Adobo

Method

1. Wipe 1 ancho and 2 guajillo chiles clean, tear out the stems and shake out the seeds. Toast them in a dry comal or heavy frying pan over medium heat for about 30 seconds a side, pressing flat, until they smell fragrant and turn slightly pliable — do not let them blacken or the adobo turns bitter.
2. Cover the toasted chiles with hot water in a bowl, weigh them down with a saucer and soak for 20 minutes until soft and fleshy. Lift them out, reserving the soaking liquid.
3. Put the drained chiles in a blender with 2 cloves of garlic, 40 g of white onion, 1.5 tbsp of vinegar, 0.5 tsp of Mexican oregano, 0.25 tsp of ground cumin, 3 black peppercorns, 2 cloves, the 1 cm piece of cinnamon, 1 tsp of piloncillo, 0.75 tsp of salt and 80 ml of the chile soaking liquid. Blend 2 minutes to a completely smooth purée, then pass it through a sieve, pushing hard with a ladle, to leave a silky adobo.
4. Toss the 180 g of cubed pork shoulder with the adobo in a bowl until every piece is coated, cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or overnight for the fullest flavour. Bring it back to room temperature before cooking.