Preparation
15 minutes
Processing
1 hour
Difficulty
Easy
If you keep struggling with familiar ways of cooking pork like stir-fried pork, fried pork, braised pork,… Try cooking to change your family’s taste with this delicious grilled dish of fragrant char siu pork that goes well with rice!
Ingredients for Char Siu Pork Serves 4
Pork shoulder 700 gr Honey 2 tablespoons Char siu powder 1 tablespoon Shallots 1 bulb Garlic 3 cloves Ginger 1/2 bulb Oyster sauce 1 tablespoon Black bean sauce 1/2 tablespoon Soy sauce 1 tablespoon Salt A little
Tools needed:
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose fresh pork
- Fresh pork has a dry membrane, bright red color, and a slightly taut surface. The cut surface of the meat is bright pink, the skin is white-pink, and soft. The fat part is bright, firm, and has a distinctive aroma.
- Press your finger into the meat and release. If it does not leave a fingerprint, the meat rebounds quickly, and is pink-red, then it is fresh meat. If the piece of meat leaves a fingerprint, it is spoiled and should not be chosen.
- Do not choose pieces of pork that are light green or darkened because they are spoiled and have been left too long. If the piece of meat has red skin, it is from a sick pig.
How to choose and where to buy char siu powder
- When buying char siu powder, you need to carefully check the ingredients, pay attention to the expiration date and place of manufacture, check if the packaging is intact, and whether there is a musty smell, to ensure the quality of the char siu powder you buy.
- You can buy char siu powder at grocery stores, supermarkets, markets, or specialty ingredient shops, convenience stores, or you can buy online at reputable e-commerce sites.
How to choose good quality honey
- You can use a clean bamboo stick to stir the honey evenly. If the honey is mixed with other substances, you will see a cloudy color appear, while real honey does not have this phenomenon.
- Alternatively, you can use a clean bamboo chopstick to scoop a bit of honey and pull it into a thread; if the thread stretches and then breaks, and if it recoils into a round shape, then that is pure honey.
- Pure honey feels very soft when stirred, and if you dip your finger in, you won’t feel any grittiness; when you taste it, it dissolves very quickly. Pure honey has a strong sweet taste, a rich aroma, sweet but not cloying.
How to Prepare Char Siu Pork
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Prepare the Ingredients
Wash the pork thoroughly with diluted salt water and then let it dry completely. Next, use a knife to cut it into large pieces so that it doesn’t dry out when grilled, and use a fork to poke holes in the meat to help it absorb the marinade better.
Peel 1 shallot, 3 cloves of garlic, and 1/2 piece of ginger, then chop them into small pieces, no need to chop finely.
Effective Methods to Eliminate Pork Odor- Method 1: Just wash the piece of meat, drop it into boiling water for about 2 – 3 minutes, then turn off the heat, take the meat out, discard the boiling water, rinse thoroughly several times with clean water, and proceed to prepare the meat as usual.
- Method 2: Mix a little warm water with 1 teaspoon of coarse salt, wait for the salt to dissolve, then soak the pork in it for about 25 – 30 minutes. You can add a few drops of alcohol or a few slices of ginger if desired. Finally, take the meat out and rinse thoroughly several times under running water. This way, the meat will be cleaned and the odor will be effectively eliminated.
See details: Effective Methods to Eliminate Pork Odor
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Marinate the meat
Prepare a bowl for the sliced shallots, garlic, and ginger, add 1 tablespoon of char siu powder, 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce, 1/2 tablespoon of black soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of honey, and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, then mix well to dissolve the spices.
Then take a zip bag, put in 700g of prepped meat, pour the marinade into it, seal the zip bag, and massage it with your hands to let the meat absorb the spices.
After that, place it in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours to allow the meat to soak in the flavors better.
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Make char siu
Before grilling the meat, take the marinated meat out and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to take off the chill before grilling.
Once the meat has warmed up, place it on the baking tray and grill at 170 – 175 degrees Celsius for 1 hour.
During the grilling, after about 20 minutes, flip the meat and brush the marinade on, repeat this process 2 more times. In the last 20 minutes, flip every 5 minutes and brush the marinade on to let the meat absorb the flavors and become more delicious.
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Final Product
Hot, golden char siu pork, especially with juicy meat inside that is not dry or tough, evenly seasoned, and flavorful. The sweet aroma of honey combined with the slightly salty and sweet taste of the spices creates an enticing fragrance.
See more:
The dish char siu is tender and delicious without being dry, with a very simple recipe right at home. Let’s get into the kitchen and show off your skills to treat your family! Wish you success!
