Chinese BBQ Pork

I had a terrible experience the last time I had a craving for some "Char Siu" (Cantonese style BBQ Pork). After fighting an hour's worth of traffic to reach Chinatown and waiting in line for half more at my favorite BBQ restaurant "Sam Woo", I was left staring at the last piece of Char Siu which was practically screaming, "I'm dry and burnt, but I'm the last piece standing and you've come this far ......" And that was enough inspiration for making my own Chinese BBQ Pork nowadays whenever I have a craving for that sweet, sticky, tender hunk of "red" meat.

The choice of meat is on the top of my list when it comes to my BBQ Pork. For a leaner Char Siu, use pork cushion or pork loin. If you prefer it to be really tender (like I do), pork belly is the way to go. If you can't decide, start out with pork shoulder or pork butt, which is leaner than pork belly, yet quite marbly and moist.

Traditionally, Chinese BBQ Pork is skewered with long forks and roasted in ovens, which is how it's name is derived, "Char" and "Siu" in Cantonese respectively translate to "Fork" and "Roasted". However, I have discovered that pan-broiling the BBQ Pork like my Hainan Chicken on the stove-top is faster and the result is just as authentic.

Personally, I prefer my Chinese BBQ Pork with egg noodles tossed with the BBQ Pork caramel sauce. But its always great with plain white rice, fried rice, or as bun stuffings.

BBQ Pork Caramel Sauce Recipe

Ingredients :
4 tbsp maltose
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp sweet soy sauce
1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1 tbsp Chinese rose wine ( OR regular shaoxing wine )
white pepper
sesame oil
salt to taste

Method :

1) To avoid sticking or burning onto the pan, cook all ingredients on a double boiler on medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens, let it cool down and then set aside.

BBQ Pork Recipe

Ingredients :
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced shallot
2 lbs+ pork belly ( OR use pork loin OR pork shoulder)
caramel sauce

Method :

1) Fork the pork belly and rub the minced ingredients all over the meat.
2) Marinade the pork bellies with half to two thirds of a portion of the prepared caramel sauce over the meat, and then set aside for at least 20 minutes. ( preferably overnight )
3) Pan fry the marinated meat over medium-high heat until both sides are nicely browned, cover and let it cook on medium-low heat for an additional 20-30 minutes.
4) Baste some glaze over the meat 5 minutes before finish time.
5) Pour the remaining caramel sauce over the meat, before of after cutting the meat into serving size.