Cuban Pork Bowls

Prep time: 30 min      Cook time: 90 min      Rest time: 10 mins     Total time: 2 hrs 10 min

Makes: 4 bowls

Make it…

Dairy-Free: Saute the kabocha squash with animal fat other than ghee

Low FODMAP: Omit the plantains

Zero Carb and Sugar-Free: Omit the plantains and kabocha squash

With crispy kabocha squash instead of rice and bacon instead of beans, these bowls are a spin on the classic. The plantains are fried in bacon fat and the pork shoulder is pressure-cooked in orange juice. Clean and simple without sacrificing taste.

What you need to make Cuban Pork ‘Rice’ Bowls

Ingredients:

• Pork shoulder
• Freshly squeezed orange juice
• Bacon
• Grass-fed ghee (or butter)
• Kabocha squash
• Plantains
• Lime
• Cilantro
• Sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)

Equipment:

• Cooking pan
• Instant Pot or slow cooker

How to make Cuban Pork ‘Rice’ Bowls

Start the pork.

If you’re working with one large slab of pork shoulder, cut it into 4-5 pieces.

Rub the pulled pork pieces with sea salt, plus whatever other spices you prefer to use. (I don’t use any spices, and it comes out great!)

In your Instant Pot or on the stovetop, sear all sides of the pork shoulder pieces until brown. For the Instant Pot, use the Saute function. For the stovetop, use medium-high heat.

Place the seared pork pieces in the Instant Pot or slow cooker. Add the freshly squeezed orange juice.

For the Instant Pot, cook on High Pressure for 60 minutes with 20 minutes slow release. For the slow cooker, cook on low for 8 hours.

Make the kabocha squash.

Dice the kabocha squash into 1/2 inch x 1/2 inch pieces.

Measure out 3-4 cups and store the rest away.

Place 1 tbsp of ghee in your cooking pan and bring to medium-high heat.

Once the pan is hot, add the kabocha squash. Sauté for about 5-7 minutes, stirring the squash every 30-60 seconds. Kabocha squash burns easily, so don’t forget to rotate it. The goal is to get it browned and crispy without burning it. When you see the brown color creeping up the sides of the squash, rotate it. Even just 15-30 seconds too long without rotating the squash can burn it.

When the kabocha squash is done, salt it to taste. Remove it from the pan and place it in a bowl to cool.

Make the bacon.

Chop up the bacon into thin slivers (like 1/4 inch x 1 inch).

At medium heat, cook the bacon.

Once the bacon is cooked to your liking, remove it from the pan and place it on a plate to cool.

Fry the plantains.

Slice the plantains into thin slivers.

Turn the pan with the bacon fat to medium-high heat.

Add a tbsp of ghee to the pan to ensure the plantains have enough oil to fry in.

Once the pan is hot, fry the plantains in the bacon fat-ghee. The goal is to char them and get them as brown as possible without them turning black/burning. I usually flip them every 20-30 seconds or so, going through a few rounds.

Prepare the cilantro and lime.

Finely chop the fresh cilantro and slice the lime into quarters.

Put it all together.

In each pork bowl, place the pulled pork, bacon, plantains, and kabocha squash.

Top each bowl with fresh lime juice and garnish with chopped cilantro. If you prefer, you can top your bowl with the orange juice from the pulled pork.

Enjoy! These bowls are best enjoyed fresh, although leftovers can be stored in the fridge and are good for 1-2 days.

Tips to make the best Cuban Pork ‘Rice’ Bowls

• Kabocha squash burns quickly at medium-high heat. When sauteing the squash, make sure you rotate it frequently. The goal is to get to a nice golden brown color and not burn it. When you see the brown color coming up the sides of the squash, rotate it. Even just 15-30 seconds too long without rotating the squash can burn it. Same goes for the plantains.

Some more of my favorite dinner ideas:

Loaded Burger Bowls

Tropical Taco Bowls

Chicken Bacon Tacos

Cobb ‘Salad’ with Duck Fat Ranch Dressing

Simple Oxtail Soup

Cuban Pork ‘Rice’ Bowls

 

What I used for this recipe:

Looking for other dinner ideas? Try one of these:

Loaded Burger Bowls

Tropical Taco Bowls

Chicken Bacon Tacos

Cobb ‘Salad’ with Duck Fat Ranch Dressing

Simple Oxtail Soup

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