For The Union-Tribune
National Hispanic Heritage Month begins on Sept. 15, and what is a celebration without delicious food? In San Diego, we’re very comfy with the dishes popular just on the other side of the border, but Mexico is a large and diverse country with other regional dishes that aren’t as well known in San Diego — and should be.
One of them is cochinita pibil. This is a traditional pork dish in Yucatán, a Mexican state located on the northern part of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Gulf of Mexico. The dish is the essence of Yucatec Maya culture.
“Traditionally, we’d use the whole pig,” explained Raul Casillas, the new creative chef at Puesto restaurants. “You marinate the pork overnight, then you wrap it in banana leaves and bury it in a hot pit, where it slow cooks for hours.”
Casillas, new creative chef at Puesto restaurants, blends ingredients for a cochinita pibil marinade. Casillas said he enjoys his “R&D opportunity to represent Mexico and do something cool.” (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
The marinade traditionally is a mixture of achiote (an orange-red paste made with ground annatto seeds), citrus juices and a variety of spices.
“When it’s done and you pull it out of the pit, the aroma from the banana leaves and the spices give it its real magic,” Casillas said. “But Yucatán is all about these recados, these combinations of spices, and this is one way to highlight them.”
Casillas is a native San Diegan and was first exposed to Mexican food by his grandmother. After training at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas, he had stints at Jaleo, a José Andrés restaurant, and then at L’Atelier by Joël Robuchon. After eight years in Vegas, Casillas returned to San Diego to help open Valle in Oceanside with Roberto Alcocer. He then landed at Puesto for what he described as “an R&D opportunity to represent Mexico and do something cool and have fun every day making nice items. I enjoy the creative aspect of it.”
Casillas developed a riff on cochinita pibil for Puesto, along with a celebratory Pistachio Tres Leches cake, and shared his recipes and techniques here.
Casillas’s cochinita pibil taco is enveloped in a freshly made, warm blue corn tortilla. It’s rich from pork belly, piquant from the varied spices in the recado blanco (a spice blend), with just enough acid from the marinade and the traditional red onions. To that he adds a slice of creamy avocado, sprinkles of citrusy cilantro leaves, thin slices of serrano pepper and the satisfying crunch of chicharron pieces (get them freshly cooked at the counter of a market like Northgate and cut them into 1-inch pieces).
Preparing cochinita pibil is a two-day project — one day to prepare the marinade and let the pork bathe in it overnight, and the next to cook the pork. There’s no whole pig or pit or even banana leaves involved: Casilla developed a recipe that even a home cook can follow.
The rest is straightforward. Make the recado blanco first so you can add it to the marinade. It’s filled with dried oregano, grilled garlic cloves, black peppercorns, cloves, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, salt, and orange and lime juices. Be sure to toast all of the spices to bring out the flavors before blending them.
“Making this at home is special because it’s the freshness of the spices,” Casillas explained. “It’s called ‘blanco’ or white instead of ‘rojo’ or red because of the coriander instead of the annatto seed.”
You only need 2 tablespoons for this recipe, but because it’s difficult to puree such a small amount in a blender, you’ll have plenty to use as a marinade for grilled chicken or fish or to put in a mole later (yes, you can freeze it).
Casillas pipes on passion fruit cream to top the Tres Leches Cake, (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
You will add the recado blanco to the rest of the marinade ingredients. But first, grill the tomatoes and onions. The idea is just to char both to pull out a smoky flavor. Seed and remove the stems of the guajillo chiles and grill them also to a deep brown.
Now blend all the marinade ingredients and marinate both the pork shoulder and belly overnight in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, prep the pickled onions and refrigerate, alongside the pork.
The next day, you’ll first quickly grill the meat just until it has grill marks, then roast it with some of the marinade in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 4 hours. Refrigerate until cold and the fat has solidified. Remove the fat and reheat the meat in the braising liquid. Then pull the meat apart and assemble the tacos.
The Pistachio Tres Leches cake is about as traditional Mexican as you get, but Casillas wanted to zhuzh it up and came up with the idea of pairing the cake with pistachios — and a passion fruit cream.
“Tres leches is this jewel of Mexico,” he explained. “It’s a super wet cake with condensed milk, evaporated milk and regular milk. It’s traditional to have at birthday parties, but usually with a whipped cream frosting and some strawberries on top. It’s one of my favorite cakes.”
For his version, Casillas wanted to have some fun and make it more special — so he added a pistachio praline and nougatine. The praline starts out as a solid sweet before being chopped in a food processor into a paste. The nougatine, too, is baked on a sheet pan until solid and then chopped into small pieces in a food processor.
The cake is simple and light. Once it’s baked and cooled, you’ll slice off the edges with a serrated knife, cut into rectangular serving pieces and soak in the tres leches. The milks will initially bubble. Once they go away and the slices feel heavy, remove them and place on plates. Using a pastry bag, pipe the passion fruit cream in three ribbons lengthwise on each slice. Then pipe lines of praline paste to fill the two spaces between the cream. Casillas recommends using your right hand to press out the cream and praline paste, with your left hand’s index finger to guide. Finally, sprinkle toasted pistachio pieces and the crunchy nougatine on top.
Cochinita Pibil Taco wraps richly marinated pork in a fresh, warm blue corn tortilla. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Cochinita Pibil Taco
Makes 12 to 15 tacos
INGREDIENTS
For the marinated pork roast:
1 pound skinless pork belly, cut in half
2 pounds pork shoulder, cut in five 4-inch cubes
2 1/2 quarts cochinita marinade (recipe follows)
For the cochinita marinade:
2 tablespoons recado blanco spice blend (see recipe below)
5 Roma tomatoes
1/2 red onion
7 cloves garlic, peeled
4 dried guajillo chiles, de-stemmed and seeded
2 1/2 teaspoons achiote
1 cup orange juice
1 cup lime juice
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano (whole)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
For the recado blanco:
1 teaspoon dried oregano
12 cloves peeled garlic, grilled on a scorching pan (not nonstick)
2 teaspoons whole black pepper
12 whole cloves
1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoons ground coriander
4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lime juice
For the pickled red onions:
3/4 cup lime juice
3/4 cup orange juice
1 habanero chile, de-stemmed
1 red onion, julienned
For the tacos:
Fifteen 5-inch blue corn tortillas, warmed
2 pounds cooked cochinita pibil roast
Pickled red onions
4 to 5 serrano chiles, sliced thin horizontally into wheels
1/4 pound chicharrónes, already cooked (available at Mexican markets like Northgate’s prepared food counter), cut into 1-inch pieces
Leaves from 1 bunch cilantro (discard stems)
2 avocados, peeled and sliced lengthwise
Chef Raul Casillas toasts spices to make recado blanco to include in the marinade. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Grilling onions and tomatoes for the cochinita marinade. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Guajillo chiles, destemmed and seeded, are toasted to a deep brown during preparation for the cochinita marinade for the taco meat. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Casillas prepares the chiles before adding them to the marinade. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Casillas adds the cochinita marinade to pork in the Puesto kitchen. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Assembling the Cochinita Pibil Taco. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Plating the dish. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
The finished Cochinita Pibil Taco. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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Chef Raul Casillas toasts spices to make recado blanco to include in the marinade. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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DIRECTIONS
1: It will take 2 days to prepare the cochinita pibil roast — one day to marinate and the next day to cook.
2: Make recado blanco to include in the marinade: Toast spices on a hot pan without oil separately, not together, for about a minute until fragrant and golden. Blend all ingredients in Vitamix or other blender until very fine, and a consistent paste is achieved.
3: Prepare the cochinita marinade the day before serving: Grill Roma tomatoes, red onions, and garlic until charred on the outside without caramelizing but still raw inside.
4: Toast guajillo chiles in the oven at 350 degrees for approximately 3 minutes until crispy, but not colored.
5: Once vegetables are grilled and spices and chiles are toasted, combine all ingredients in a blender bowl and blend on high until the marinade is smooth.
6: Marinate the pork overnight with all the marinade.
7: Prepare the pickled onions: Combine the juices and habanero in a blender bowl. Blend until smooth, and strain.
8: Cut tops and bottoms off from the onion. Peel and quarter the onion. Julienne onions lengthwise and thinly in a mandolin.
9: Place onion slices in a 2-quart container, cover with the habanero juice and refrigerate until ready to put together tacos.
10: The next day, pull and grill all the meat, until you have grill marks. Reserve the marinating liquid.
11: Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Place the grilled pieces into a roasting pan deep enough to hold the pork and some of reserved marinating liquid. Cover with aluminum foil and roast for 4 hours, until tender and it falls apart.
12: Once tender, allow to cool in refrigerator until cold and fat solidifies — 2 to 4 hours. Then remove the solid fat. Once removed, reheat the braised meat either on the stove or in a 350-degree oven for about 30 minutes. When ready to use, pull meat apart and keep it hot in the braising liquid.
13: Make taco: Place 2 ounces of the braised pork in a warmed tortilla, making sure it’s not too saucy.
14: Garnish with a pinch of pickled red onions atop the pork. Place three serrano slices over the red onions randomly. Then add 3 pieces of chicharrones along the taco. Garnish with three cilantro leaves and finish with a slice of avocado.
Pistachio Tres Leches Cake. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Pistachio Tres Leches Cake
Makes 12 servings
INGREDIENTS
For the cake:
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 large eggs
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into several pieces
For the praline paste:
2 1/2 cups unsalted shelled pistachios
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
For the pistachio nougatine:
2 1/4 cups unsalted shelled pistachios
1 3/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons pectin (available online)
3/4 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup corn syrup or syrup glucose
For the passion fruit cream:
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup chilled passion fruit puree
For the tres leches mixture:
1 cup whole milk
1 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup condensed milk
For the garnish:
3/4 cup chopped shelled pistachios
Casillas trims the edges of the cake before slicing it into rectangular serving pieces. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Casillas pokes holes into the cake slices before dipping them into a three-milk mixture that includes sweetened condensed milk. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Once the pieces soak up liquid and feel heavy, they are removed to a plate. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Casillas mixes up a passion fruit cream to use on top of the cake. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Casillas uses a piping bag to add stripes of passion fruit cream. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
After adding three stripes of cream, Casillas fills between them with praline paste. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
The finished Pistachio Tres Leches Cake is topped with passion fruit cream and praline paste, and crunchy bits of toasted pistachio and nougatine. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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Casillas trims the edges of the cake before slicing it into rectangular serving pieces. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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DIRECTIONS
1: Adjust oven rack to middle position. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-by-12-inch pan with nonstick spray.
2: Place flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir with a whisk to combine. Set aside.
3: In a stand electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Beat at a medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, for about 2 to 3 minutes.
4: Add milk and butter to a medium saucepan and melt butter on medium heat (do not boil). Beating on medium speed, add butter mixture to egg mixture. Then alternately fold in 1/3 of dry mixture and 1/3 of milk mixture. Repeat alternating and folding until all ingredients are added and folded in.
5: Place batter in prepared pan and smooth out surface. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Set on cooling rack and cool.
6: Prepare the praline: Spread out pistachios on a rimmed baking sheet lined with a sheet of Silpat and toast at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Place next to stove to cool. In a heavy-bottomed, large saucepan, heat sugar on medium-high heat until it melts and turns a nice caramel color (instead of stirring sugar, swirl the pan off heat from time to time until all the sugar is melted). Drizzle caramel over pistachios, sprinkle with salt, and set aside to cool. When cool, break into pieces and process in food processor until finely chopped into a paste. Place in a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip. Set aside.
7: Prepare the nougatine: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Add pistachios to a food processor bowl and pulse to chop. Add pistachios to an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add pectin and powdered sugar and mix on low speed to combine.
8: Add butter and corn syrup to a medium saucepan on medium heat. Heat just until butter melts. Pour hot mixture into mixer with the other ingredients and blend on medium speed until well combined.
9: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread mixture onto prepared rimmed baking sheet using a silicone spatula. (Alternately, you can roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper using a rolling pin.) Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool. Break into pieces and chop in a food processor. Set aside.
10: Make the passion fruit cream: Place a medium bowl in the refrigerator to chill. Once cold, combine the cream, sugar, and passion fruit puree in the bowl. Beat stand mixer until whipped into stiff peaks. Gently transfer to pastry bag with a small opening. Place in refrigerator.
11: In a medium-large bowl, stir together the tres leches ingredients. Invert cake to remove it from the pan. Using a serrated knife, shave off browned top and browned sides. Cut into serving size rectangles.
12: To plate, poke each serving of cake with the tines of a fork and then dip-soak in the tres leches mixture until cake absorbs liquid. Place on plates. Pipe passion fruit cream in three “logs” in a back-and-forth swirl on top of each piece of cake. Then pipe two rows of praline between the passion fruit “logs” (this will require some muscle). Sprinkle with chopped nougatine and a small amount of chopped pistachios. Serve.
Recipes from Raul Casillas.
Originally Published: September 10, 2025 at 6:30 AM PDT
Dining and Cooking