Monday’s Bread Bowl: Roast Pork Wrapped in Banana Leaf

A special gift from the islands

This method of preparing, seasoning, and roasting pork is Pacific-island inspired. We recommend using a pork shoulder since the roasted meat ends up being juicy and flavorful. The banana leaves help lock in the natural flavors and seasons the roasted pork with a slight green tea taste. Meanwhile, slow roasting the wrapped pork over hot charcoal ensures a tender meat consistency. Here is our rendition:

What you will need:

3 garlic cloves, sliced
1 (7-8lbs) pork shoulder roast
2 large banana leaves
1 tablespoon coarse Hawaiian red salt, sea salt or kosher salt
½ tablespoon cracked peppercorn
1 sharp knife
1 barbecue pit with lid
5lbs hot charcoal

Cooking and Preparation:

Score the skin side of the pork roast (roughly ¼ to ½ inch deep) with a crisscross pattern. Coat and season pork with garlic, salt, and black pepper. Lay out banana leaves on top of each other and place seasoned pork roast at the end of one side. Carefully fold and roll the pork shoulder inside the banana leaves. There should be no exposed sides of the pork shoulder. Next, place wrapped roast on barbecue grill and cover with lid. Try to maintain a steady temperature near 300 degrees. If it drops below that for a bit, add more hot coals to the fire and let the temperature rise for at least 20 minutes or so. For example, we found the temperature dropped to 250 so we added coals to let the pit reach a temperature of 375 and remain that hot for about 20 minutes. The roast should be left alone for 3 ½ hours to 4 hours, if you keep the temperature around 300 consistently, longer if you let it drop below that for a significant period of time without making up for it. We haven't worried about overcooking pork roast this way. The wrap keeps moisture in. Finally, remove done roast from barbecue grill and let is rest for at least 15-20 minutes before serving.