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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 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!
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 making the 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.
Ingredients
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.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.
How To Make Char Siu Pork Belly
Step 1: Get a big bowl, mix all the Char Siu Sauce ingredients, add the garlic and pork belly and marinate overnight in the fridge.
Step 2: 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.
Step 3: 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.
Step 4: 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.
Step 5: Slice the char siu into thin and bite-size pieces, serve immediately with steamed white rice and the remaining Char Siu Sauce. You may heat up the remaining Char Siu Sauce and bring to a simmer and set aside.
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
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.
You can keep the leftover in the refrigerator for a few days but I don’t recommend freezing.
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.
I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do. If you try my recipe, please leave a comment and consider giving it a 5-star rating. For more easy and delicious recipes, explore my Recipe Index, and stay updated by subscribing to my newsletter and following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for new updates.
Other Recipes You Might Like
Char Siu (The Best Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 lb. skinless pork belly, cut into 2 long strips
- 2 tablespoons garlic, finely chopped
Char Siu Sauce:
- 2 pieces Chinese fermented red bean curd
- 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.
- 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.
- Slice the char siu into thin and bite-size pieces, serve immediately with steamed white rice and the remaining Char Siu Sauce. You may heat up the remaining Char Siu Sauce and bring to a simmer and set aside.
Video
Notes
- 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.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I found Char Sui at one of our local Asian store – right now I have a piece of pork belly marinating over night and look forward to cooking it tomorrow – I love your site and look forward to trying out this BBQ Pork recipe.
I have made this a few times now with pork shoulder and everyone loves this!!!
That’s awesome, so glad you tried my char siu recipe. :)
I meant pork shoulder (just 1.5 libs)
I made t this today with pork s, er. It had just the right amount of fat. The pork belly I see has too much fat, but a shoulder is marbled and has just the right amount of juiciness from the fat. It didn’t taste like the char siu I used to get in Malaysia when I lived there, but that was over 40 years ago when I was in the Peace Corps. Still this was quite delicious and well received (and gobbled up). Traffic was insane today and I couldn’t get near a store with maltose, but the pork crisped up just fine with the honey.
This one’s a keeper. Need to make more for my kueh teow recipe!
Can I use a slow cooker for this recipe? My oven isn’t fan forced and I’m not sure if it will cook well.
No, you can’t cook this in a slow cooker pot. It should be chargrilled in an oven or bbq pit.
Can you cook this in the slow cooker? My oven isn’t fan forced so am worried it won’t cook well.
Hi Bee, thank you for your wonderful recipe! I just tried it last night and it was so very tasty and Even better than the char siu I buy from my local BBQ stores! I cut down the sugar to 2/3 cos I’m watching my waist line but it was still a nice balance of sweet & savoury! Thank you so so much!
This is my favorite type of Char Siew. Thank you for sharing it.
Do you trim the skin off the pork belly or leave it on?
Leave it on.
OK now I’m really confused. The recipe says “Skinless” so I just had my butcher remove the rind.
Now then Rasa, is it “On” – or – “Off” ???
And what on earth does ๅไนณ and ็บขๆฒ mean?
LOL!!!!
Yes remove the rind, skinless. Check the recipe, I linked the ingredients to the online store where you can purchase the products, they are the name of fermented red beancurd in Chinese words.
Hi Bee,
I have been searching for Char Siu recipe for a while and thanks for your posts.
Just a quick check with you, the link in the recipe to fermented red bean curd was not working for me. Do you mean ๅไนณ or ็บขๆฒ?
Thanks a lot!
KP Kwan
ๅไนณ
Thanks for the clarification. Cheers!