3 Guys from Miami Cuban Food Recipe: Mojo (Cuban Marinade) (Cuban)

Cuban Marinade

Jorge: There are many variations of mojo. It is the signature marinade of Cuba and it finds its way into many different dishes.

Raúl: Many mojos do not include oil. When you are roasting a pig, the oil is not necessary -- there's plenty of fat in the pig!

Glenn: However, for chicken, fish, beef, and so on, a mojo with oil will help prevent the meat from drying out in the marinade.

Raúl: Cubans also call mojo by its diminutive -- "mojito." This can be confusing to some, because there is a drink of the same name.

Jorge: With oil or without, the key element is sour orange, an almost bitter orange that grows throughout Cuba. Many Cubans brought the sour orange to South Florida, where it also flourishes.

Ingredients

Garlic Cloves
Salt
Black peppercorns (whole)
Oregano
Sour orange juice
(In a pinch, use two parts orange to one part lemon and one part lime)

The key to making mojo is in the proportions. The nice thing is that you can make exactly the amount you need.

For a pig, we use four or five large HEADS of garlic! That's approximately 70 to 80 cloves.

Use a mortar and pestle. Add approximately ten cloves of garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, some black peppercorns, and some oregano. Mash them all together into a paste. Scoop the paste out into a separate bowl. Continue this process until all of the garlic (all five heads) is mashed.

Stir in sour orange juice. (Five heads of garlic should be added to about 1 quart of sour orange juice to make a mojo for a whole pig.) Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or longer. Use immediately to season the pig or refrigerate for later use.

Mojo With Oil

Ingredients

3 heads garlic
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 1/2 cups sour orange juice
(In a pinch, use two parts orange to one part lemon and one part lime)
1 cup minced onion
2 teaspoons oregano
1 cup Spanish olive oil

Mash garlic, salt, and peppercorns into a paste, using a mortar and pestle. Stir in sour orange juice, onion, and oregano. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or longer.

In a saucepan, heat olive oil to medium hot (approximately 280 degrees F) and remove from heat. Carefully whisk in the garlic-orange juice mixture (prepared above) until well blended.