For some time now, I've been interested in the idea of cooking in an "earth oven." Also known as pit roasting, it's a process that's been around since the dawn of man but has recently enjoyed a bit of notoriety thanks to those travelogue/cooking shows that are so prevalent on cable. You've surely seen it before. One of the big celebrity chefs heads out to some remote Pacific island or South American locale and partakes of a feast prepared right there in the dirt.

It's labor intensive, primal and, most importantly, supercool. The only problem is that I imagine the neighborhood association would probably have something to say about a gargantuan, smoking hole in my front yard.

In a quest to bring pit roasting into my home kitchen, I looked at a number of recipes, trying to find one that I thought might accurately replicate the flavors of slow cooking meats in the earth.

In the end, I settled on a classic pork dish hailing from the southernmost states in Mexico, cochinita pibil.

Like another of my favorite dishes, carnitas, the brilliance of cochinita pibil lies in its simplicity. I'm a firm believer in the fact that you can never go wrong with simple, slow roasted pork, but this recipe goes one better. The pork in this dish is complimented beautifully by being steeped and then cooked in a spicy-sour marinade of citrus juices and annatto.

Annatto is peculiar in that it seems like a rather exotic spice, but in reality you probably consume a great deal of it every day. Due to their vibrant red hue, annatto seeds are commonly used as a food coloring and even in the production of many cheeses. The flavor of annatto is fairly mild, yet a bit sweet and peppery.

As a side note, the banana leaves are not essential to this recipe. It would certainly still be a delicious meal prepared inside a tinfoil pouch, but if you can find them (usually frozen) I suggest you give them a try. As the leaves begin to dry, they impart a faint smokiness to the meat that gives it a flavor that is closer to pit roasting than any other home cooking technique can achieve. (As seen in the photo above, banana leaves are big, beautiful, fragrant things. You'll probably have to get them at an international grocery or special store. Sometimes they can be found fresh, but we used frozen ones and they worked beautifully.)

Cochinita Pibil
5 Tb. annatto seeds
2 Tb. Mexican oregano
1 Tb. black peppercorns
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. whole cloves

1/2 stick cinnamon
8 garlic cloves
1 cup orange juice
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. salt
1 boneless pork shoulder
1 package frozen banana leaves (optional)

Combine annatto, oregano, peppercorns, cumin, coriander, cloves and cinnamon in a grinder and pulse until the spice mix is fine and thoroughly mixed. (The fine grind is important; you don't want chunky spices to stick in your teeth, do you?)

Add the spice mix, garlic, orange juice, lemon juice and salt to a blender, and blend until the marinade is smooth.Cut the pork shoulder into two-inch cubes. Place the pork into a gallon storage bag with the marinade and shake to combine. Allow the pork to marinate over night (at least six hours).

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.Line a roasting pan with the banana leaves (or tinfoil), leaving enough hanging over the edges to cover. Pour the pork and marinade into the center of the lined pan and fold the leaves over the meat. Cover the roasting pan with tinfoil, making sure it is sealed tightly.

Place the pan into the oven, and roast for six hours or until the pork is extremely tender.

Serve with warm corn or flour tortillas and habanero salsa.