Char Siu - Best Char Siu Pork Recipe - Rasa Malaysia (2024)

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The best Char Siu recipe with perfect Cantonese BBQ char siu pork and sweet char siu sauce. This is an authentic recipe that tastes like Cantonese restaurants in Chinatown!

Char Siu - Best Char Siu Pork Recipe - Rasa Malaysia (1)

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Table of Contents

Char Siu Pork

Char Siu, or Chinese BBQ pork, is one of the most popular pork recipes in Cantonese cooking.

If you have been to Chinatown, I am sure you have seen glistening and perfectly roasted meats such as Chinese roast pork (siu yuk), chicken and duck hanging in front of the Chinese BBQ restaurants.

BBQ pork belly char siu is the epitome of Cantonese BBQ. They are always sliced into thin pieces and served with steamed white rice, with vegetable on the side.

Sometimes spelled as char siew or char sui, the pork is always perfectly charred, juicy, tender, dripping in a sticky, sweet and savory sauce.

When cooked right, this is one of the best pork recipes to savor in the whole world!

In this recipe, you will learn how to make the best char siu, 100% homemade, with the taste that rivals the best Cantonese restaurants in Chinatown!

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Other Recipes You Might Like

  • Chinese Roast Pork
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  • Char Siu Chicken
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Char Siu Recipe

How to make char siu? There are two parts of the recipe.

The first part is picking the best cut of pork. The second part is tmaking he char siu sauce which is the marinade.

It’s best to marinate the pork belly overnight. To BBQ, roast in the oven at 400F for 15 minutes.

Set the oven to broil and broil all sides of the pork belly until they char nicely. Slice into thin pieces before serving.

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What Is Char Siu Sauce Made Of?

Before you marinate the pork belly, you will need to make the Char Siu Sauce.

Here are the list of ingredients:

  • “Nam yue” or fermented red bean curd. This ingredient is optional if you don’t have it, but it adds the iconic nuance and aromas to the pork.
  • Maltose (preferred) or honey.
  • Soy sauce.
  • Oyster sauce.
  • Five spice powder.
  • Ground white pepper.

These ingredients mingle together to produce the most amazing, sweet, savory, sticky sauce that marinates the pork belly before roasting in the oven. You can make a few servings and keep them in the fridge.

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Cooking Tips for the Best Char Siu Pork Belly

I have another Chinese BBQ Pork recipe, but this is the best and most authentic recipe ever!

The taste of this recipe reminds me of the best of the best in Malaysia, found at the many chicken rice stalls there.

Here are my Cooking Tips:

  • Use pork belly. Try to choose fatty pork belly with equal layer of meat and fat. The ratio of fat and meat should be 50:50.
  • If you can’t find pork belly, you may choose fatty pork shoulder or pork butt.
  • Remove the skin before marinating the pork.
  • Marinate overnight for the deeper flavors.
  • Roast and BBQ the pork in an oven. Then grill over direct fire (using an outdoor BBQ grill or over the stove top). You can also use broil it using your oven. The key is to char all sides of the pork belly with a nice char.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Use Pork Tenderloin?

Yes, you can use pork tenderloin for char siu.

Pork tenderloin is less fatty but it will make a leaner and healthier version of this recipe.

Can I Freeze the Leftover?

You can keep the leftover in the refrigerator for a few days but I don’t recommend freezing.

How Many Calories per Serving?

This recipe is only 361 calories per serving.

What to Serve with This Recipe?

Serve this recipe with plain rice or chicken rice. For a Cantonese BBQ dinner at home, I recommend the following recipes.

Chinese Roast Pork

Chicken Rice

Restaurant-style Chinese Greens with Oyster Sauce

Chinese Fried Rice

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Char Siu (The Best Recipe)

The best Char Siu recipe with perfect Cantonese BBQ char siu pork and sweet char siu sauce . An authentic recipe that tastes just like Chinatown restaurants!

4.59 from 168 votes

Print

By Bee Yinn Low

Yield 3 people

Prep 15 minutes mins

Cook 30 minutes mins

Total 45 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. skinless pork belly, cut into 2 long strips
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic

Char Siu Sauce:

  • 2 pieces Chinese fermented red bean curd (see Notes)
  • 1 tablespoon maltose or honey
  • 1 tablespoon Chinese Shaoxing wine
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dark and thick soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon five-spice powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper powder
  • 3 1/2 oz sugar (100 g or 8 1/2 tablespoons)

Instructions

  • Get a big bowl, mix all the Char Siu Sauce ingredients, add the garlic and pork belly and marinate overnight in the fridge.

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  • The next day, heat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C).

  • Place the pork belly on a wire rack or in a pan lined with aluminum foil. Roast for 15 minutes.

  • Removed from oven and turn the pork belly over, brush the remaining Char Siu Sauce on the pork. Continue to roast for another 15 minutes.

  • Set the oven to Broil and broil each side of the pork belly for about 1 min, until each side become nicely charred. The char siu will look dark in color, it's normal.

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  • You may heat up the remaining Char Siu Sauce and bring to a simmer. Set aside.

  • Slice the char siu into thin and bite-size pieces, serve immediately with steamed white rice and the remaining Char Siu Sauce.

Notes

If you don't have fermented bean curd, you may substitute with 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce.

If you have Chinese rose wine, use it instead of Shaoxing wine.

For the dark and thick soy sauce, you can use either kecap (kicap) manis, or regular dark or black soy sauce. If you are in Malaysia, just use the regular dark soy sauce.

You can heat up the the remaining Char Siu Sauce until it bubbles and thickens. Drizzle it on the char siu before serving.

This recipe is adapted from a recipe posted on Facebook.

Course: Chinese Recipes

Cuisine: Pork

Keywords: char siu

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Char Siu (The Best Recipe)

Amount Per Serving (3 people)

Calories 361Calories from Fat 720

% Daily Value*

Fat 80g123%

Saturated Fat 29g181%

Cholesterol 109mg36%

Sodium 661mg29%

Carbohydrates 43g14%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 39g43%

Protein 16g32%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

Char Siu - Best Char Siu Pork Recipe - Rasa Malaysia (2024)

FAQs

What is char siu sauce made of? ›

How do you make char siu sauce? Our recipe for char siu marinade calls for garlic salt​, brown sugar​, oyster sauce​, light soy sauce​, hoisin sauce​, red wine, Shaoxing wine, red fermented bean curd, and five spice powder. Check the instructions above for specific amounts.

What is the difference between char siu and siu yuk? ›

Char siu is barbecued roast pork, whereas siu yuk is roasted crispy pork belly. Not only do they use different parts of the pig — my dad likes to use pork butt for char siu and pork belly for siu yuk — but they're also prepared differently and have varying flavor profiles and textures.

How do Chinese restaurants get the pork red? ›

The red hue on the pork comes from the sticky, crave-able barbecue sauce in which it's marinaded before roasting. Often, this deep crimson hue comes from a combination of Hoisin sauce, ketchup, soy sauce, and fermented red bean curd (aka fermented tofu, bean cheese, or tofu cheese).

What makes char siu pork pink? ›

4. Red food colouring – to make the pork red, like you get at the Chinese barbecue shop. This is optional. Authentic Char Siu uses red bean curd for colouring and a touch of flavour – it can be found at Asian stores, use about 2 tbsp of the liquid and no red food colouring.

Is hoisin sauce the same as char siu sauce? ›

No they are not the same. Hoisin sauce is made from fermented soybeans mixed with garlic, chilli, sesame, Chinese spices and vinegar. Char siu sauce is a condiment made from hoisin sauce, sugar, Chinese five spice powder, Chinese cooking wine, soy sauce, garlic and often also food colouring.

What is a substitute for Chinese char siu sauce? ›

Hoisin sauce

The original sauce uses fermented soybean paste which is quite tricky to find. I cannot always find it, so instead, I use hoisin sauce which is more widely available. Hoisin sauce adds a kick of umami and a subtle tanginess. You can use store-bought or follow my recipe to make your own hoisin sauce.

What should I serve with char siu pork? ›

Traditionally, this dish would be served up sliced over rice with a side of steamed greens, but you can also serve with noodles or in steamed buns. Don't forget to read our tips further down, including marinating the pork the day before, to allow time for the sauce to penetrate better into the meat.

Is pork char siu unhealthy? ›

Arguably Char Siu may be carcinogenic. Despite the charred chunks, many may easily chomp down when the meat is carved and served in thin or thick slices on a plate, all because it is too delicious to resist the temptation. There are also many health enthusiasts who would not lay an eye on anything charred.

What does char siu mean in Chinese? ›

Char siu literally means "fork roasted" (siu being burn/roast and cha being fork, both noun and verb) after the traditional cooking method for the dish: long strips of seasoned boneless pork are skewered with long forks and placed in a covered oven or over a fire.

What is the red meat in Chinese food called? ›

Char siu is Chinese restaurant-style pork with a deep red, sweet and sticky coating. Char siu literally means "fork roast" and refers to the traditional method of cooking this dish by which strips of seasoned pork were skewered with long forks and roasted in a covered oven or over a fire.

What is the red dot in pork? ›

The haemorrhage may result from rupture of blood vessels - usually very small ones (capillaries) - or sometimes from leakage of red blood cells through small holes in imperfect blood vessels. In fresh meat the haemorrhages appear as dark red spots, usually not more than 1 cm in diameter.

What is the red juice in pork? ›

Myoglobin, the red, watersoluble protein in muscle, is responsible for the pink/ red color of muscle foods. Although hemoglobin often comes to mind when thinking about red color in meat, myoglobin plays a much more significant role in meat color.

What is the difference between char siu and Chashu? ›

What is Chashu? Japanese have adapted the famous Chinese barbecued pork called Char Siu (叉燒) as chāshū (チャーシュー). Unlike the Chinese version which requires roasting over high heat, we prepare the meat by rolling it into a log and then braising it over low heat in a sauce seasoned with soy sauce, sake, and sugar.

What is the difference between char siu and roast pork? ›

Pork is literally just “the meat of a pig” in the most general sense. Char siu is the anglicized rendering of the name of a Cantonese style of roasted pork (usually belly, back, loin, or neck), flavored with Chinese 5 spice and glazed with honey and red rice yeast that produces a rich, red color.

Can you freeze char siu? ›

You can cook it once, then eat it in a few different meals throughout the week. Cooked Char Siu also freezes really well. When you have the time, make a giant batch with a pork shoulder, then freeze it in smaller quantities to pull out later and add to different recipes.

Is char siu sauce the same as barbecue sauce? ›

Char Siu Sauce (Chinese Barbecue Sauce)

A classic Chinese barbecue sauce perfect for marinating, baking, and barbecuing meat, chicken, or seafood.

What is the difference between pork and char siu? ›

Pork is literally just “the meat of a pig” in the most general sense. Char siu is the anglicized rendering of the name of a Cantonese style of roasted pork (usually belly, back, loin, or neck), flavored with Chinese 5 spice and glazed with honey and red rice yeast that produces a rich, red color.

What does char siu stand for? ›

Char siu is Chinese restaurant-style pork with a deep red, sweet and sticky coating. Char siu literally means "fork roast" and refers to the traditional method of cooking this dish by which strips of seasoned pork were skewered with long forks and roasted in a covered oven or over a fire.

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