Char Siu
Photo: Adora's Box
Ingredients
Preparation
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This method is often traditionally called “red cooking,” due to the red tinge pork can get when roasted, which is naturally enhanced by soy sauce. Unfortunately, many recipes include red food coloring, one actually called for 1/2 a cup! imagine what that would do to your insides. skip the food coloring, it’s nasty and adds no flavor!
If you parboil the meat first and then dry, it helps develop a shiny glaze. In researching Chinese cooking in general, I’ve found this is a trick to getting crispy skin on roast meats, like suckling pig and Peking Duck. Many recipes suggested marinating the meat first, I like this technique better.
Try kicking up the quantity of five spice powder and the other spices.
You can make the sauce in advance, even in quantities, and keep it in the fridge to put on other dishes.
Use a meat thermometer to roast the pork. Take out at 145 degrees, this results in a much more tender and moist version.