Enjoying the Char Siew (BBQ Pork)

This is Pork Shoulder Char Siew, it looked less fattening.

The best way to enjoy it; is take together with red wine ... my favorite ... try it... you will understand what I mean ... 

STEP 3 : Roast The Char Siew (BBQ Pork) !

After 1 whole night or half day marinate process, now is time to covert the pork belly to tasty Melting Char Siew!

Take out the marinated pork belly from chiller. Let it drop to room temperature, this may take 15-20 minutes. This is very important, because chilling pork belly send into oven will drop down the oven's temperate, eventually you won't get what you want...

Meanwhile, you can preheat the oven to 125C. New oven may take 10 minute, old oven may take 15 minute or more. Advisable to purchase an oven temperature to put inside the oven, it can help to consistently tracking the inner temperature.  
  

While waiting the pork belly drop to room temperature, you can placing the pork belly into another new bowl, marinate sauce remain in the old bowl. put some corn powder into the marinated pork belly, about 10-15g, just enough to moderately dry up the surface will do. This can help to hold the honey, maltose, marinate sauce on the surface while roasting, when honey, maltose, marinate sauce is solid hold on surface, it help to lock the pork moisture, lean part will be tender and also turn the fat into soft jelly form :) not the hard jelly form.


When oven get 125C standby temperature. Put some marinate sauce from the old bowl into the marinated pork belly, let the sauce stick on the surface. Send the pork belly into oven. Please remember to do it fast, because oven will lose heat when cover is open up. Let the pork belly lying inside the the oven racks, only the commercial oven got space to allow hang straight. Gentle reminder; put some aluminum foil at the bottom, so that the marinate sauce cant directly drop at the bottom part, easier for cleaning later.

Let the pork belly roast 8-10 minute with 125C. After that turn around all the pork belly, and put more marinate mixture on the turned around surface. Gentle reminder; act fact and close up the cover to avoid lose heat. Continue roast for another 8-10 minutes with 125C.

After the 2nd time roasting done, take out all the pork belly from the oven and placed it on some plate or container. Turn the Oven temperature to 180C, while waiting oven temperature increase to 180C, it may take 5-10 minute. Put some more marinate mixture, honey, maltose on the roasted pork belly, honey in small quantity will do, otherwise too sweet, maltose and marinate mixture just enough to cover all surface will do.

When oven temperature raise to 180C, send in the pork belly agian (act fast, close fast, be careful, extremely hot). Let it roasting for another 8-10 minutes, in the middle of the 8-10 minutes you may turn around the pork belly 1 more time. 

Start to observe the burnt condition, with 180C, you can see the surface start to got bubble and eventually turn the Maltose and Honey into caramel. Burnt will start from all the corners and slowly toward other parts, I suggest when corner turn burnt and other parts turn moderate burnt, switch off the oven. Let the Char Siew stay inside the oven for another 5 minutes, during this period you can see a lot of pork oil will drop out from the Char Siew, that's why you wont get very oily bite even-though you are taking pork belly Char Siew :) Done !

Because this is not the lean/hard type Char Siew, you can't cut it into small slice. It's in moderate jelly form, advisable cut it into 1/2 inch in slice. 

Enjoy your Homemade Melting Char Siew !!! :)

STEP 2 : Marinate the Pork Belly

Marinate Process is important, it help to increase the Char Siew taste and tendering the pork, I advice to marinate the pork overnight (8-12 hours) in refrigerator, instead of using artificial method to increase the taste and tendering the meat... because this is "homemade" Char Siew for our loved one and our-self :)    

You may refer to my 1st post about my marinate recipe, follow my recipe for the first time and modify your own version in future. Marinate mixture usually can last more than 1 month if your keep properly inside chiller. Rose wine is an essential ingredient, try to remain in your recipe, the Cantonese Char Siew will have this aroma.  

STEP:

1. Choose pork belly that I mentioned on previous post, about 1-2kg. Recommend; 15-20 inch wide, 15-20 inch long, 2-3 inch thickness, fat-lean-fat, FRESH!!!  

2. Remove the Pork Belly' skin. Skin is on top of the 1st fat layer, use your own way or you can consult others how to do it. Usually I use big kitchen knife to remove the skin.

3. Wash carefully after remove the skin, following by dry up the pork belly (using kitchen towel), as dry as possible. Excess water will dilute the marinate mixture and cause the marinate mixture can't stick properly on the pork belly surface.

4. Use the multiple headed pin to poke some small holes on all the surfaces, you can use fork to replace if you don't have, anyway you can easily buy from utensil shop. This will help to fasten and improve the marinate result.

5. Cut the pork belly into 1.5 x 15/20 inch strip. Put all strip inside a big bowl or container.

6. Put reasonable quantity of sugar and rose wise, massage the pork belly for 1-2 minutes. Sugar enough to cover up all surface, rose wine 5ml will do (too much will cover other ingredients's taste).

7. Keep in chiller for 3 hours, reason; let sugar and rose wine penetrate into pork belly first, because marinate mixture is taste stronger than sugar and rose wine, if put together, can hardly get the rose wine and sweet taste inside the pork.

8. After 3 hour, take out the pork belly from chiller, you will see some water inside the bowl, filter out the water and remain the pork belly inside the bowl. Put some Five Spice Powder on the pork belly (about 5-8g), just enough to minor cover up the surface will do, Message for 1-2 minutes. this is for taste and color purpose, too much will make the char siew taste like Nam Yu Pork.    

9. Put in the marinate sauce, quantity that enough to cover all the pork belly, message for 1-2 minutes. Keep inside chiller for another 8-12 hours. 

*** Advisable to cover up the bowl or container during marinate period, in order to avoid other weird smell inside the chiller penetrate into our pork belly.   

  

STEP 1 : Learn to Choose which part of Pork for your Homomade Char Siew

If you are keen to learn making good Char Siew, you must start from the very basic; choose pork meat.

Let me explain to you, commonly in Malaysia and Singapore, people practiced to use lean pork to make Char Siew, becasue:
1.) Cheaper.
2.) Easier to cook.
3.) Majority don't like to eat "fat Char Siew".

*** Fat Char Siew I mean here; Char Siew that using pork with fat, but the fat is in hard shape, because the way to make is wrong. This type of fat Char Siew really tasted oily and nasty.

Using lean pork to make Char Siew is "ok"... but you can't make the real good Char Siew, because lean pork will lose moisture very fast after cooked. Base on my experience, 2 hours after cooked, the Char Siew will turned harden, if you reheat the Char Siew, the taste is horrible. Lean Char Siew must finish immediately after cook, otherwise only can use for Wan Tan Mee side dish :)))

But our OBJECTIVE here is want to make Char Siew that can MELTING inside your mouth.

The answer is here, the best part for making Char Siew is FRESH PORK BELLY. Fat Portion 30% fat -70% lean or 40% fat -60% lean. The structure of pork belly is advisable in Fat-Lean-Fat, reason; this structure is the best structure to retain moisture during roasting and after roasting, because the fat parts actually covered up the lean part (This is very important point of making melting Char Siew). Please remember only use Fresh Pork Belly, 1-2 days pork belly may have such conditions; smelly, fat and lean part is not in good shape and position, lose moisture, etc....    

You may consider to use Pork Shoulder, pork shoulder is come with mixture of lean and fat. The good one you can find is; you can see the fat in spider web shape, located equally. Remarks, pork shoulder usually far more expensive than other parts. 

If you want to try pork shoulder, please remember to shorten the roasting time by 15-20%. It is easier to dry up compare to pork belly.  

What Appliances can use to make your "HOMEMADE" Char Siew ?

I Believe, most of us noticed that; restaurant outside are commonly using a modified big drum to roast Char Siew, Some of them using "Siew Lup" drum to roast, High-end restaurant may use commercial type electric / gas giant oven to roast Char Siew. 

At home, this is almost impossible :))) 

Luckily we are living in 21st century. There are some household electric appliances can help us mange it ! 
I mean roasting, not cooking. 

You have 2 options;

1.)Household type roasting oven.
pro: can cook more in quantity
cons: temperature control and cleaning issue.
(temperature inconsistent usually happened on aging oven) 

2.) Halogen Oven
pro: easy control temperature and clean up after cooked.
cons: small quantity, may last you 2-3 years only???
(please go google what is Halogen Oven, basically is using halogen heat and air circulation to cook all type of foods)

Both appliances can be use to roasting Char Siew at home. I would say, is better to have both for difference occasion. If you only cook for you and your honey; use the Halogen oven. If want to cook for 8-10 person or more; go for Roasting Oven.  

What is Char Siew? Where it come from?

The name "Char Siew" translates to mean "fork roasted", which is a reference to the original cooking method. The meat, after marinating, is traditionally placed on a long cooking fork and roasted over an open fire, allowing the flames to caramelize the sugars left from the marinade. This method is rarely used outside of very traditional or high-end restaurants. Instead, the meat is more commonly cooked either hanging vertically in a tall oven or simply roasted. The pork is occasionally finished om a grill to provide a darker color and crispy outer texture.

What is REAL GOOD Char Siew (BBQ Pork) that can melting inside your mouth???

I have 2-3 years experience in cooking homemade char siew (BBQ pork).  But ...

Why I need to do so ??? since outside are plenty restaurant and food store I can buy char siew easily !!!

NO WAY!

In Malaysia, there are only few restaurant and food store that can make REAL char siew... but either it is too expensive or too clouded (you need to fight for seat, and sometime it will sold out before lunch time !) I will share with you about these restaurant in later part, hence this blog is to share about making REAL char siew.

Sorry to say; 99% of the char siew you can buy from outside, I would not consider it is the REAL char siew... I want. Usually you will get; dry char siew... fat char siew  ... coloring char siew ... something like char siew ... :)))))

So, what is the REAL char siew? to me:
1.) 30% fat 70% meat (which part of pork meat ?)
2.) must be able to melting inside my mouth.
3.) moderate roasted aroma and outlook
4.) coated with sugar or maltose.
5.) inside meat carry some wine aroma and marinate sauce
(marinate sauce is subjective to personal, some prefer less sweet, can be adjust accordingly)

KEY to make char siew that can melting inside your month:
1.) which part of pork you use.
2.) roasting temperature, time, and step.
3.) Sugar or maltose coating.
ALL above are so important, either 1 make mistake, the outcome may spoil !