Char siu pork (BBQ pork)

Char siu pork recipe

Char siu pork fillet is often served as part of a Lunar New Year feast but works just as well for a midweek meal as it can be marinated the night before and then roasted in time for dinner or made into a char siu pork sti- fry.

BBQ pork char siu is a roasted pork fillet with a distinctive red tinge around the edges when sliced. The sticky red barbecue sauce gets its colour from fermented red bean curd (tofu) that stains the pork edges and gives it the telltale look you know. Roasted pork char siu is sliced to show off the attractive red/pink edges and served with various noodles, rice and vegetable dishes.

How to make char siu pork

This pork char siu recipe is relatively simple consisting of only a few steps – marinade, roast, baste and serve. Using a premade char siu sauce and pork belly slices makes this an easy option for during the week that’s also fancy enough to impress your guests for special occasions.

First you need to create your marinade by combining all ingredients together in a large bowl. Then add the pork belly slices and stir to coat all over. To ensure your pork belly absorbs all of the flavour of the marinade, cover and place it in the fridge overnight. In order to get the popular caramelisation that char siu is known for, the oven should be preheated to 250°C and initially you will drain the pork and reserve marinade. Drained pork should be placed on a rack and roasted at 250°C for 5 minutes before basting with the reserved marinade and reducing the temperature to 200°C for the remainder of the cooking time.

Continue to roast your pork for 25 minutes while basting every 5 minutes to keep it moist. After 25 minutes of regular roasting and basting, brush your pork with half of the honey and put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes. At this stage you’ll turn the pork and continue to roast for another 25 minutes and continue basting at 5 minute intervals. After another 25 minutes you’ll then baste with the last of the honey and roast for another 5 minutes or until the pork is cooked through. Regular basting will keep your pork moist and tender while baking, as well as giving it that glossy caramelised finish.

This Chinese pork char siu recipe served with rice, steamed greens and cucumber creates a beautiful balance of flavours and textures. 

What to serve with char siu pork

The versatility of char siu belly pork means it works just as well over steamed rice or fried rice and steamed green veg as it does with noodles or in a stir-fry. Whilst Chinese in origin, sliced char siu pork has made its way into Japanese cuisine commonly served with bowls of ramen.

This recipe relies on the fat of the meat for cooking, so don’t give in to the temptation to trim your fat – it will render down to create tender meat and great flavour. To stop the roasting pan from smoking due to drippings, adding a cup of water to the bottom of the pan will help with this.

Now get cooking

Following these steps will get you perfect roast pork every time to serve at your Lunar New Year celebrations or a weeknight meal. To complete off your menu, you might want to make some money bags, honey soy chicken and some mixed Asian steamed greens. Or check out more recipes for the Lunar New Year.