Recipes Meat and Poultry Pork Pork Shoulder Recipes Hawaiian-Style Kalua Pork 5.0 (2) 2 Reviews 1 Photo This Hawaiian-style kalua pork method is the one used by home cooks, to come as close as possible to cooking underground, which is what kalua means. Slow-roasting the pork wrapped in banana leaves makes for a truly amazing flavor. By John Mitzewich John Mitzewich John Mitzewich — aka Chef John — has produced more than 1,500 cooking videos for Allrecipes. He's the actor, director, and screenwriter whose hands and voice confidently walk you through techniques. Allrecipes' editorial guidelines Published on June 14, 2024 Save Rate Print Share Close Add Photo Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 4 hrs Rest Time: 30 mins Total Time: 4 hrs 45 mins Servings: 8 Jump to Nutrition Facts Jump to recipe There are two “authentic” methods for making Hawaiian-Style Kalua Pork. The classic version, which involves cooking a whole pig in an underground fire pit, covered in Alea sea salt, and wrapped in Ti leaves. In fact, the word “kalua” means cooked underground, but most folks don’t have fire pits or whole hogs, so what I’m sharing is the modern, home cook “authentic” version, which does get us pretty close. I think. I’ve only had “real” kalua pork a few times, and probably never done with actual Ti leaves, so I won’t pretend I know exactly how accurate this is, but I do know this was very delicious, and a wonderful change of pace from your typical southern-style pulled pork preparations. The sweet, grassy flavor of the banana leaves is key here, so please try to find some if you can. This truly is a unique tasting and smelling dish, and I really do hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy! Cook Mode (Keep screen awake) Ingredients 1x 2x 4x Oops! Something went wrong. Our team is working on it. Original recipe (1X) yields 8 servings 1 (4 1/2 pound) bone in pork shoulder roast 4 teaspoons liquid hickory smoke 3 tablespoons sea salt 1 (!4 ounce) package frozen banana leaves, thawed Directions Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Place pork in a large bowl and rub all over with liquid smoke. Sprinkle salt over meat, and rub in until evenly coated. Set aside. Place banana leaves on the counter, arranging them in a spiral, overlapping pattern, so once pork is placed on the leaves, they can be folded up and over to fully encase the meat. Place pork on the center of leaves, fat side down, and wrap the meat with the seams coming together at the top. Once wrapped, pick up and invert the entire package, seam side down, into a Dutch oven. Any extra banana leaves can be tucked in around the sides. Bake, covered, in the preheated oven for about 4 hours, or an instant-read thermometer inserted near the center reads 195 to 200 degrees F (91 to 93 degrees C). Let pork rest in the Dutch oven for 30 to 60 minutes, then remove the meat to a bowl. Pull meat off the bone, and set bone aside. Add any and all cooking liquids and rendered fat into the bowl of pork. Use two forks to shred meat as finely as you like. Taste for seasoning; adjust with more salt or liquid smoke to taste. Arrange banana leaves in the pot to make a nest for the meat. Transfer shredded pork in and serve immediately. John Mitzewich Chef's Notes: The amount of salt needed will depend on the size of pork shoulder, but a good estimate is 2 teaspoons coarse salt per 1 pound meat.Roasting time will also will depend on size of pork shoulder, so check for doneness with a probe thermometer. I Made It Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 779 Calories 56g Fat 6g Carbs 62g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Servings Per Recipe 8 Calories 779 % Daily Value * Total Fat 56g 71% Saturated Fat 20g 101% Cholesterol 230mg 77% Sodium 3972mg 173% Total Carbohydrate 6g 2% Dietary Fiber 5g 18% Total Sugars 0g Protein 62g 123% Vitamin C 7mg 8% Calcium 206mg 16% Iron 5mg 27% Potassium 855mg 18% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs. ** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data. (-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.