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    Published: Apr 25, 2018 · Modified: Dec 16, 2019 by Neyssa

    Cuban Pernil Instant Pot Recipe (Cuban Pulled Pork Instant Pot Recipe)

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    An Easy To Make Cuban Pernil Instant Pot Recipe a.k.a Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe | Instant Pot Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    You guys! I'm sooooo happy, guess what I finally purchased? An Instant Pot! I feel so behind in the IP game, pero, it is what it is. I got the biggest one Instant Pot has to offer, and with my family of 7, it is perfect!

    Now, of course, you know the first recipe I had to try out in my new Instant Pot is my Cuban pernil recipe! I admit, for this recipe, I went ahead and took an 8 pound pork shoulder and cut it into 3 huge chunks. I took the third biggest chunk, that also had the bone and made a separate recipe for it. So, what I used is about 4 pounds, and it was made in 90 minutes. Shut the front door man. 90 minutes?! Like what?! I'm hooked. Seriously, hooked.

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe | Instant Pot Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    I went easy on this recipe, since I didn't know what to expect. I seasoned my pork with lots of dried oregano, lots of salt and pepper, about 6 cloves of garlic roughly chopped, a little bit of cumin, about a cup of white vinegar, and the juice of four ripe limes. I massaged it all into the pork as well as I could, covered it with aluminum foil and forgot left it in the fridge for 2 days, but 1-12 hours is more than enough.

    What is an Instant Pot and How Do I Use It?

    If you're wondering what an Instant Pot is, it's an electric pressure cooker. Depending on which model you buy, they have different settings which gives you the opportunity to make basically anything in it. Like. For. Real. You can saute things, make rice, yogurt, meat, soup, and even cheesecake in it. The neat thing is that on Amazon, they have tons of gadgets to put in it to make the most use out of it. I just bought a basket, and made mashed potatoes the other day (oh so freaking good). Guess how long that took? 10 minutes! (From what I recall... give or take a few minutes, give this mama a break!)

    The thing is, this recipe takes 90 minutes to make, which will show as 1:30 on the Instant Pot using the meat setting. It takes anywhere between 5-15 minutes for the pressure to build within the Instant Pot before the timer officially begins. Then, when the 90 minutes of cook time is over, you must use the natural steam release (you don't move the top valve, but you MUST turn the Instant Pot off so the pressure stops building and it begins to release).

    A lot of people are terrified of the Instant Pot because of the horror stories with the older stove top pressure cookers. The neat thing about the electric pressure cookers is that on top, they have this thing that when still up shows that there is pressure still in it, and you will NOT be able to open the lid, until it drops down. (I don't know the name for it, leave it in the comments if you know.) Talk about assurance! Hashtag #lovemyInstapot

    (Here's a link for more Instant Pot tips! )

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe | Instant Pot Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    This is a phone shot. Geesh, stop judging me! HAHA just kidding. But remember, with the Instant Pot, you need to add liquid. Since I had the vinegar etc marinating with my pork, I added only a cup of water to the Instant Pot. This helps the cooking.

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe

    I put it for 90 minutes, which equates to 1:30. Give it a few seconds and then you'll see it turn into "on". Then you won't know it's done until it beeps and then a countdown starts on the other direction. Make sure once it's done, you press CANCEL so that the pressure stops building, and let it be for 20 minutes or until the pressure knob drops down.

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe | Instant Pot Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    Once it's done, you can go ahead and pull out the pork and go to town shredding it. Top with some more juice that's in the Instant Pot. If you have some pernil left over, go ahead and make some Cuban Sandwich Sliders! That's it mi gente, be sure to subscribe and follow me on Facebook and Instagram at Latina Mom Meals!

    Recipe

    Instant Pot Cuban Pernil Recipe | Instant Pot Cuban Pulled Pork Recipe

    Cuban Pulled Pork Instant Pot Recipe

    Juicy pernil made in the Instant Pot in only 90 minutes.
    4.38 from 51 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Dish
    Cuisine: Cuban
    Keyword: Pernil, pork
    Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes
    Servings: 6
    Calories:
    Author: Neyssa Jump

    Ingredients

    • 5 pounds of shoulder pork
    • 6 cloves of garlic chopped
    • 3 teaspoons of salt
    • 3 teaspoons of black pepper
    • 2 teaspoons of cumin
    • 2 tablespoons of dried oregano
    • ½ cup of white vinegar
    • 6 limes juiced
    • 1 cup of water
    Get Recipe Ingredients

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl, marinate pork with all ingredients, except water. Cover bowl and refrigerate pork 2-24 hours.
    • Place water and pork in Instant Pot, (cut into 2-3 large chunks if necessary). Close lid and set valve to sealing. Press meat option and set time to 90 minutes. When timer goes off, press cancel and allow Instant Pot to naturally depressurize, about 20 minutes. When ready, remove pork and shred with two forks. Add some liquid from instant pot over the pork and serve.
    • (I added more lime juice once ready to serve for an extra pop of flavor.)

    Nutrition

    Serving: 0g | Carbohydrates: 0g | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g | Saturated Fat: 0g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 0mg | Potassium: 0mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 0g | Vitamin A: 0IU | Vitamin C: 0mg | Calcium: 0mg | Iron: 0mg

     

     

     

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    About Neyssa

    Neyssa is a Latina food blogger who shares her Cuban and Puerto Rican family recipes for home cooks to make.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Meredith says

      March 19, 2019 at 7:23 pm

      I am not an experienced cook but you should mention NOT to put the marinade in the instant pot (even though you just said pork + water). I was second guessing myself and just wasnt sure 😉

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        March 21, 2019 at 6:53 pm

        Thank you. 🙂

        Reply
        • JPV says

          April 06, 2019 at 11:09 am

          Why wouldn’t you put the marinade in?

          Reply
          • Latina Mom Meals says

            April 08, 2019 at 10:05 pm

            I always do. 🙂

            Reply
            • D Smith says

              April 21, 2019 at 9:17 pm

              If you're not using the marinade, you're missing out on all the flavor.

    2. Joyce says

      May 26, 2019 at 1:32 pm

      Do you cut the fat off before putting in pot? Can you leave the bone in?
      Thanks

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        May 28, 2019 at 1:30 pm

        Hi Joyce, I do not cut off the fat. 😉 I'm one of those who think fat gives more flavor. As far as the bone in, depends on the size of your pork shoulder? I personally removed the bone so it could fit.

        Reply
      • Jennifer says

        February 11, 2021 at 2:25 pm

        You want to leave fat in for flavor while cooking. Once cooked you can take it out

        Reply
    3. FDR says

      July 10, 2019 at 11:44 am

      5 stars
      I made pernil for the first time ever using this recipe during Xmas time 2018. It was a hit! for New years eve it was requested again and I received so many compliments of it being the best pernil. The first time I actually only let the meat marinate for 2 hours and was very impressed with the flavor plus how tender the meat was cooked in the IP. The second time, I let the meat marinate for 24 hours. It was too soft and bitter. I highly recommend to marinate for 2-3 hours max. The IP does well at infusing the flavors into the meat. Recipe is on point! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • Latina Mom Meals says

        July 10, 2019 at 5:59 pm

        Thank you for your comment! Good to know about the marinating and it being too bitter. So happy it was a hit.

        Reply
    4. Tabatha L Navarra says

      November 13, 2019 at 8:35 pm

      5 stars
      Very delishish, moist, and flavorful! Thank you

      Reply
    5. Barbara says

      February 06, 2020 at 11:12 am

      Do you cook it on high or low pressure for 90 minutes?

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        February 12, 2020 at 9:47 pm

        Hi Barbara, high pressure. 🙂

        Reply
    6. Cristal says

      February 24, 2020 at 1:45 pm

      5 stars
      No one has mentioned it for you, but the name of the part of the lid that holds the pressure in the pot is called the pin. Once it drops, all the pressure is released and it's safe to remove the lid. I'd like to add that using the included trivet makes the meat easier to remove from the pot. 😁

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        February 24, 2020 at 3:21 pm

        Hehe, thank you Cristal! This is great to know. 🙂

        Reply
    7. Jo Ann says

      April 24, 2020 at 12:11 pm

      What size is your IP?

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        April 24, 2020 at 3:35 pm

        8 quarts. 🙂

        Reply
    8. Max says

      June 17, 2020 at 1:12 pm

      Any ideas on how to get that crispy skin when done?

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        June 23, 2020 at 10:26 pm

        Put the broiler on for a few minutes, or remove the skin from the pernil, then return it to the broiler until as crispy as you would like it.

        Reply
    9. Sarai says

      November 07, 2020 at 9:00 pm

      4 stars
      It was delicious. I take forever to get All the ingredients together and ready, so I had some Mojo criollo in the fridge and i let the pork sit in that since I only had time to marinate it with your recipe for about 1/2 hr. I like that you put a lot of seasoning. So many times I follow recipes and in the end it never has enough flavor for me. This was just right. Thanks 😊

      Reply
      • Sarai says

        November 07, 2020 at 9:02 pm

        5 stars
        I meant to give you 5 stars...hiw can i change it?

        Reply
    10. Lisa Jones says

      December 31, 2020 at 4:44 pm

      Good recipe, but if you are looking for "authentic" Cuban pork, this is not it. As close as I have found, but if you have experience TRUE Cuban pork, this is not it. Still delish

      Reply
      • Neyssa says

        February 04, 2021 at 1:20 pm

        Thank you. 🙂 We all have our own versions.

        Reply
    11. ahmad says

      November 11, 2021 at 3:52 am

      thanks for this information

      Reply
    12. Alma says

      September 02, 2024 at 12:40 pm

      5 stars
      What do you serve it with? Or prepare it? Tacos just as a main course! Please send suggestions. I just finished putting it into the marinade. It smelled amazing!! Can't wait for tonight! Thanks for the recipe

      Reply
    4.38 from 51 votes (45 ratings without comment)

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    Neyssa is a Puerto Rican and Cuban self-taught home cook who lives right outside of Philly and is on a mission to share recipes that are inspired by her Cuban and Puerto Rican heritage.

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