Readying some pork char siu - for the umpteenth time

[Brett-EDH]

It’s been a while since I made this and the weather is turning really nice here, as does spring’s approach.

This is a flavorful meal that the leftovers can be repurposed many different ways. And it makes a great pork fried rice ingredient too.

This is a 4# section from a few Costco butts I broke down this winter and froze.

Usual ingredients for char siu sans hoisin sauce.

I amped up the fresh garlic and ginger as the ginger from Ranch99 yesterday were huge and fresh.

Other parts are 5 spice powder, dry sherry, salt, dark soy sauce, granulated sugar, sesame oil, oyster sauce, honey, paprika for that red tinge, and white ground pepper.

Cubed the 4# butt into 4 even sized chunks so I can get more surface area for crispy bits when cooking, and distributed the marinade ingredients while they were assembled in the bag.

Into the fridge for a few hours and will then grill these up later on a medium fire and with some direct searing and indirect roasting.

More pics to follow later.

 

[Tim Campbell]

Destined for greatness.

 

[ChuckO]

I see another epic thread by Brett in the making

 

[Brett-EDH]

Got this going.

Artichoke for the wife. It looked good so we bought it. SPG Evoo













Starting temp per the Blue Dot (such a convenient tool)



Added some Chinese eggplant



SPG evoo



Started to candy the pork with honey thinned slightly with water





Temps move faster and smaller pork chunks

 

[Brett-EDH]

At the finish line

Artichoke with fresh lemon juice and pecorino





Probe out and in direct sear









The air is dead still here. I have officially filled up my neighbors backyard.

 

[Brett-EDH]

 

[Brett-EDH]

Thinly sliced leftovers for fresh Vietnamese rolls this week. Around 2# leftovers.



By far, one of the better batches of char siu I’ve made. I give props to the extra and super fresh ginger and garlic. Big flavor boost with those two in a generous amount. IIRC it was 12 cloves of garlic and a big 1 1/4 inch knob of ginger almost squared.

 

[Wilmer Cogburn]

Mighty fine looking meal there!

 

[Kevin L (NKY)]

Now that is a seriously good looking and packed full of flavors meal, the pork has such rich color and just the right amount of char.

 

[Brett-EDH]

Now that is a seriously good looking and packed full of flavors meal, the pork has such rich color and just the right amount of char.

With a 24-48 hour marinade, I think this one could have hit even more levels. This one was a 10 for me. The lower cook temp, the higher finished temp and then the charring really helped build those layers. Give it a go. I’ve documented this recipe a few times here. Joan even bumped my original recipe version. Again, this version had more fresh ginger and garlic which aided in even more flavor.

Thank you for your kind words!

 

[Brett-EDH]

Here’s the link to the recipe and this now makes the 4th discussed version of this cook. You can consume all previous versions at this current link and the rehashed versions to see how I’ve progressed this recipe over time.

Almost forgot, there’s a few small dashes of red pepper flakes in the marinade.

Char Siu - Asian style roast pork

This original cook with discussion can be found here: https://tvwbb.com/threads/char-siu-asian-roast-pork.88223/ And an additional and different style cook of this recipe here: https://tvwbb.com/threads/how%E2%80%99s-my-butt-look.88779/ Ingredients: 4 lbs pork butt cut into large chunks - 4#...

tvwbb.com

 

[ChuckO]

That’s another over the top meal Brett. I’ll give it a try and take your advice to let it marinade a couple days. You may have smoked out your neighbors but I bet they loved every minute of it

 

[Brett-EDH]

That’s another over the top meal Brett. I’ll give it a try and take your advice to let it marinade a couple days. You may have smoked out your neighbors but I bet they loved every minute of it

Thanks, Chuck! All the smoke was from a small CA white oak chunk atop the grate. You can see the chunk size in one of my pics. I personally love driving home with the windows down to smell what others might have going on in their yards. Bbq/grill aromas always get me thinking when I smell ‘q.

Now the new house is atop a hill. Going to be interesting to see if I can fill up the valley below me with smoke too! I do love early spring here. Best weather around!

 

[Barb D]

Brett, you nail that one. Outstanding cook and looks soo good.

 

[Peter Gallagher]

yum! good work - the char sui looks great!

 

[Wilmer Cogburn]

Bookmarked along with the linked recipe thread. I will need to try this.

 

[Brett-EDH]

Bookmarked along with the linked recipe thread. I will need to try this.

This most recent version is by far my best. Use the previous recipes for measurements but this current cooked version has fewer ingredients but yielded a better product.

 

[Tony Coloma]

The lady of the house makes char siu. Makes lots of chinese dishes, everyday. Authentic to super authentic. Different cuts of pork too.
Yours looks better

 

[Brett-EDH]

The lady of the house makes char siu. Makes lots of chinese dishes, everyday. Authentic to super authentic. Different cuts of pork too.
Yours looks better

That’s a huge compliment. Thank you. Please make sure your wife isn’t reading this thread. I wouldn’t want her to see that or be offended. I’d feel bad if that were the case. Trying to lift all boats here. Collectively we’re all trying to improve our craft and hobby.

 

[Tony Coloma]

No worries. Some recipes are very involved. Others, worse. She is a fantastic cook. Now if it would rub off on...