Hawaiian-Style Slow-Roasted Pork

Hawaiian-Style Slow-Roasted Pork (Kalua Pig)

In Hawaii, this dish is known as Kalua Pig. Kalua (not to be confused with Kahlua) is a traditional Hawaiian roasting technique, wherein food is buried in underground ovens and cooked for hours by smoldering wood. As the traditional method is not exactly practical here, we've found a different way that still produces tasty results. This dish is great by itself (or with cooked cabbage, the way we usually eat it), but also try mixing in some barbecue sauce to make pulled pork sandwiches and pizzas. Yum!

Ingredients

  • 500g 보쌈용 돼지고기 (pork shoulder/butt)
  • 10 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • 15ml (1 tablespoon) liquid smoke
  • 235ml (1 cup) water

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 160˚C.
  2. On a large sheet of foil, place the pork shoulder, fat side up. Slash the pork and fill the holes with garlic cloves. Cover the pork with liquid smoke, then sprinkle salt on all sides.
  3. Fold the foil up to cover the pork from the bottom, then use another sheet of foil to seal it from the top as well.
  4. Pour the water in the a large baking dish, and place the pork in the center. Bake at 160˚C for 1 hour, then turn down to 150˚C and cook for about another 1.5–2 hours (depending on the size of the pork). When done, leave in oven for 30 minutes.
  5. Take out of oven and carefully unwrap foil. There will be some juices sitting in the foil, reserve about 1/4 cup and dispose of the rest (along with the foil). With two forks, mash the garlic and shred the pork. Pour reserved juice over the shredded pork.

Notes & Tips

Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the pork. For my 500g of pork, 2.5 hours cooking time plus 30 minutes resting in the oven did the trick. The pork shown above came from www.foodmart.co.kr (~11000원) but I have also seen a suitable cut Costco. The liquid smoke used here was bought in the U.S., but I have also seen suitable substitutes at www.ilovecookie.co.kr.
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