Lechona al Horno (Home-Style Stuffed Pork Roast)
A home-oven version of Tolima's festive lechona: seasoned pork, rice and yellow peas rolled inside crackling pork belly skin and roasted slowly until the meat is tender and the skin shatters. Served with arepa and lime.
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Start your free weekContinue with free accessSeason the filling
Mix the pork shoulder with the scallions, garlic, cumin, achiote, salt and pepper. Fold in the cooked peas and half-cooked rice. Ideally marinate for a few hours in the fridge.
Prepare the skin
Lay the pork belly skin-side down and season the meat side with salt and cumin. Pat the skin completely dry and rub it with salt.
Roll and tie
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Roast slowly
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Crisp and serve
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Season the filling
Mix the pork shoulder with the scallions, garlic, cumin, achiote, salt and pepper. Fold in the cooked peas and half-cooked rice. Ideally marinate for a few hours in the fridge.
Prepare the skin
Lay the pork belly skin-side down and season the meat side with salt and cumin. Pat the skin completely dry and rub it with salt.
Roll and tie
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Roast slowly
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Crisp and serve
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
The Story Behind the Dish
The true lechona tolimense is a whole pig, deboned, stuffed with its own meat, rice and yellow peas, and roasted for up to 12 hours in a wood-fired oven. It's the star of weddings, festivals and big family parties across central Colombia.
This home version uses rolled pork belly to capture the same flavours and crackling in a regular oven.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Juicy, well-seasoned meat and rice under a layer of crackling — a true celebration dish.
💡 Fun Fact
The crispy skin, called 'cuero tostado', is so prized that at lechona parties guests often ask specifically for a piece with extra cuero.
Tolima
4.44°N, -75.23°W
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