A delicious, savory, homemade Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork) recipe that couldn’t be easier! We love serving this thinly sliced over rice, noodles, in a sandwich, steamed in bao buns, the options are endless!
PREPARATION TIME
INGREDIENTS
4 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Chinese five spice powder
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoons white pepper
1 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder (pork butt), trimmed and cut along the grain into long strips
1 teaspoon salt
INSTRUCTIONS
NOTES
Use a wire rack (inserted into a rimmed baking sheet) while roasting! This ensures even roasting.
Spray your wire rack with cooking spray or generously brush with oil. This will help to prevent the pork strips from sticking to rack (from the sugar).
Line the rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, before inserting the wire rack. This will make the cleanup much easier from the marinade/basting liquid that drips from the pork onto the baking sheet.
How to Get the Subtle Red Color
Traditionally the red color of char siu pork comes from fermented red bean curd. Not only does it impart the red color, but it also adds a really nice salty, umami flavor to the pork! We left it out of our recipe because it’s not the easiest ingredient to find, but if you have it on hand or are interested in using it in this recipe here’s how:First, reduce the amout of soy sauce used to 1 tablespoon.
Mash 1 ounce of bean curd and 2 tablespoons of the sauce together into a rough paste.
Stir paste together with the other sauce ingredients and make the recipe as written.
The more modern way to color the pork is to add a few drops of red food coloring into the marinade. We don’t love this method, since you’re just altering the color, but if you really want the red color without incorporating fermented red bean curd, then this will do it!
