Mojo Pork with Papaya Mango Salsa

This was very tasty and enjoyed by all!

After researching Versailles Restaurants, I decided to make their Florida (Orange and) Avocado Salad for dinner last night. I had a taste for some other Cuban recipes to go with it. I found a last pork loin roast from the FFA pigs in the freezer and had some mango and papaya to use up. (BTW, Mangoes were only $.50 each at the store this week.) Add some Yellow Rice and steamed spinach and we have a full meal!

¼ cup olive oil

1 med. onion, diced

2 Tbsp. chopped garlic

1 cup orange juice

½ cup lime juice

1 Tbsp. parsley flakes

1 tsp. oregano, dried

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. fresh ground black pepper

2 ½ lbs. boneless pork loin

canola oil spray

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Put all the mojo sauce ingredients in the blender and give it a whirl.

Slice the pork loin into at least 10 chops.

Heat large skillet hot and dry. Remove from heat and coat with canola oil spray. Return to very low heat while setting up and preparing other ingredients for dinner.

Sear each chop on both sides and place in bottom of large roasting pan. When all chops are done, pour mojo sauce over all.

Bake for 40 minutes.

Serves: 8

Alternate cooking methods: Marinate pork in large zip-lock bag or covered glass dish for at least 2 hours up to 24 hours. Then grill or broil as you desire. Bring the discarded marinade to boil and drizzle it over the cooked meat.

Serve topped with Mango Papaya Salsa. Good accompaniments are Yellow Rice, Black Beans, and Versailles’ Florida Avocado Salad.

I baked the leftover pork in marinade with the leftover salsa on top in a covered baking dish at 325°F for two hours. It was even better!

Mango Papaya Salsa

¼ firm ripe papaya, ¼” dice

½ medium firm ripe mango, ¼” dice

¼ medium red onion, finely diced

3 Tbsp. lime juice

1 (4 oz.) can diced green chiles

¼ tsp. jalapeno hot sauce

1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

Mix all ingredients in bowl.

Cover and chill at least 2 hours up to 24 hours.

Serves: 8

Yellow Rice with Cilantro

Saffron is not traditionally used in Arroz Amarillo, although some people do. Instead they use Annatto Oil, to give the yellow coloring expected in this dish. Sometimes you can find yellow rice already packaged.

1 cup long grain white rice

2 cups water

1/4 teaspoon saffron threads or a pinch of powdered saffron

1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

2 cubes chicken bouillon

Combine all ingredients. Cover tightly and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to very low and cook 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and set aside for 5 minutes without lifting lid.

Fluff with a fork and serve.

Serves: 4

My thanks to the following for their inspiration!

Mojo Sauce

Richard Lee Holbert rlhintexas@xxxxxxx

FamilyFare@yahoogroups.com 8/19/2005 5:52 AM

Cuban Style Pork with Papaya Mango Salsa

Sandy oommpapa@xxxxxxxx

recipeslostandfound@yahoogroups.com 7/22/2003 10:45 AM

Jimmy Buffett's Cuban Pork

My Kitchen Diary By Lin Soulard

Sandy oommpapa@xxxxxxxx 7/4/2001 2:03 AM

recipeslostandfound@yahoogroups.com

Cuban Main Dishes

linda lake lindam65@xxxxxxxxxx

RecipesLostandFound@yahoogroups.com 7/8/2001 2:10 PM

Yellow Rice with Cilantro

Neris neris@xxxxxxxxxx

RecipesLostandFound@yahoogroups.com 5/19/2003 7:16 PM

Versailles Restaurant's Orange and Avocado Salad

This is a copycat recipe. In my research, I could not verify that this is the salad served at this restaurant. I discovered that there are two Versailles chains and that they are both Cuban restaurants. The Miami restaurant was created in 1971 by Felipe Valls, Sr.. The LA chain was started in 1981 by Orlando and his son William Garcia. Florida Avocado Salad is on the menu in Miami, but without a description. It is not on the menu in LA as Orange and Avocado Salad.

Wherever it originated, it sounds delicious!

I made this for dinner with the Mojo Pork recipe. It was very tasty, but be warned to mix the greens, oranges and dressing at the very last minute! The avocados could be diced and mixed with the dressing ahead of time. I particularly like the sweet/sour/hot flavors mingled together with the crunch of the greens, the juiciness of the oranges and the creamy avocado.

Ingredients
4 cups Tightly packed torn curly leaf lettuce
1 Fresh orange, sectioned OR 1 (4 oz.) can Mandarin orange segments, well drained
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 1/2 teaspoon Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Pepper
2 tablespoons White wine vinegar (or White Balsamic)
2 tablespoons Water
1/4 teaspoon Hot pepper sauce

Directions
Combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl, and toss gently to mix.
Combine sugar and the next 5 ingredients in a small bowl; stir with a whisk until blended.
Pour over salad; toss gently to coat.

Serve immediately!

Serves: 6

Adapted from: CDKitchen http://www.cdkitchen.com

References:

http://3guysfrommiami.com/versailles.html

http://www.menutopia.com/GetMenu.m?vendorId=10705

http://www.versaillescuban.com/history.html