Indoor Barbecue: Pressure Cooker Kalua-Style Pork with a Pineapple-Mango Salsa
If you've ever had genuine Hawaiian barbecued pork, this traditionally involves roasting a suckling pig in a pit with hot rocks, banana leaves and kiawe wood (the Hawaiian version of mesquite). Since this is a lot of work, here's a quicker way to replicate the tender texture with the smokiness-- and making this is a pressure cooker. The pork butt turned out tender and delicious. I served this with sticky rice and a fresh mango-pineapple salsa for an indoor BBQ on a rainy day. It might not be exactly like in Hawaii, but it sure came close enough.
Course main
Cuisine American
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour30 minutesminutes
Servings 6
Author Debby - www.AFeastfortheEyes.net
Equipment
Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
1tablespoongreen tea leavesabout 2 bags
Salt and pepper
14-pound boneless butt roast
2cupswater
1/2teaspoonliquid smoke
SALSA:
4pineapple slice ringspreferably fresh pineapple
1mangoseeded and peeled
1jalapenominced with membrane and seeds removed
1/2small red onionfinely mined
1/4cupcilantrofinely minced
Juice of one lime
Salt & pepperto taste
Instructions
Combine tea leaves, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper, then rub mixture evenly over pork.
Combine water and liquid smoke in pressure cooker pot and add spice-rubbed pork.
Lock pressure cooker lid in place a bring to high pressure over medium-high heat. As soon as the pot reaches high pressure, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 1 1/2 hours, adjusting heat as needed to maintain high pressure.
Note: I use a digital/electric pressure cooker. I simply locked the lid and set my pressure cooker to "high" and cooked for 60 minutes-- and my pork was tender and cooked perfectly.)
Remove pot from heat and allow pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes. Quick release any remaining pressure, then carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you.
To serve, transfer pork to carving board, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest 15 minutes; discard braising liquid.
Salsa:
Finely chop all the fruit; add jalapeno, fresh cilantro, onion and lime juice. The cilantro tastes best if allowed to macerate, refrigerated, for a few hours or overnight.
Notes
Recipe source: "America's Test Kitchen "Pressure Cooker Perfection"