When life hands you limes, make Cochinita Pibil

I wouldn't have thought of this as being roasted suckling pig, as per the translation of cochinita pibil.  Rick says that this is only an approximation anyway.  We didn't roast anything, it was slow cooked; it wasn't a whole pig, just a shoulder; and it wasn't between 2 and 6 weeks old, I didn't check its birth certificate but I know that it spent 6 weeks at least in the freezer.

The complicated recipe is here while the easy recipe can be found in Mexican Everyday.  Break out your favourite citrus juicer and don't get any pulp in your eye.

Achiote Seasoning

For once it wasn't a complete brain buster to find an ingredient.  This little yellow box was hanging out in the international aisle of our local big box grocery store.  Hooray for that.

Most of that lime juice gets mixed up with half a box of achiote seasoning.  This picture doesn't do justice to the true colour; it's very red.  The rest of your lime juice hangs out in a big bowl with some red onion slices.  Give it a toss every now and then.

Back to Mexican Dry Food for some banana leaves.  Throw down a layer in your slow cooker before you drop in your pork.

Add your pork, slather on the achiote seasoning mixture and throw some white onions on top.  Couldn't be easier.  Then go do something else for six hours.  I made fried beans, guacamole, corn tortillas, and picked up this week's guest at the bus stop.  Not bad.

Pull back the banana leaves and see what your slow cooker hath wrought.  

Topwise from the bottom: Corn Tortilla / Fried Beans / Cochinta Pibil / Onions.  Decent!  It works well as leftovers too, which is good, because slow cooker = leftovers.  Stay safe on your Victoria Day / Memorial Day weekend!

Herb Garden Update

Tomato plants - they grow like weeds!

Italian / flat leaf parsley

Curly parsley.  The Larry and Moe parsley didn't make it.

F1 Super Chiles.