Mojo Marinade (Mojo Criollo) is a delicious infused with garlic, herbs, and citrus that turns your favorite protein into an amazing meal. Enjoy this on pork, shrimp, chicken, seafood, and skirt steak. Pull this tangy sour marinade together in just a few minutes and then let it work its magic.

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Why this works
- Lots of uses - while the mojo marinade recipe can be used to turn your meat into a delicious meal like smoked mojo pork, or it can be used as a glaze for vegetables or as a dipping sauce.
- Authentic to Cuba - this is a Cuban Mojo, pronounced "moh-hoh", is the traditional marinade version. Other versions across other islands in the Caribbean exist that are referred to as mojo sauce, those typically use jalapenos, spice, or cilantro. Such a fresh-tasting marinade for your grilled chicken.
- Know your ingredients - with this mojo marinade you control where the ingredients come from. From the freshly squeezed orange juice, lime juice, and grapefruit juice to the herbs and garlic you use like my Huli Huli chicken recipe.
Ingredients you will need
Here is a quick snapshot of the ingredients you'll need for this recipe. Scroll to the recipe card where you will find the exact measurements.
Ingredient notes
- Citrus - sour orange juice or Naranja agria is what is traditionally used from Seville oranges. If you are lucky enough to find this bitter orange in your grocery store or even luckier to have a tree in your backyard you are all set. If not then it can be ordered online, or you can make a substitute as I have in this recipe with oranges, limes, and grapefruit or lemon.
- Garlic - this recipe uses a lot of garlic cloves like a whole head of garlic. If you want to reduce the amount of garlic you can cut it down to 5-6 cloves.
- Onions - should be minced very finely for this recipe.
- Olive oil - I used extra virgin olive oil. There are two schools of thought on using oil - some don't include this item with pork which usually has enough fat for the cooking process. I like to use it either way.
How to make this
Put the garlic cloves and salt into a mortar and grind until a paste is formed.
Note: a food processor can be used as well. You can also place it in a plastic bag and break it down with a rolling pin or meat tenderizer mallet. If all your liquids will fit in your food processor you can continue to use it to finish the mojo marinade. Be careful you don't overfill it because it will leak out the bottom!
In a medium size mixing bowl combine the garlic paste, onions, teaspoon of cumin, pepper, and oregano. Pour in the olive oil.
If you couldn't find bitter orange juice then using a citrus juicer extract the juice from your oranges, limes, and grapefruit/lemons into a measuring cup.
Pour the citrus juice into the bowl. I find it helpful to use a small strainer to catch any seeds I may have missed. Whisk all the ingredients together then marinate your protein.
Expert tips
You can scale the recipe for what you need it for. It can be doubled or tripled or even more depending on how much protein needs to be marinated.
Feel free to adjust the seasonings to your palate for this mojo marinade to flavor it the way you want. Turn up the garlic, and cumin, or even add a little spice.
Make some extra mojo marinade to reserve for later in the cooking process to brush on your protein at the end of grilling, roasting, smoking, or slow cooking. The used marinade can be boiled for 10 minutes and reused for this as well.
Marinating times
Marinating times will be dependent on the amount and size of the protein.
- Shrimp and seafood - you will only need 30-minutes to marinade seafood. After 30-minutes the citrus will break down or begin to cook the shrimp or fish.
- Chicken or other poultry - at minimum 2 hours to overnight.
- Pork - for smaller cuts like pork chops or tenderloins 2-8 hours. Large cuts like pork loin or butt roast need to marinate for 8 hours to overnight.
- Beef - skirt steaks and more tender cuts of beef should marinate for 2-4 hours. Any large tough cuts of meat like chuck roast should be overnight.
FAQs
Mojo marinade is flavorful sour citrus meets garlic and herbs taste that is delicious without being overpowering.
Oil, acid, seasoning, and salt.
Serving suggestions
I like to serve my meats that have been prepared with mojo marinade with black beans and rice, fried plantains, or fried potatoes. A nice green salad or dessert is good as well.
Storage & Reheating
Use the mojo marinade immediately, or store it for up to three weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Mojo marinade can be frozen for up to three months, and thawed in the refrigerator prior to use. Make a large batch and freeze it in ice cube trays so you can enjoy it often with different recipes. Proteins can also be frozen with the marinade for up to one month.
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Recipe
Mojo Marinade
Ingredients
- 10 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ⅔ cup orange juice
- ⅓ cup lime juice
- ⅓ cup grapefruit juice
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup onion finely minced
Instructions
- With a mortar and pestle smash the garlic and salt together until they make a paste. If you do not have a mortar and pestle then you can put it in a plastic bag and use a rolling pin or heavy-bottomed pan to smash.
- Combine in a small bowl the garlic paste, pepper, cumin, orange juice, lime juice, grapefruit juice, oregano, olive oil, and onion. Whisk together.
- Use the marinade immediately with pork, chicken, beef skirt steak, or shrimp. Or refrigerate for up to three weeks in an airtight container. This can be frozen for up to three months as well.
Notes
- Shrimp and seafood - you will only need 30-minutes to marinade seafood. After 30-minutes the citrus will break down or begin to cook the shrimp or fish.
- Chicken or other poultry - at minimum 2 hours to overnight.
- Pork - for smaller cuts like pork chops or tenderloins 2-8 hours. Large cuts like pork loin or butt roast need to marinate for 8 hours to overnight.
- Beef - skirt steaks and more tender cuts of beef should marinate for 2-4 hours. Any large tough cuts of meat like chuck roast should be overnight.
Nutrition
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