The majority of Char Siu recipes “seem” to have some type of hoisin, soy sauce, five-spice powder (not the good kind either), honey, garlic, ginger, rice wine. Now reading and researching dozens of other Char Siu recipes I can’t help to think ingredients like ketchup, chicken stock or powder, oyster sauce, sesame oil, and citrus are just odd. It does not seem to flow with the history of BBQ pork.
Char Siu ingredients that seem 100% authentic
Red yeast wine like Shaoxing (Shao Hsing) for it’s unique salty taste and red coloring
Maltose for the glaze (brown sugar will do)
Soy sauce
Fermented red bean curd (ding, ding, ding – key ingredient!)
Hoison
I judge these based on what was “readily” available and affordable in old China. What would have been produced? I am also going off of dozens of recipes I found online, some of which were Chinese food bloggers. Also the taste/color largely comes from yeasty things like rice wine or fermented red bean curd.
Here is my Char Siu analysis:
There should be soy sauce to some level. It was staple then and still is now.
A glaze made from brown sugar or maltose (also found in beer like TsingTao) which is why you find recipes with it not to mention the alcohol.
Hoisin which is sweet potato and spices – a prolific crop in Asia. It adds a deep, robust sweetness.
Red bean curd has been made for many, many years. It has a natural red dye to it which is imparted easier with the ethanol/wine it sits in.
Some sort of cooked off alcohol (e.g. Shao Shing), The salts help to break the proteins down which concentrates the flavors.
Pork butt (or shoulder) seems to be the consensus among cooks for the fat content. It makes it juicy and using just a tenderloin tends to dry out during the grilling or broiling. I am a butt person myself.
No matter what, overnight in the marinade is mandatory.
I don’t even mention food coloring or red dye 40 since that seemed to be a more modern ingredient and something nobody needs. I am also convinced there is no place for ketchup, Japanese mirin, a ton of aromatics, sesame oil, oyster sauce or meat stock. Remember, I am making this as close to authentic as possible. Without further ado…My #1 ABC Golden Happy Lucky BBQ Pork Recipe:
Char Siu or BBQ Red Pork
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 12 hours, 22 minutes
One brick size portion of pork butt or shoulder cut into thirds
1 CUP Shao Hsing wine
3/4 CUP Tamari gluten-free light-soy
1/4 CUP Hoisin (make sure it has sweet potato puree in it and not the cheap stuff)
A big dash of rose water
1/3 CUP fermented red bean curd (mostly the liquid)
1/2 CUP dark sugar (with molasses)
3 minced garlic cloves
2 TBL minced/zested ginger
2 crushed star anise pods
Instructions
Stir all ingredients together.
Boil it for 1 minute and let cool for an hour.
Put the pork into the marinade overnight (around 12 hours).
Broiling Method:
Turn the gas broiler on.
Put the pork about 4 inches below the fire.
Turn every 2 minutes for 8-10 minutes.
Pull and rest the meat for a few minutes.
Grill Method:
Bring the heat up to 400ºF
Grill 3-4 minutes on each side
Remove from heat and rest for 3-4 minutes.
Notes
It should look exactly like the photo in this recipe. I did not edit the color of the photo in anyway.
This is based on you butchering the butt/shoulder with 2 inch thick pieces. I don't cook according to weight, I cook according the distance to the center of the meat.
I cut the pork along the grain in nice long 2" thick x 4" long x 3" wide strips.
Why these ingredients?
I use Shao Hsing since it has a deep fermented, yeast rice flavor and I have seen it in many “Chinese only” food blogs. It also has a nice salty and caramel flavor to it once you cook the alcohol off.
Dark sugar has molasses which also adds this deep, sweet, kinda burnt cane flavor.
Garlic and ginger is there to add a pungent, healthy zest to the marinade. Nothing more is needed. I tested scallions but they were buried under the other tastes.
Hoisin adds a fantastic complex sweetness and starch to the marinade due to the sweet potato.
The red bean curd adds color, salt and another nice dose of yeast to flavor the meat.
Homemade 5-spice still seems to be a hit or miss. I omit it. I think that it is simply just too many flavors. I have Chinese recipes which are in both camps. I do add some crushed star anise pods though.
I am not saying this is the best recipe outside China, but it can hold it’s own and is deliciously Chinese without a ton of salt. You don’t have to believe m. Make the recipe for yourself. Please send me your comments from your own experience making this mouth watering BBQ red pork.
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