This recipe might not come from the Yucatan peninsula, but it is very similar to a dish with a similar name that I tasted at a sports bar. It has a lovely orange tint from pulverized annatto and bright citrus/chile flavors.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 8 mins |
| Additional Time: | 4 hrs |
| Total Time: | 4 hrs 23 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 oranges, juiced
- 2 lemons, juiced, or more to taste
- 2 limes, juiced, or more to taste
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon annatto powder, or more to taste, plus more to sprinkle on before grilling
- 1 teaspoon ground dried chipotle pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pork tenderloins, trimmed
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- Place orange juice, lemon juice, and lime juice in a bowl. Add garlic, kosher salt, annatto powder, chipotle powder, ground cumin, cayenne, oregano, and black pepper. Whisk until well blended.
- Cut the tenderloins in half crosswise; cut each piece in half lengthwise. Place pieces in marinade and thoroughly coat with the mixture. Cover with plastic wrap with the wrap touching the surface of the meat and marinade. (Or transfer mixture to a resealable plastic bag.) Refrigerate 4 to 6 hours.
- Transfer pieces of pork from marinade to a paper-towel-lined bowl to absorb most of the moisture. Discard paper towels. Drizzle vegetable oil and a bit more annatto powder on the pork.
- Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
- Place pieces evenly spaced on a hot grill. Allow meat to sear onto the grate until pieces can be easily turned, 4 or 5 minutes. Turn and grill on the other side another 4 or 5 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 135 to 140 degrees F (63 degrees C). Transfer onto a serving platter and allow meat to rest about 5 minutes before serving.
- I garnished mine with cilantro and pickled onions. To make your own, thinly slice some red onions and cover them with red or white wine vinegar. Leave to soak for 4 hours or overnight, and that’s it!
- I think this easy marinade would work on all kinds of pork cuts, but the tenderloin is very user-friendly, and its mild flavor really takes to these ingredients.
- Once grilled, you have so many options for enjoying these tenderloin chunks. Sandwiches, salads, and tacos are all wonderful choices, and I’ve also heard from a reliable source that diced, they make for an epic pan of nachos.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 242 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 12 g |
| Cholesterol | 84 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 28 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Sodium | 1022 mg |
| Sugars | 5 g |
| Fat | 10 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Made this last night for dinner and wife and I enjoyed it very much. As the wife can’t take too much heat, I halved the chile spices, then simmered the marinade until it reduced so I could add more heat to my portion. I would definitely make this again. The hardest thing I had to do was finding annatto powder, but did manage to find some annatto paste. Great recipe, Chef John.
Made it exactly as written except I grilled it indoors in a cast iron grill pan. It was good (almost better cold the next day) but not incredibly noteworthy. I think I may play with the seasoning next time to give it a bit more kick. Would definitely make again for a weeknight meal but not for company.
I followed the directions exactly. I did serve it with cilantro and pickled onions. It was good; however, it did not turn out like the picture of the recipe or in the video at all. 🙁 I won’t make it again-but did enjoy it. Thank you for the recipe!! 🙂
Best recipe ever! Very tender, flavorful, and moist! This is now my go-to! It gives you feelings.
I made this with the following substitutions: 2 TB SF Orange Marmalade instead of OJ & used coffee grounds instead of chipotle. I also added 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika. It is Very important that U have a Hot grill to prevent toughness! Follow his instructions! Served w Rice that I cooked with Can of Coconut milk , corn & a TB or two of grated onion & Adobo. Also Cole slaw to which I added Fresh Chopped Cilantro. This was a great meal that hit all the right notes. Just wish I had Peach Ice Cream or Mango sherbert for dessert!
Great flavour and super easy. I dried mine out a little by bbq’ing at too high a temp. Take your time. Also, I had extra marinade so boiled it down in a pot to serve with the pork as an extra zing of flavour.
I didn’t have a grill handy so cubed my pork and marinated it for a day then threw it in a skillet on high for a couple of minutes. It was great! It probably isn’t as good as putting it on the grill but still great. If you are pickling the onions, vinegar and tequila isn’t a bad option.
Fabulous! Made this as written. It was tender, juicy, and yummy. Looking forward to having it in tacos tomorrow. Don’t skip the pickled onions.
Chef John; I wish you could have seen my husband’s face when he took his first bite of this tonight! He (we) loved it! An absolutely unique but flavorful marinade. Like others, I could not find annato anywhere so had to use turmeric instead. I also used orange juice concentrate but besides those two changes, followed as is. Marinated for 6 hours and result was a wonderful citrus pork! Served with mashed potatoes and Grilled Romaine Hearts from this site! Delish!! Next time, I plan to garnish the pork with the pickled onions as you recommend! Another winner!! Thank you!
I’m not a big pork fan unless it’s bacon. This was fantastic! I followed the instructions and wouldn’t change anything.
This was past simple and past delicious! I didn’t have oranges so I used orange, and it was good. I plan to make it again in the near future!
This is the BEST grilled pork recipe I have ever made! My parents were my test audience for it and they raved about it. I added the juice from 1 grapefruit to add more “zip” to the marinate. Additionally, I reserved the marinate and boiled it to a slightly thickened consistency and used it as a sauce for the top of the sliced pork… super delicious add!
This is an excellent recipe. I had to search high and low for annotto powder, but I finally found the seeds at a spice specialty shop, and the owner graciously ground it into a powder. Well worth it, since the flavor was unique. Reminded me of the excellent pork dishes I’ve had in Cabo and Puerto Vallarta.
It has become a go to recipe for grilling. I substituted paprika for annato powder. I do not use cayenne pepper or chipotle chile powder. I also use bottled orange, lime and lemon juices and it still tastes ‘south of the border.’ Remember to marinate for 4 – 6 hours.
It was fantastic. My husband loved it. I didn’t have pork tenderloin, so I substituted boneless chicken thighs
I made this for my son’s class when he was given achiote / annatto as his spice. I made the recipe as is except I didn’t have chipotle and used paprika. I added a bit more annatto powder, since that was the intent of the project. I also made the recipe (without cooking) and then had to freeze it (as the date changed for when we had to bring it in to school) and the pork still came out really tender. Hope the kids enjoy it as much as I do!
I used this recipe for the flavor profile. I did an ingredient search for pork and oranges, having leftover pork roast and oranges to use up. I made the marinade, poured it over the pork roast in a skillet, and warmed the roast up slowly, covered. Served it atop a veggie-forward pasta primavera. Yum!
Yummy as is. I made tacos with the leftover meat. They were delicious too.
Did not change a thing!! Wonderful. Served with finally sliced cabbage, mango pineapple salsa, and couscous with a kick. Fabulous meal!
Made pork tacos, was amazing. I saved out a half pint of marinade and cooked it down with some brown sugar and glazed the meat on the grill. Then after slicing we stirred the rest of the glaze into the meat.
i went to my local farmers market and got a whole bunch of different citrus for this reciepe and loved it! the pickled onions are a total win to go on top!!