Char Siu (叉燒)

I've always wanted to try making my own Char Siu but never had.  this time I finally did it!

The first thing you need to do is marinate it.  I marinated mine for 36 hours. 

At this stage, it doesn't look very attractive at all.  Not only that, when my Taiwanese friend saw a photograph of this on her smartphone, she asked me if it was Dong-Po Pork.

I let this marinate in my refrigerator, turning the pork sometimes.

Then I roasted it in the oven.  I lined my tray with aluminum foil carefully to make cleaning-up easier.  Believe me you want to cover that tray very well.  You do not want to be end-up like Liu Bang in Qin Shi Huang's prison doing hard labor.  So, cover that tray very carefully.

I got the recipe from Rasa Malaysia.  I purchased all the ingredients first.

Fermented red bean curd (王至和), honey, dry sherry (Alfonso Oloroso), soy sauce (Kikkoman), oyster sauce (Panda Brand), dark thick soy sauce (Pearl River Bridge), five spice powder, white pepper powder and brown sugar.

Char Siu from Rasa Malaysia

Ingredients:

1 lb (450 g) skinless pork belly, cut into 2 long strips
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic

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 (100 g) sugar, or 8 1/2 tablespoons

Step 1:  Just rub in and mix all the ingredients with the pork in a casserole dish and then put plastic over it.  

Step 2:  Store the above in the refrigerator, taking it out and turning the pork sometimes.  Keep doing this for 24 - 36 hours.

Step 3:  Line the oven tray very carefully with aluminum foil and put it in the bottom rack.

Step 4:  Preheat the oven to 200C (400F).  Take out the rack and put it on top of plastic (to catch the juices) and put the pork on the rack.

Step 5:  Once the oven is at the right temperature, put some aluminum foil on the oven lid when you open it and then slide the tray in.  Remove the aluminum foil and close the oven.

Step 6:  After 15 minutes, turn the pork and baste it with the marinating liquid and roast for another 20- 25 minutes.  Keep an eye on your pork toward the end to make sure it doesn't burn.

Step 7:  Take out the char siu and let it rest on a plate for awhile, then slice it.  Serve on steaming hot rice.  Enjoy!