038 / 75 · Cook Once, Keep It Interesting

Orange Braised Pork with Black Beans and Rice

6 portions, each with one-sixth of the pork, beans and rice · Active 30 min · Cook 3 hr · Total 3 hr 30 min

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Orange-braised pork brings enough sauce to make a batch of rice and black beans feel like a finished dinner. The pork shoulder cooks gently until it pulls apart, while orange juice, onion and cumin reduce into the braising liquid. A measured portion of beans and rice accompanies every serving. This is a longer cook for a day at home, followed by straightforward meals later, with the rice cooled as carefully as the meat rather than left in its warm cooking pot.

Jump to ingredients

Orange-braised pulled pork served with black beans and white rice.

Trim first, then give it time

Remove thick exterior fat from the shoulder before cutting it into large pieces. Some marbling remains and helps the meat tolerate a long braise, but an untrimmed fat cap can leave the sauce greasy. A covered pot and gentle simmer do the work. Check for tenderness with a fork as well as a thermometer: the safe minimum for pork is reached well before shoulder becomes easy to shred.

Use juice, not a sweet glaze

The orange is part of the cooking liquid, supported by broth and a small amount of vinegar. It should not cook down to a sticky candy coating. After shredding, return the pork to the reduced liquid and turn it gently so each portion has flavor without a pool of excess sauce. Keep the orange zest fine; broad pieces of peel can carry bitter white pith into the dish.

The rice needs its own storage plan

Cook the rice near the end of the braise so it is ready for the first meal without sitting warm for hours. For later meals, divide it promptly into shallow containers. Pork and beans may be stored together, but the rice is easier to reheat evenly beside them rather than buried under a large mound. Add a spoonful of water and cover the portion during reheating, then stir and check that the center is thoroughly hot. Cool and refrigerate saved rice within 1 hour and use within 24 hours of its original cooking. Reheat only once to 165°F/74°C; the pork and beans have their own separate storage period.

Ingredients

  • 2 lb boneless pork shoulder, exterior fat trimmed (900 g)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil (15 ml/14 g)
  • 1 large onion (200 g), sliced
  • 3 garlic cloves (9 g), minced
  • 1 cup orange juice (240 ml/248 g)
  • 2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest (4 g)
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth (240 ml/240 g)
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (15 ml/15 g)
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin (4 g)
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano (1 g)
  • 1 teaspoon fine salt (6 g), divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (1 g)
  • 1 1/2 cups dry long-grain white rice (285 g), rinsed
  • 2 3/4 cups water (660 ml/660 g), plus 1/4 cup/60 ml for beans
  • 2 cans black beans (15 oz/425 g each), drained and rinsed (510 g total drained)

Set out

6-quart/5.7-liter heavy lidded pot, Medium saucepan with lid, Fine grater, Instant-read thermometer, Tongs and two forks

Allergens

Check broth label for allergens. Check labels and substitutions.

Make it

  1. Cut pork into four roughly equal pieces. Heat oil in the heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown pork for 8–10 minutes total, turning to color several sides; remove to a plate.
  2. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion and cook 5 minutes. Add garlic, cumin and oregano and stir 30 seconds. Add orange juice, zest, broth, vinegar, 3/4 teaspoon salt and pepper, scraping the base. Return pork and juices. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook on low for 2–2 1/2 hours, turning every 45 minutes, until pork pulls apart easily with a fork. Check that the pork has exceeded 145°F/63°C for at least 3 minutes; shoulder normally becomes shreddable at a much higher temperature.
  3. When pork is nearly tender, combine rice, 2 3/4 cups water and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in the saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce to very low and cook 15–18 minutes, or according to the rice package. Remove from heat and rest covered 10 minutes.
  4. Remove pork to a clean board. Simmer braising liquid uncovered for 8–12 minutes, until reduced to about 1 cup/240 ml. Shred pork, discarding any remaining large fat pieces, and return to sauce.
  5. Warm black beans with the remaining 1/4 cup water in a small pan for 4–5 minutes, stirring. Divide pork, all sauce, beans and rice into six equal portions.

Sauce is part of the serving

Divide the reduced sauce before refrigerating the pork, rather than letting it collect in the last container. That keeps later portions moist without needing extra oil or a new sauce. Label the rice and pork containers as matching portions if they are stored separately.

A useful detail

Allow additional cooking time if the shoulder is not fork-tender. Keep the pot at a quiet simmer and add a little hot water if the liquid falls below roughly one-third of the meat depth.

Another way

  • Use lime juice in place of the tablespoon of vinegar for a sharper citrus finish.
  • Replace black beans with 510 g drained canned pinto beans; the serving composition remains the same, but nutrition changes slightly.

Keep it well

Keep pork/beans and rice separate. Cool rice in shallow portions and refrigerate within 1 hour; use within 24 hours of its original cooking and reheat only once to 165°F/74°C, eating immediately afterward. Alternatively freeze freshly cooked, rapidly cooled rice promptly; thaw in the refrigerator and use within 24 hours of thawing, reheating once. Refrigerate pork/beans within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F/32°C, at 40°F/4°C or below for up to 3 days, or freeze up to 2 months. Reheat the needed pork/bean portion to 165°F/74°C. Do not save previously reheated rice for another meal. Transport cold portions with two cold sources.