tender and sauce is thick and unctuous.

  3. Step 3

    Serve immediately, removing bay leaves, cinnamon stick and fresh thyme sprig. Garnish with thin slices of unpeeled orange or orange wedges, and serve with rice and beans, and West Indian vegetables, such as yams, yautia and malanga.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
21 user ratings
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Comments

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use brown sugar in place of the whole caramelized sugar process

Excellent taste! Next time i will extend the cooking time to 75 min for getting the meat perfect .

Fantastic!!! and fairly easy to make. Don't scrimp on the cooking time. It's worth the patience to wait until the meat almost falls apart. It's REALLY GOOD the 2nd+ day. I served it with microwavable Bombay Lentils and Uncle Ben's 90-sec.Chicken Rice - tacky but perfect.

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Credits

Adapted from "Creole Caribbean Cookery" by Kenneth Gardnier; Grafton Books, London, 1986

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