Garlic Pork (Trinidad-Style) -

Garlic Pork (Trinidad-Style)

A tangy, garlicky, vinegary marinated pork fried until golden brown — a cherished Trinidad Christmas classic.

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Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, dinner, lunch, Snack

Cuisine: Caribbean, Trinidad, Trinidadian

Keyword: fry pork, garlic pork, trini garlic pork, trinidad garlic pork

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 20

Resting: 1

Servings: servings

Calories: 481kcal

2 lbs pork preferably with skin on, cut into medium pieces (shoulder cut into pieces, or pork belly sliced into 1/2 inch thickness or smaller)
½ red onion or regular onion, sliced
1 - 2 heads garlic or per your liking, peeled and sliced, crushed or blended
Hot pepper to taste, 1 - 4, any variety - habanero, wiri wiri. ,scotch bonnet, chopped, mashed or blended with garlic and bandhania(aka culantro/shado beni)
6 - 10 leaves bandhania aka culantro, chopped, crushed or blended with garlic and hot pepper
1 tbsp peppercorns optional
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp Himalayan salt or table salt or to taste
1 tbsp dried oregano or 2 tbsp fresh chopped
2 tbsp thyme leaves or 10 sprigs thyme rub thyme leaves to release aroma (preferably Portugese thyme leaves)
Juice of 1 lime or vinegar for rinsing
2 cups vinegar for marinating
Oil for frying

Clean the Pork: Rinse pork with lime juice or vinegar; burn off any fine hairs over an open flame if needed.
Season the Pork: Add onions, garlic, hot pepper, bandhania, peppercorns, black pepper, salt, oregano, and thyme. Mix well.
Marinate: Transfer to a glass jar or bowl. Pour in vinegar. Cover tightly and refrigerate 1–3 days.
Drain: Pour into a colander and discard liquid. Drain well.
Fry: Heat oil in a large frying pan or heavy bottomed pot. Add pork in a single layer and fry until golden brown. Flip or deep-fry as desired. Do not over-fry.
Optional Aromatics: Fry the onions and peppers until crisp but not burnt for additional flavor and texture.

Nutritional values may be incorrect as the vinegar-salt brine is discarded