Char Siu - Chinese Barbecue Pork
You can do this, too! Here is the original recipe of Chinese Barbecued Pork from Diana Kuan’s new “The Chinese Take Out Cookbook.” If you have enjoyed those slices of rich, honey-sweetened and salty pork belly from Chinese restaurants but always wondered how to do it, then you’re in for a treat. Now you can make it right in your own home. Diana gave me such an easy recipe to do, I did not have to over think it. Whether it’s the Lunar New Year or any day, this is a great meal the family can enjoy. Serve it with fragrant jasmine rice, steamed dumplings, a 'pancit' noodle dish or other Chinese New Year entrees. This recipe made 4 servings.
Servings: 2 people
Ingredients
- 1 pound whole slab pork belly
- 2 Tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
- 2 Tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 Tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
- 2 Tablespoons honey
- for serving: steamed rice
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together the rice wine, dark soy sauce, sugar, garlic, hoisin sauce, and five-spice powder. Rub the pork belly with the marinade mixture and marinate for 2 to 3 hours in the refrigerator.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Rub the excess marinade off the pork belly (but don’t rub it all off!) and place in a roasting pan. Brush the top with the honey. Roast the pork for 40 to 45 minutes, flipping the pork belly over half-way through and brushing honey on the other side. The pork is done when the outsides begin to crisp and blacken, and the center of the pork belly strip feels firm.
- Remove the pork from oven and let it cool for a 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into thin slices. Arrange the slices on a plate and serve, either plain as part of a multi-course meal, or with rice or noodles.
- COOK’S COMMENTS: My oven’s temperature tends to rise sharply, so I adjusted this recipe for Chinese Barbecued Pork (Char Siu) a tad bit to avoid burning the pork. Instead of mixing the honey and sugar to the marinade mixture, I added the sweet ingredients to the pork belly towards the end of the roasting process. I added the 2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar and 2 Tablespoons honey to the excess marinade, mixed and poured it on the pork belly at the last 15 minutes of cooking. The results were marvelous!