Grilled
Pork Secreto

Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs pork secreto (no luck finding it? use Iberico, or sub beef skirt steak, flank steak, or chicken thighs)
• 1/2 cup gochujang (Korean chili paste)
• 1 tablespoon annatto (achiote) powder or paste
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce, naturally brewed
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon mirin
• 1 tablespoon cumin, toasted and ground
• 1 tablespoon coriander, toasted and ground
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed into a paste
• 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil (grapeseed or avocado)

For the sauce

• 1/4 cup reserved marinade (set aside before it touches the meat)
• 1 white onion
• 2 tablespoons butter

Method

1. Make the marinade. Toast the cumin and coriander until fragrant, then grind. Peel the garlic and ginger, then add the gochujang, annatto, soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, the toasted spices, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, and neutral oil to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth and glossy. Make a double or triple batch, then bag the extra with more pork, beef, or chicken and freeze it. A marinade this good shouldn't be one-and-done.
2. Reserve, then marinate. Set aside 1/4 cup of the fresh marinade for the sauce, before it touches the meat. Coat the secreto in the rest and marinate 30 minutes to 3 hours, or overnight if you like. Don't season the steaks; the marinade already brings all the salt and sugar they need.
3. Make the sauce. Cook the sliced white onion low and slow in the butter until deeply soft and sweet. Add the reserved marinade, cook together a few minutes, then puree smooth. Spicy, sweet, salty, sour. The perfect complement.
4. The grill. Get the grill ripping hot. Grill over high heat 5 to 8 minutes total, turning so each side hits the grates twice, until nicely charred. The sugar and acid in the marinade do the work. Cook to medium / medium-well, about 160 to 170°F.
5. Rest and serve. Rest 10 minutes, then slice and serve with the sauce.