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    Home » Recipes » Pork

    Easy Char Siu with Hoisin Sauce

    November 14, 2017 by Elaine 20 Comments | Jump to Recipe

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    Char Siu is one of my favorite dish to cook because of it is so easy to make and handle. Even if we cannot eat all of them once, it goes so good with common leftover dishes like char siu fried rice, chow fun and steamed buns.

    Previously we have a very localized Chinese char siu using red fermented tofu as the coloring agent. After getting so many complains about the hard to find ingredient "red fermented tofu" or "red yeast powder", I believe there should be an easy approach. So I use hoisin sauce as the main coloring agent. If you read the ingredient label on the bottom of your hoisin sauce, you can find red yeast powder. So it should work 100% fine for bringing us a char siu red color.

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    Cook's note

    Usually pork butt is recommended for char siu as it has the perfect lean and fat ratio and is quite tender. But if you do not like fat, pork tenderloin can work fine too. Leaner pork belly contains more fat but can be used for making char siu too.

    Brushing some sesame oil on the surface after roasting can make your char siu shining shining without influencing the flavor too much. But it is ok to brush honey a sweeter taste is preferred.

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    Ingredients

    • 600g pork butt (tenderloin and pork belly can also work)
    • 2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
    • 2 tbsp. light soy sauce
    • 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
    • 1 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine or rose wine
    • 1 tbsp. honey
    • ¼ tsp. Chinese five spice powder
    • 2 garlic, sliced
    • 1 thumb ginger, sliced
    • sesame oil for brushing

    Brushing

    • 1 tbsp. honey
    • ½ tbsp. previous made char siu sauce
    • ½ tbsp. hot water

    Steps

    Firstly, poke some small holes on the pork butt so it can absorb the flavor better and cut into 2 cm wide and 4 cm thick long strips. Set aside and drain.

    In a large bowl, mix hoisin sauce, cooking wine, honey, light soy sauce, oyster sauce and Chinese five spice. Give a big stir-fry to combine well.

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    Add garlic and ginger and pour the Char Siu sauce over the meat or you can use a bag. Turn over for 2-3 times during the marinating process. Keep in fridge for 24 to 48 hours. Or you can simple mix everything in a sealed bag.

    Pre-heat oven to 200-degree C (around 400-degree F).

    Before baking, add around ½ tablespoon of warm water and ½ tablespoon of char siu sauce with 1 tablespoon of honey. Combine well. Place the pork on grill and with a layered baking tray. Brush the honey water on both sides.

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    Roast again on middle track for another 10 minutes. If you want to hardening the surface, move the grill to up track and roast for another 2 minutes.Transfer out and brush some sesame oil on surface. Cool down for 3-4 minutes and cut into slices.

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

    Easy Char Siu with Hoisin Sauce

    Easy char siu with hoisin sauce
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: sauce
    Cuisine: Cantonese, Chinese
    Keyword: Char Siu
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes
    Total Time: 40 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 247kcal
    Author: Elaine

    Ingredients

    • 600 g pork butt ,tenderloin and pork belly can also work
    • 2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
    • 2 tbsp. light soy sauce
    • 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
    • 1 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine or rose wine
    • 1 tbsp. honey
    • ¼ tsp. Chinese five spice powder
    • 2 garlic ,sliced
    • 1 thumb ginger ,sliced

    Brushing

    • 1 tbsp. honey
    • ½ tbsp. previous made char siu sauce
    • ½ tbsp. hot water
    • sesame oil for brushing optional

    Instructions

    • Firstly, poke some small holes on the pork butt so it can absorb the flavor better and cut into 2 cm wide and 4 cm thick long strips. Set aside and drain.
    • In a large bowl, mix hoisin sauce, cooking wine, honey, light soy sauce, oyster sauce and Chinese five spice. Combine well.
    • Add garlic and ginger and pour the Char Siu sauce over the meat or you can use a bag. Turn over for 2-3 times during the marinating process. Keep in fridge for 24 to 48 hours.
    • Pre-heat oven to 200-degree C (around 400-degree F)
    • Before baking, add around ½ tablespoon of warm water and ½ tablespoon of char siu sauce with 1 tablespoon of honey. Combine well.
    • Place the pork on grill and with a layered baking tray. Brush the honey water on both sides.
    • Place on middle track and back for 10 minutes. And re-brush the honey mixture on both sides again.
    • Roast again on middle track for another 10 minutes. If you want to hardening the surface, move the grill to up track and roast for another 2 minutes.
    • Transfer out and brush some sesame oil on surface. Cool down for 3-4 minutes and cut into slices.

    Notes

    The prepare time do not include refrigerating time.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 247kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 731mg | Potassium: 532mg | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 2.2mg

    easy char siu with hoisin sauce

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Peter

      November 23, 2017 at 5:08 am

      Wow wow wow that's all I can say about this Char Siu recipe. I found it so easy to make using your instructions. I had pork belly so I used that. I have to tell that realy made a pig of my self eating it.

      Reply
    2. linda

      November 25, 2017 at 4:54 am

      1 TB honey in Step 2, then another in Step 5?
      thatf's 2 TB of hondy?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        November 25, 2017 at 8:46 pm

        Sorry, Linda. I miss the brushing mixture section. Already updated. Thanks for the correctness.

        Reply
    3. Earl

      January 01, 2018 at 6:39 am

      You never mentioned when to put in the ginger or garlic. I am & did presume it goes it with all the other ingredients. Would be nice to get everything in detail if it is posted as a recipe.

      Reply
    4. Earl

      January 03, 2018 at 1:16 am

      My apologies , i re-read your instructions & do see where you have added those items to the recipe. Again, sorry for jumping the gun.

      Reply
    5. Debra

      March 04, 2018 at 12:47 am

      5 stars
      Since returning from China, I have been missing Char Siu but there is none available locally. I've tried other Char Siu recipes I found online and even some commercial sauces, but all fell short of the Char Siu I remember in Hong Kong. This was great! I added a few drops of red food coloring to increase the red color. You are my new, favorite Cantonese food site. I want to try making the Egg Tarts too. In Hong Kong a cheese egg tart was becoming popular. Those were my favorite. Do you happen to have a recipe for those?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        March 06, 2018 at 10:05 am

        Thanks Debra.
        Cheese egg tart is the new pop star in Chinese bakery now. I will try a chance to test it at home.

        Reply
    6. Leandre

      April 26, 2018 at 2:46 pm

      The Char Siu sauce sounds incredible, but meat can get a little pricy where I live, fish excepted. Any other suggestions as to which other dish it can pair well with?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        May 08, 2018 at 8:46 am

        You can use boneless chicken thigh.

        Reply
    7. Cowen

      April 09, 2019 at 5:34 pm

      Hi would like to get a little bit of clarity with the instructions lol.

      So after preheating the over i make the water honey char siu sauce. Then it says place the pork on grill, is that inside the oven? And bake it for 10 mins?

      So i pretty much i brush then bake 10 mins brush then bake for 10 mins?

      Thank you!

      Reply
      • Elaine

        April 09, 2019 at 7:52 pm

        Yes, Cowen.
        Roast the pork firstly and then brush the char siu coating sauce. Then continue roasting until well cooked.

        Reply
        • Tracy

          February 02, 2020 at 10:17 pm

          I agree, the baking instructions are not clear and there are several typos so hard to trust this recipe.

          Reply
    8. Jessica

      April 25, 2019 at 11:04 am

      5 stars
      This is so yummy! I have made this with pork, but I have also made the sauce and put it on tofu for my mother who doesn’t eat pork. That was delicious as well. Thanks for another great recipe, Elaine.

      Reply
      • Elaine

        April 25, 2019 at 8:07 pm

        Thanks for the feedback, Jessica. Using tofu is a brilliant idea.

        Reply
    9. Gia

      March 17, 2020 at 12:27 pm

      Hi Elaine,

      I've just put the bag with meat and marinade in the fridge and am excited to see how it turns out!

      In step two you say "Give a big stir-fry to combine well" the Char Siu Pork-Chinese BBQ Pork also says this but in the video it says combine well. I assumed stir-fry was a typo. Is that the case?

      Other than that, the instructions are very good and the pictures are exquisite!

      Reply
      • Elaine

        March 17, 2020 at 9:38 pm

        Sure Gia. It is a typo. I mean to mix all of the sauce together.

        Reply
        • Sarah

          June 24, 2020 at 12:54 am

          Hello Elaine!

          I’m glad to have come across your recipe! Do you have brand recommendations for light soy sauce? I currently have kikkoman soy sauce (not low sodium).

          Reply
          • Elaine

            June 28, 2020 at 8:05 am

            My favorite brand is Lee Kum Kee. And I love to use low sodium version.

            Reply
    10. Mike Stamp

      March 16, 2022 at 12:52 am

      Can I use pork checks instead ?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        March 16, 2022 at 8:19 am

        100% yes.

        Reply

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