Char Siu Pork

Nigel Barden
5 hours ago
2 min read

by Suzie Lee from Simply Chinese Feasts: Tasty Recipes for Friends and Family (Quadrille)

Photography: Lizzie Mason

“Char means ‘fork’ and siu means ‘roast/ burn’, which is how char siu used to be cooked – on a fork over a large, open flame. The main traditional ingredient is the red fermented bean curd, which gives the pork its red colouring (the colour comes from the fermentation of the red yeast rice used to make the curd). It also has a depth of flavour that can be imitated by using oyster sauce and extra Shaoxing wine. Pork is eaten at celebratory times such as Chinese New Year as it symbolises strength, wealth and blessings.”

Serves 6

Prep: The day before

Cook: 40 mins

Ingredients

For the pork:

1 kg pork shoulder (with some fat marbled through the meat)

3 tablespoons honey, plus extra if needed

vegetable oil, for frying

For the marinade:

2-3 cubes red fermented bean curd, mashed with 1 tablespoon of liquid from the jar

80g hoisin sauce

40g of honey

30g black treacle

30g dark soy sauce

10g five-spice powder

garlic, finely chopped about 1 large clove

1 tablespoon of oil

¼ teaspoon of salt

2 teaspoons of red food colouring (optional)

Method

Make the marinade the night before you plan to cook. Place a bowl on top of a set of digital scales and put a sandwich bag in the bowl. Then measure all the marinade ingredients directly into the bag.

Slice the pork shoulder lengthways into thin, uniform pieces about 2.5 cm deep and 5–7.5 cm wide. Add the pork pieces to the bag and use your hands to massage the marinade into the meat. Place the bag flat on a baking tray, so the marinade covers all the meat, and keep in the fridge overnight.

The next day, when you are ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200°C fan (425°F).

Remove the marinated char siu pieces from the fridge and place on a grill tray lined with some tin foil to catch the drips. Pour the leftover marinade in the bag into a bowl and mix with three tablespoons of honey, to give you a really sticky glaze.

Roast the char siu in the oven for 20 minutes, then remove and baste with the glaze. Grill the char siu pieces for approximately five minutes, then use tongs to flip the pieces over and baste with more glaze.

Continue basting and turning the pieces until all sides are sticky and the characteristic burned/ charred bits appear. It will take 10–20 minutes to get the desired result, but less time if you have smaller char siu pieces. You need a maximum of about 40 minutes for perfect char siu.

Once you are happy, brush the char siu with honey on all sides to make it glisten.

Serve with rice or noodles, or add to countless other dishes to bulk them out.

Top Tip

Any leftover char siu will freeze well and can be kept in the freezer for a month.

Drinks tasted on air, alongside the dish: