View Full Version : In need of Mojo suggestions
lantern
01-17-2015, 05:28 PM
What's your go-to favorite mojo recipe?
I've went 39 years without ever giving it a try and it is TIME. I was looking at the naked whiz recipe and it seems tasty, but figured asking my Brethren always makes way more sense. I searched some threads, but there seems to be a serious difference in them all.:shock:
Thanks guys and gals!
bluetang
01-17-2015, 05:47 PM
Coincidentally I am doing that recipe tomorrow. I'll let ya know how it stacks. In the past I've just gone with Goya Mojo. The Naked Whiz recipe I must say smells killer.
dwfisk
01-17-2015, 05:59 PM
I assume you are thinking pork, like maybe a butt??? Here is what I do:
Madinade: I just use the cheap store brand (Publix for us) but I add some sour orange and marinate for at least 24 hours.
Inject: this is optional but it really works. Mojo marinade has a lot of thick chunky spices; I run it through a strainer and get some on the seasoned liquid and inject even after a 24 hour bath in the marinade.
Tip: When doing Mojo pork, I usually plug with garlic cloves; just stab the butt with a sharp filet knife and push in the garlic. I'll use 20+ for an 8 pound butt.
This is one time when I really prefer a bonelss butt sliced and leftovers make a killer Cuban sandwich.
Having said all thst about pork, I'll marinate chicken for 6-8 hours and grill over medium heat. Boneless chicken mojo makes treat tacos/fajitas.
lantern
01-17-2015, 06:19 PM
I'm sorry!!! Yes it is for a pork butt! LOL!
Also, I've been tossing around the idea of finishing/infusing in my pressure cooker after it comes off the smoker.
Abelman
01-17-2015, 06:29 PM
It has many different variations but here is what I use, If you can juice the lemon, lime and orange, it helps but it doesn't make it or break it. Honestly, I bet nobody could tell "after" the cook/smoke. Anyway, good luck and have fun.
8 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons of Lemon Juice
1/4 cup of Lime Juice
1 cup of Orange Juice
4 bay leaves
2 teaspoons of dried oregano
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes like you put on pizza
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
2 teaspoons of brown sugar
1/4 cup olive oil.
Abelman
01-17-2015, 06:32 PM
For a finishing sauce, this is golden:
1 Cup Cider Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1 Teaspoon Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning
1 Teaspoon Course Black Pepper
1 Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
Warm the Vinegar up enough so that it dissolves the Sugar well. Then add the remaining ingredients.
Randomly squirt this over warm freshly pulled Pork, then kind of mix it up. This adds very little heat (despite the Red Pepper) and mellows out the stronger, gamier parts of the Shoulder. The Vinegar also helps break it down even more for some REAL juicy pork.
I use the Goya and add oranges,lemons ,limes,onion,garlic cloves.
Bluebyyou
01-17-2015, 09:15 PM
This is the recipe i go with. Living in South Florida with tons of Cubans, you eat a lot of Cuban mojo dishes. That said, this is as close as it gets to some of the best Cuban joints down here.
1 cup sour orange juice
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon bay leaves
1 garlic bulb
1 teaspoon cumin
4 teaspoon salt
4 oz. of water
4 oz. Pineapple juice (optional)
Also, dont be shy with the salt. I use a knife to poke a hole about an inch deep all around the butt and fill them with salt. I also use a mortar and pestle to crush the garlic and some whole black pepper. Mince the garlic down real good. Two good sized bay leaves will do for the amounts above. I just crush them in my hand and throw it in. The measures above were good for a 6lb butt. Just like DWFisk, i also strain a bit of it and inject, then i put whatever was in the strainer back in the mix. I stick the butt with all the mojo in a ziplock bag overnight in the fridge.
For those of you using the Goya from a bottle, i would highly suggest this recipe. Everyone has different tastes, but in my opinion, this puts goya to shame. The key being the sour oranges. Just my .02$
lantern
01-18-2015, 05:42 AM
Looks like I'm also going to need some help running down sour oranges or sour orange juice! If anybody has any leads on that I'd appreciate it. I could have swore I had seen it in my local wally world, but apparently I was mistaken. I'm guessing the mexican stores around here are my best bet.
bluetang
01-18-2015, 07:11 AM
If you can't get sour orange juice in your area, use two parts orange to one part lemon and one part lime juice. Just put ours in the smoker.
lantern
01-18-2015, 09:12 AM
I'm really looking forward to your results!
Sausage Warrior
01-18-2015, 09:21 AM
This sounds dangerously close to Cuban sandwiches in the near future!!!
rookiedad
01-19-2015, 10:26 AM
i've got two words for you...
MAKE AREPAS!
How To Make Arepas in 3 simple steps - Arepa Recipe - YouTube
you won't be sorry!
Smith's Pig Pen
01-19-2015, 10:58 AM
Equal parts OJ and Lime works really well if you can't get sour orange. We use zest also, lots of garlic, jalapeņo to taste, pickling spice are a couple staples. It's one of the things where I'm almost more excited about the leftovers for the Sammees- brings me back to South FL days
Bluebyyou
01-19-2015, 12:38 PM
Looks like I'm also going to need some help running down sour oranges or sour orange juice! If anybody has any leads on that I'd appreciate it. I could have swore I had seen it in my local wally world, but apparently I was mistaken. I'm guessing the mexican stores around here are my best bet.
They sell sour orange in the bottle but stay away from that. If you cant find the sour oranges, you're better off with the orange/lime mix. You want that freshness in your mix.
Let us know how it turns out.
Eddie
They sell sour orange in the bottle but stay away from that. If you cant find the sour oranges, you're better off with the orange/lime mix. You want that freshness in your mix.
Let us know how it turns out.
Eddie
I concur with this. We have a treasured sour orange tree, but when our oranges are not available, we use a mix of orange juice, lime and lemon.
lantern
01-19-2015, 01:49 PM
This is the recipe i go with. Living in South Florida with tons of Cubans, you eat a lot of Cuban mojo dishes. That said, this is as close as it gets to some of the best Cuban joints down here.
1 cup sour orange juice
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon bay leaves
1 garlic bulb
1 teaspoon cumin
4 teaspoon salt
4 oz. of water
4 oz. Pineapple juice (optional)
Also, dont be shy with the salt. I use a knife to poke a hole about an inch deep all around the butt and fill them with salt. I also use a mortar and pestle to crush the garlic and some whole black pepper. Mince the garlic down real good. Two good sized bay leaves will do for the amounts above. I just crush them in my hand and throw it in. The measures above were good for a 6lb butt. Just like DWFisk, i also strain a bit of it and inject, then i put whatever was in the strainer back in the mix. I stick the butt with all the mojo in a ziplock bag overnight in the fridge.
For those of you using the Goya from a bottle, i would highly suggest this recipe. Everyone has different tastes, but in my opinion, this puts goya to shame. The key being the sour oranges. Just my .02$
OK, since I needed a baseline I went and picked up goya and orange juice(tropicana), limes, and lemons.
I tasted the goya by itself. It tastes like an old Mexican convenience store SMELLS.
I mixed the sour orange equivalent into the goya.......better, but not hitting me right. Starting to wonder if there's any reason to continue on this trek.
I then assembled all the ingredients to your mojo and threw bay leaves and garlic cloves into my mortar and pestle and brought it all together in a small bowl. NIGHT AND DAY difference!! That is a seriously good tasting/smelling mojo there sir!!!
I did sprinkle a little red pepper flakes into the mortar and pestle....I can't help myself.:redface:
Excitement renewed!!! It'll be a week or so before I can make all this come together between my current diet and the fact that my pork butt is frozen solid at the moment. But, I am definitely moving forward with this!!
And thanks to rookiedad I may be making a different bread to go with some of this!
Thanks a lot to everybody for every suggestion.
CraigC
01-19-2015, 01:56 PM
I've never actually measured ingredients.
5lbs sour oranges, juiced
4 large sweet onions, sliced thin
2 large garlic heads, peeled and very thinly sliced
The above is the mojo marinade for pork butt and chicken pieces. Before the pork or chicken goes in the marinade, I make a paste of garlic, salt and cumin.
Paste
Freshly toasted, ground cumin seeds
1 head of garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
salt
Add salt and cumin to chopped garlic. Using the flat of a large chef's knife, smear the garlic, salt and cumin to make a paste.
I use a pairing knife to make pockets in the pork by plunging it as deep into the pork as possible and twisting 360 degrees. Repeat over the whole butt/shoulder. Then the paste gets rubbed over the pork, being sure to stuff the pockets. The chicken just gets rubbed. Put the marinade in an appropriate size ziploc bag and add meat and refrigerate. The chicken pieces marinade for 4-6 hours. The pork goes overnight. Turn the bag over several times during the process.
Remove meat from marinade, reserving the marinade. Get the meat going. Add 1/4" to 1/2" of good Spanish olive oil to a large, deep sided skillet. Bring oil to a shimmer over medium high. Pull skillet from heat and add reserved marinade. Be vary careful! Once the bubbling caldron has settled down, place pan back over heat and steep until garlic and onions are soft. Adjust seasonings if needed, turn off heat and let cool. One of the best, Cuban style Mojos I have ever tasted. Goes great on boiled yucca and the pork or chicken.
BTW, the pork is perfect in Cuban sandwiches or Media Noches.
Bluebyyou
01-19-2015, 02:38 PM
OK, since I needed a baseline I went and picked up goya and orange juice(tropicana), limes, and lemons.
I tasted the goya by itself. It tastes like an old Mexican convenience store SMELLS.
I mixed the sour orange equivalent into the goya.......better, but not hitting me right. Starting to wonder if there's any reason to continue on this trek.
I then assembled all the ingredients to your mojo and threw bay leaves and garlic cloves into my mortar and pestle and brought it all together in a small bowl. NIGHT AND DAY difference!! That is a seriously good tasting/smelling mojo there sir!!!
I did sprinkle a little red pepper flakes into the mortar and pestle....I can't help myself.:redface:
Excitement renewed!!! It'll be a week or so before I can make all this come together between my current diet and the fact that my pork butt is frozen solid at the moment. But, I am definitely moving forward with this!!
And thanks to rookiedad I may be making a different bread to go with some of this!
Thanks a lot to everybody for every suggestion.
Glad you liked it. :thumb: You can stick it in a mason jar or similar and it'll keep for a few days in the fridge. Some keep it longer but i prefer fresher so i usually make enough for current food dish. As CraigC said, great on chicken as well.
Sausage Warrior
01-19-2015, 02:50 PM
Just had a delicious Cuban sandwich and used this mojo recipe for the pork shoulder . . .
Juice
2 blood oranges
2 tangerines
One lime
One lemon
Add 8 cloves of finely chopped garlic
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Marinade 1/2 pork shoulder (about 2 1/2 lbs) for 24 hours then smoke with marinade spooning over every hour until 185. Slice for Sammie's. (Had the room so threw on a babyback).
http://i1049.photobucket.com/albums/s399/ralphstamm/1192015/Untitled-1copy.jpg
CabinFever
01-20-2015, 08:42 AM
Mojo is one of my favorite flavors. I find that the key is, no matter what the exact recipe, use fresh squeezed citrus juice. I have used several different versions of mojo and the fresh citrus is the key, also lots of garlic and some cumin...enjoy!
lantern
01-20-2015, 02:00 PM
Mojo is one of my favorite flavors. I find that the key is, no matter what the exact recipe, use fresh squeezed citrus juice. I have used several different versions of mojo and the fresh citrus is the key, also lots of garlic and some cumin...enjoy!
LOL!! I was just in the very beginnings of making Bluebyyou's and my nose was telling me the very same thing! It's the same when I make my rubs. When I break out the mortar and pestle magic things happen.
Over the years I've found that if it doesn't smell right it doesn't eat right. It goes the same for the smoker. If it doesn't smell like something you wanna eat then you BETTER get the meat away from it!!
Now......there are two FOOD related exceptions and that's egg salad/deviled eggs and tuna salad. The other exception is personal and not related to BBQ in any way.:heh::heh:
lantern
01-21-2015, 03:19 PM
Split chicken breasts were on sale soooooo I deboned them and stole the "tenderloins" out to make a quick snack while I waited several hours for the test run of Bluebyyou's marinade to do it's thing on the skinless breasts.
I took them out and let the marinade drain off a bit before I threw them on a medium fire with just a bit of apple wood.
MAN THESE WERE FANTASTIC!!! I used some of the marinade by adding a little more citrus juice and then reducing to make for a powerful sauce. The only problem was this was just a test run and I was HAWNGRY so I only have plated shots. And to be completely straight I was lucky to get these! My hands wanted nothing to do with the camera. They wanted to get back at that chicken!
Can't wait to get this on some pork butt!!! That'll be another thread, but figured since I only had rough plate pics this didn't deserve it's own.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7470/16335898685_e950c65c39_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qTxKxB)
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7554/16148518250_0586fbecd5_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/qAZnSs)
Bluebyyou
01-21-2015, 05:13 PM
Oh yeah man. I can taste that mojo from here. :-D That is some juicy looking chicken man. Nice!
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