Baked Chinese Barbecue Pork Recipe (Char Siu): Bring the Restaurant Home | Pork

Char siu (叉烧), or Chinese barbecue pork, is a type of Cantonese roast meat. Char siu is its Cantonese name, while in Mandarin it is known as cha shao. The literal translation is "fork roast" referring to the traditional method of cooking this dish: seasoning pork strips and roasting them over a fire or in a covered oven. Some consider this recipe "Chinese restaurant-style pork."

My husband is a passionate carnivore and enjoys cooking pork, so this char siu recipe is more his than mine (note that while char siu is traditionally grilled, this is a recipe for the oven). He loves the marinade and the juicy, tender pork. According to him, while you could use different cuts of pork to make char siu, it’s ideal to use boneless pork shoulder.

This pork recipe isn’t difficult to make but it does require time and patience; a slower, longer cook time makes the meat juicy, which results in fantastic caramelization. Perfect! Thebarbecue porkis marinated and brushed with a Chinese barbecue sauce, then roasted until a deep, restaurant-quality flavor is reached. My husband recommends serving char siu with rice or noodles.

Note: Traditional char siu gets its authentic red color from an ingredient called fermented red bean curds, which can be hard to find. If the color is important to you, you can use red food coloring. I personally don’t ever add any; it doesn’t impact the flavor, so I’m not worried about it. You could serve it for dinner with this homemade char siu sauce.

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Cuisine: Chinese
Prep Time: 10 minutes plus 1 to 2 days to marinate
Cook Time: 1 1/2 hours
Total Time: 1 1/2 hours plus marinating time
Serves 6

Ingredients

Pork