Anyone else tried the 10 minute cooking school? (Pueco Pebil)

Not sure about the banana leaves in the UK and it looks like all that happens to them is they burn anyway so they were left out.

I used 1 sachet of Discovery Fajiya Mix as a substitute for the Anato Seeds, Cumin Seeds and All Spice because it has Cumin Seeds in it and a very red colour.

I think there needs to be more definition that a "cup" as a standard of measurement though, I guessed and used half a small glass and it was still a very thin mixture.

Some of the liquid seeped out and burned onto the baking dish while it was cooking but the whole thing was gorgeous.

www.mapsofwar.com/ind/history-of-religion.html (Sim Virus)

I've been making Puerco Pibil (or in my case, Carne Pibil- see below) almost since the movie first came out on DVD, and it has become, by far, the family's number one favorite- I can even get my 20-year old daughter to come home when she knows I'm cooking it! I highly recommend it- it's a little labor-intensive in the preparation phase, but after that is very low-maintenance and is well worth the effort!

Some changes/recommendations-
I'm Jewish, so I use beef (thus the reference to Carne, above). I marinade it long enough that any good cut of beef will do, but I usually use two 2.5 pound cuts of London Broil. Whatever you do, make sure it's a meat that will stand up to 12+ hours of marinading and several hours of cooking. Flank steak will fall apart, as would the better quality cuts.

Annato seed is absolutely non-negotiable, it is the heart and soul of this dish- there are dozens of spice companies that sell it via the internet, and it is relatively cheap.

The other spices (cumin, allspice, whole cloves, etc.) are best if freshly ground, but I suppose the pre-ground stuff would work.

The vinegar is vital for the marinade process- the orange and lemon juices are acids that break down the tissues of the meat,tenderizing it. The vinegar, on the other hand, is a base that slowly neutralizes the acid. The flavor of the spices is so pungent that there is never any residual flavor whatsoever.

I've never used the banana leaves, can't imagine they add anything to the dish.

I rarely make it with the chili peppers, but if you do, fresh jalapenos are perfect.

Marinade as long as you can. I usually make the marinade in the afternoon, put the meat in a large ziplock, pour the marinade in, close the bag, double-bag it into another ziplock, put it in the fridge, and then go out for dinner. I get it in the oven around noon the next day, after around 18 hours in the marinade. Then I leave it in the oven for at least four hours at 250 degrees. This is a great weekend dish, and it's easy to break up the prep and the cooking over the course of two afternoons.

Finally, I started adding about a cup and a half of water to the meat after the marinading, before putting it into the oven. This makes the juice much less pasty after cooking, and is a nice "gravy" to put over the rice.

Invest in an electric coffee grinder to grind the annato seeds (and the other fresh spices if you choose)- it is absolutely the only way to get them ground up, they're like little pebbles otherwise.

Magnificent B'stard

They say you're judged by the strength of your enemies.

I got banana leaves from a Mexican grocery store; the ones I found were frozen and had be thawed. Also did the coffee grinder for the ancihote seeds. I marinated it for half a day, and wrapped it pretty thoroughly in the leaves, but after leaving it in the oven for the recommended time it came out a bit dry. Tender, but wasn't as moist as it looked on TV.

Need to find the real thing sometime. :)