The Friday Patio Hero: 25-Minute Adobo Pork & Charred Pineapple Platter
Hola, amigos. Let me tell you about this 25-Minute Adobo Pork and Charred Pineapple Platter. Inspiration? Pure desperation mixed with a craving for Oaxacan al pastor. Years ago, sitting on our Brooklyn fire escape, I wanted that sweet-smoky magic but had zero time before the kids melted down (and before my husband finished the good mezcal). We are not suffering for dinner, people! Here is the trick: you are going to butterfly a pork tenderloin so it cooks in minutes under the broiler. We glaze it with a sticky chipotle shortcut—just canned chipotles in adobo blitzed with a little honey and garlic. (Bodega Mode: skip the blender and just smash the adobo sauce with a fork). You throw some pineapple chunks on the same sheet pan, get them nice and charred, and serve it all over creamy frijoles with a quick crunchy cabbage slaw. The magic is the texture contrast—rich, spicy pork against bright, sweet citrus and the crunch of the cabbage. Taste it—then decide if you need an extra squeeze of lime. It is a Tuesday mole effort with a Friday night payoff. Grab a cold drink, let the broiler do the heavy lifting, and go enjoy the sunset. Ándale!
Featured Recipe
25-Minute Adobo Pork & Charred Pineapple Platter (The Friday Patio Hero)
Friday night is for cold drinks on the patio, not stressing over a hot stove. We are butterflying a pork tenderloin so it cooks in minutes under the broiler, glazing it with a sticky chipotle shortcut, and charring pineapple right alongside it. Swirled over creamy black beans with a crunchy slaw, this is how you feed friends without missing the sunset.
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Timeline
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Adobo sauce from canned chipotles(Pantry Mode hero (just the sauce, or blend a whole pepper if you like it spicy))
- 2 cloves Garlic(minced)
- 2 tbsp Orange juice(Fresh or from the fridge jug, both work)
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 1/2 tsp Dried oregano(Mexican oregano if you have it)
- 3 tbsp Olive oil(divided)
- 1.5 lbs Pork tenderloin(Silver skin removed)
- 1.25 tsp Kosher salt(divided)
- 4 thick slices Pineapple rings(Fresh or canned (patted completely dry))
- 1 can (15oz) Black beans(undrained)
- 1/2 tsp Ground cumin
- 2 cups Red cabbage(shredded)
- 1 tbsp Lime juice(freshly squeezed)
- 1/4 cup Cilantro(roughly chopped)
- 2 cloves minced garlic(mentioned in step 1, not listed)
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt(mentioned in step 5, not listed)
Instructions
- 1
Preheat your broiler to high (or fire up the grill). In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp adobo sauce from canned chipotles, 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 tbsp orange juice, 1 tbsp honey, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, and 1 tbsp olive oil. This is your flavor lever—it takes two minutes but tastes like it took two hours.
3 min
Tip: Bodega Mode: If you don't want to open a whole can of chipotles, substitute 1 tbsp smoked paprika and an extra pinch of salt, but the adobo is worth it.
- 2
Take your 1.5 lbs pork tenderloin and butterfly it: slice it lengthwise down the middle, stopping just before you cut all the way through, and open it like a book. Season both sides with 1 tsp kosher salt. Rub that gorgeous adobo glaze all over the meat.
4 min
Tip: Butterflying is the ultimate Brooklyn shortcut. It turns a 25-minute roast into a 10-minute sear with double the crust.
- 3
Place the glazed pork and your 4 thick pineapple rings onto a foil-lined sheet pan. Throw it under the broiler (about 4 inches from the heat). Broil until the pork is charred at the edges and cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes per side. The pineapple should get those beautiful caramelized black spots.
12 min
Tip: Watch the broiler! Every oven is different. We want charred, not incinerated.
- 4
Mom math: while the pork cooks, we fix the beans. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Dump in the 1 can (15oz) black beans, undrained and 1/2 tsp ground cumin. Simmer vigorously, smashing them lightly with the back of a spoon until creamy and thick.
5 min
Tip: Don't drain the beans! That starchy liquid is what gives us a silky puree without needing a blender.
- 5
In a serving bowl, toss the 2 cups shredded red cabbage with 1 tbsp lime juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, and 1/4 tsp kosher salt. Give it a good massage so it slightly softens but stays crunchy.
4 min
Tip: Texture contrast is everything. We need this bright crunch to cut through the rich, smoky pork.
- 6
Pull the sheet pan from the oven. Let the pork rest on a cutting board so the juices redistribute. Roughly chop the charred pineapple into bite-sized chunks and fold them directly into your cabbage slaw along with 1/4 cup chopped cilantro.
5 min
Tip: We are not suffering for dinner—let that meat rest or all the flavor ends up on the cutting board!
- 7
Assembly time: Swirl your creamy black beans across a big platter. Slice the rested pork into medallions and lay them over the beans. Crown the whole thing with the charred pineapple slaw. Taste it—then decide. But I promise, it's perfect.
2 min
Tip: Serve right from the platter on the patio table. Pass a stack of warm tortillas if you've got them.
Chef's Notes
If You've Got a Mexican Market Nearby (Extra Credit): Grab some dried morita chiles, toast them on a comal, and blend them with garlic and fresh orange for the glaze. But honestly? The canned adobo is my favorite weeknight rescue. This is a Friday patio platter, not a wedding mole.
María “Mari” Santiago
Oaxacan comfort, Brooklyn shortcuts, weeknight bright.
María “Mari” Santiago was born in Oaxaca, where her earliest kitchen memories are measured in scent: chiles toasting on a comal, cinnamon and chocolate blooming in mole, and the warm, nutty snap of a tlayuda folded in half for the walk home. She learned by watching—first her tías, then her abuela—picking up the small, practical rules that never made it into written recipes: how to tell when the garlic is *just* right, how to rescue a too-spicy salsa, and why you always taste the broth before you add the salt. Now in Brooklyn, Mari cooks the food she grew up on while raising two little kids and juggling real-life time limits. Her style is “real flavor, real life”: traditional Oaxacan and everyday Mexican dishes—moles, caldos, frijoles, enfrijoladas, salsas, and crispy tlayudas—made weeknight-friendly with smart shortcuts, brighter salsas, and more vegetables without losing the soul of the dish. She’s not precious about rules, she’s big on swaps, and she’s on a mission to prove that you can cook deeply flavorful Mexican food with what you can actually find at a normal grocery store (and still get dinner on the table before a meltdown). Mari’s recipes read like a friend texting you from the produce aisle: clear, funny, and unpretentious, with a side of abuela wisdom. If there’s a hard-to-find ingredient, she gives you a realistic alternative, tells you what will change (and what won’t), and keeps the focus where it belongs—on food that tastes like home, even when home is a small Brooklyn kitchen.