Traditional Cuban Mojo Recipe (Cuban Citrus and Garlic Marinade)

This marinade is one of the pillars of Cuban cuisine. This marinade is filled with citrus, spices, tons of garlic and is wonderful on poultry, pork, beef and even fish!

At the risk of being disowned, I recently shared my mom's recipe for Cuban mojo marinade with my friend Giovanny from Chat Chow TV. Since then, I've had several people ask for the recipe so in an attempt to make it easier on myself, I've decided to just post it on here.

It has to be our little secret, because my mother does NOT need to know I posted her recipe on the internet! I may be an adult but lets face it, her chancleta knows no bounds.

Why You'll love it?

• If you're looking to add some Caribbean flare to your proteins, this marinade is bold and delicious.
• This marinade is perfect for garlic lovers
• Versatile marinade that is great on everything from beef, fish, pork and chicken.
• This marinade has a long shelf life with upto 1 month in the refrigerator

Ingredients Needed

This traditional cuban mojo recipe is made of the following ingredients:

• Sour oranges
• Garlic
• Bay leaves
• Oregano
• Onion powder
• Cumin
• Fresh ground black pepper
• Sugar
• Salt
• Sazon Completo

Instructions

Using a liter sized container with a lid and a funnel, add all of the ingredients to the container.

While squeezing in the sour oranges, either use a strainer or your hands to catch the seeds from the oranges.

Once you've added all the ingredients to your container, tightly place the lid on the bottle and give the contents a good shake before using.

Storage

This traditional cuban mojo recipe will keep in your refrigerator for upto 1 month in an airtight jar or container.

I'm not a fan of freezing this mojo because it changes the flavor of the citrus.

Tips

Before using this marinade, be sure to give the container a vigorous shake. The garlic and spices will settle at the bottom of the jar after a few minutes.

Tips on marinating

For small cuts of meat, like thin steaks, chicken thighs and fish filets marinade for only 1-2 hours. This is a strong marinade that doesn't require a lot of time to permeate the meat.

For larger cuts of meat such as pork shoulders, whole chickens and turkeys, I recommend marinating for 24-48 hours.

What can you use traditional cuban mojo recipe on?

This marinade is fantastic on chicken and even steak, but it’s best used for marinating pork. I use this Cuban mojo marinade to make my dad’s lechon during the holidays.

This is also great with pollo a la plancha, vaca frita and bistec de palomilla.

Substitutions

If you don’t have access to sour oranges, you can use ⅔ orange juice and ⅓ lime juice.

You can also run all of the garlic through a food processor instead of mincing by hand.

Check out these other Cuban recipes