Char Siu (Chinese BBQ pork)
Cha shao is a kind of spiced Cantonese honey roast pork. It is often also called by the Cantonese char siu or char siew. Sometimes (usually in America) it is called Chinese BBQ pork. It is very popular, and can be eaten by itself (usually cold), or used as an ingredient for other dishes such as cha shao bao (pork buns), or in noodles or rice.
Ingredients
- 1 kg (2.25 lbs) pork shoulder
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
- 2 tbsp clear honey
- 4 tbsp hoisin sauce
- ½ tsp five spice
Steps
- Slice the meat into strips about 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide by 6 inches (15 cm) long.
- Pierce the pork all over with a fork.
- Mix all other ingredients to make a marinade.
- Place the pork strips in a tray. Cover completely with marinade.
- Cover tightly with cling film. Refrigerate several hours (8–24 hours preferred).
- Preheat the oven to 230°C or 420°F. Place a pan lined with aluminium foil in the bottom to catch drippings.
- Hang the meat on hooks in the oven or lay on a rack. Work in two or three batches if needed.
- Roast 20 minutes until cooked all the way through. Baste at least twice. The pork turns golden-red.
- Cool hanging, or on a wire rack. Do not lay on other meat or a flat surface until cooled.
- Cover. Refrigerate until needed.
Notes from the original
- Serve cold, or use diced in other dishes.
- Add 1 tbsp of toasted sesame oil for a nuttier flavour
- Add red food colouring to the marinade to give the traditional deep red hue. This used to be due to the preservative used for the pork. Also, in China, the red colour generally symbolises good fortune. However, due to the strong colour of the marinade described above, a significant quantity of food colouring will be needed.
- This dish goes very well with ginger and onion.
Source. Adapted from “Cookbook:Char Siu (Chinese BBQ pork)” by Wikibooks contributors, revision of 2025-06-17, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Changes. Steps rewritten into short commands. Introduction shortened. Wiki formatting removed. This adapted recipe is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.






