How to Cook Authentic Cantonese Char Siu Roast Pork from scratch (蜜汁叉烧)

We're making Cantonese Char Siu BBQ pork! This is an awesome dish, and a worldwide favorite.
We wanted to show you guys the traditional way to make the Char Siu sauce from scratch, which was actually surprisingly difficult for us to figure out. So forgive our quick one minute backstory, we just wanted to let you guy know why our recipe might be so different to some others you've seen :)
However you cook this though - using either Lee Kum Kee or homemade sauce, either the oven or a charcoal grill - you'll end up getting a real tasty result.
As always, a detailed recipe and ingredient list is at a reddit comment in /r/cooking here:
/ recipe_how_to_make_aut...
One more thing - at 0:40 in the video, we wanted to include a section of a Chinese Char Siu cooking video. A special thank you to the KZbin channel 'Manaweblife' (actually Malaysian!) for providing that awesome video. Their channel's got a bunch of cool stuff, but check out the original video here:
• How To Make Char Siew ...
ABOUT US
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I'm Chris Thomas from the United States and I've been living as an expat in China now for upwards of nine years, most of which in Shenzhen. I love living here, and the food is absolutely incredible. I read and speak some Chinese, and have been trying to religiously recreate the most authentic versions of the food I've eaten and loved here.
My partner in these videos is Stephanie Li, my similarly food-and-travel-obsessed long term girlfriend. She's a translator from Guangzhou and is an incredible home cook. Sometimes I'll be behind the wok but usually it'll be her cooking.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Ack! Just re-watched this and I want to specify because we often use Celsius on this channel - the roasting temp in the oven is 275 degrees *Fahrenheit* (135 Celsius). My bad.

[@AlqGo]

Don't care about F. Fuck it! Celcius is the way to go *internationally*!

[@MrAstygmatyk]

Don't go F words.... Simply go metric! It really helps.

[@gloomy5487]

celcius would be the best to use internationally.

[@koruki]

135, thats smoking temp, is that from start to finish?

[@doktoroptimo]

don't mind... if people really think that roasting is done at 275 degree celsius for 1 hour they should try cooking spaghetti first XD

[@lifewithD317]

I can't find most of those ingredients, but wanted to take a second to say you did a nice job making the video. You seem to really love food and its history.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Thanks! Yeah, you can find all the ingredients (except the red yeast rice) on Amazon... but it's most realistic to make the sauce from scratch if you live near a Chinatown (a Chinese grocery store plus a Chinese medicine shop should have all this stuff). Otherwise, just use bottled! Grab some Lee Kum Kee online, and the other stuff (honey, soy sauce) should be available in any Western supermarket.

[@robertbrittner6790]

@@ChineseCookingDemystified What would be a few extra flavorful key spices to add to the Lee Kum Kee sauce? I like to doctor up store bought stuff...Thank you!

[@lazarus6983]

@@RobespierreThePoof how interesting! I also have an Hmart, a 99 ranch and a bunch of Indian grocery stores near me.... Both Hmart and 99 Ranch carry their own brands of sauce and intersecting brands. If 99 Ranch is fully stocked, they have much more depth in terms of Chinese ingredients. With that being said.... If you cook this often (like me, since I make this a few times a month for ramen and other things), try the sauces at your Asian grocery stores (there are more than just Hmart and 99 Ranch). Additionally, you have the internet at your disposal, so the probability of you finding a premade char siu sauce that is at least tolerable week-to-week or month-to-month is quite high. The two main problems with premade sauces (in my opinion...) Is that 1. The sauces are just too dam salty. I like to start with no salt and work my way up according to my own palate when cooking meals, so the salt punch the premade sauces (esp Lee kum kee) packs is not my style. And 2. The ingredients are just not fresh.... Some of these sauces sit on shelves for months, maybe even years for all we know. Freshness is an extremely important factor when cooking , and is one factor you will realize is lost when directly comparing premade sauce to homemade.

[@jojotwice8918]

@@RobespierreThePoof lee Kum kee sauce doesn't taste anything like char siu

[@leelajapheth6339]

Go to tradisional chinese medicine shop.u

[@dsoegiarto]

amazing. here's a short version my Chinese in-laws gave me though: crushed red yeast, honey, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, 5-spice, oyster sauce. mix, marinade, oven.

[@robertbrittner6790]

did you mean red rice yeast?

[@JosiahMcCarthy]

@@robertbrittner6790 no, he meant red yeast rice

[@petesahli3967]

David Soegiarto o.k, but how much of each?

[@ricohoenderop5584]

Use Chinese cooking wine

[@robertbrittner6790]

@@JosiahMcCarthy thank you!

[@tt-ew7rx]

When using the oven method, put water in the tray below the grill to avoid setting your fire alarms off. Don't ask me how I found out ...

[@Furn427]

The hardest part of your recipes is finding the ingredients. Thank you for showing from scratch, it's what I appreciate the most in your videos

[@jordanfrancis1644]

some say only equal parts soy,and hoisin saces , chinese five spice powder,and garlic, while other recipes ask for many more including red food coloring shao shing ,or dry sherry wine,and oyster sauce . I only keep the first 3 on hand,and don’t like using artificial food coloring. which is correct/prefered ?

[@lisacastano1064]

@@jordanfrancis1644 recipe I use is hoisin, ketchup, Chinese mustard powder, sugar, and a little salt diluted with water and marinate the meat overnight.

[@Veritas21000]

Only a true foodie would go to such lengths. Great job.

[@lazarus6983]

lol, chris and his gf have greatly surpassed the "foodie" title

[@jasonespinoza6372]

​@@lazarus6983 So wise in their ways... are these the glorious food sages of old? The ones legends speak of? So mighty and powerful their foods could turn the tides of war? Could bring nations to their knees? Could force the sky to bow down to the ground?

[@rdijo5497]

@@lazarus6983 enRegistreerfrr

[@shonshonshon8658]

@@jasonespinoza6372 wtf f u talking about. Theres a reason why u call them 'foodies' and not 'cooks'

[@koruki]

Wow the most authentic stuff I’ve seen. You really go the distance to find the information. As a Chinese who can’t read/write chinese I really appreciate these videos. Thank you

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Haha yeah, finding the original sauce for Charsiu was surprisingly difficult. I was so frustrated for a bit because *so* many Chinese recipes start with LKK as a base and add stuff from there.

[@DavidLee-df888]

Same, despite a few years of part time schooling as a child, I can only really read very simple words(traditional) and can't write except my own name. I can more or less speak fluently in Cantonese or Hakka, but very little Mandarin. So, if you could try to say ingredients in Cantonese I'd know what you meant more.

[@Elegance191]

@@DavidLee-df888 same here. Trying to learn written Chinese..it's so tough..omg..I can speak mandarin, simple everyday phrases and I can write my name well..at least. My family will kill me if I cannot write it well. Haha😁

[@chiurona]

I'm a Cantonese kid living in America... have to say I've been amused by char siu getting a little more press in Western circles as chashu by way of ramen/fusion stuff or getting char siu baos at dim sum. Still, most of my Western friends don't know that you can walk into a siu laap pu and get char siu by the pound! Really happy to see a video that shows how to make the sauce from scratch - I have only ever used the LKK sauce from the market in my life when making it at home and really happy to try this. Thanks for your video!!!

[@Ace_Hunter_lives]

I don't know why thr YT algorithm suggested this channel to me, but I am forever grateful. I love y'all's videos!

[@nelumbonucifera7537]

Just made a slapdash attempt at this. Found sliced shajiang (labeled as kencur), powdered licorice and red yeast rice in a Chicago Chinatown grocery. The licorice was crap quality; unsure about the shajiang. I didn't bother grinding the shajiang; it went in with the whole spices. Being hesitant to buy a big bag of dried orange peel, I opted for fresh tangerine zest. I used cheap Japanese akamiso and substituted simple syrup for the maltose and rock sugar. The result was way better than the jar of Lee Kum Kee that I'd bought for comparison purposes. More complex, balanced and savory, where the Lee Kum Kee is brashly sweet and garlic. This is definitely entering my repertoire. The lushui in particular - in future I'll always have a bottle ready in the fridge. I might try other ingredients, too - chilies, sichuan pepper, fennel seed, mushrooms, hibiscus, the fabled luohanguo. Thanks for the videos.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Glad it came out well! Char Siu sauce is crazy versatile - it's definitely something that's open to playing around with. In my mind, there's three components that make it Charsiu - the lushui (of which you got a lot of flexibility with the spices), the mianchi/red miso, and a bunch of sugar. Everything else is ultimately up to the cook.

[@mientaysongnuoc7812]

shajian = sand ginger

[@themarinect]

sand ginger is another name of galangal

[@ferdynand2402]

Kencur is not Sha jiang. It's galangal. Tastes very different.

[@roboslug7582]

From Wikipedia: "Kaempferia galanga, commonly known as kencur, aromatic ginger, sand ginger, cutcherry, or resurrection lily, is a monocotyledonous plant in the ginger family, and one of four plants called galangal." So if we correlate the info in the video with the info on Wikipedia, it sounds like shajiang = sand ginger = cutcherry = kencur = one of four types of galangal, which may have significant flavor differences between them. Based on that, kencur should work just fine.

[@dc1502]

This is great. Would love to see more recipes from they old Cantonese cook book. Love how informative your vids are too.

[@winniehwm]

Wow I really admire that you go into details of the authenticity of this dish. Nice job!

[@scottmackay9589]

This is one of favorite videos of all time!!! I love char siu and Chinese cooking in general. Keep up your incredible work. Your channel is amazing!

[@zachariahloney210]

I drove an hour to a city that had the ingredients, speant about 50CAD, made the sauce twice now, and doubled it the second time. It is so awesome that you make these videos without any shortcuts! So valueable, don't stop!

[@SpikesBreakingBread]

You are a legend, mate! I have been watching your stuff for years and always keep coming back for more. THE definitive Chinese cooking channel!

[@honfbricl]

This is absolutely wonderful. The only truly authentic char siu recipe on KZbin! I made it, it was stunning. Thank you for this!!

[@TheLukemcdaniel]

To help with really sticky sweeteners like that, spray your measuring spoon/cup with a touch of oil(like pam). it'll help it to slide right out.

[@ZanderKaneUK]

Or put the spoon in a cup of boiling water for 10 seconds then it will just slide off.

[@EvaAdorable]

@@ZanderKaneUK Where were you guys 20 minutes ago?!

[@ZanderKaneUK]

At work dealing with horrible customers 🙄, hope it turned out well after all 👍

[@TheLukemcdaniel]

@@EvaAdorable we said this 2 years ago, where were you?

[@flyingsodwai1382]

I love hearing the true pronunciations. Thanks. Your channel seems to be the most authentic and I appreciate that.

[@dax823ful]

Took me a YEAR to collect all of this ingredients. Now I am ready to try and make it. Thanks a lot guys. BTW in my local chinese store I am probably only non chinese looking for this type of spices ;)

[@Finn959]

How was it?

[@alexisdetocqueville9964]

I begin my mission today - wish me luck. Not much of a Chinese population in my city, so this may be a long and weary voyage.

[@MatthewSmith-cp3hu]

Wow! I was super excited to hear this recipe, so much depth of flavor!

[@milo1047]

I made this tonight using the jarred stuff from my local shop and it was fantastic. Thanks for the informative videos and love of food!

[@Rasereda]

So I tried making the Char Siu sauce recipe per instructions but I think the main things that were hardest were the translation for the mianchi, which is basically a fermented soybean paste. While Red Miso is also a fermented soybean paste, it's not exactly done the same as Chinese fermented soybean paste, and there are a bunch of different types of Chinese preserved and fermented bean pastes which made it incredibly difficult to find an equivalent to the one you used even having 2 different Chinese supermarkets at my disposal here in the U.S. along with having Chinese native speaking people who can read the labels in your video trying to figure out the equivalent on those market's websites. So I really wouldn't say you can substitute Japanese red miso authentically, but if it tasted great, then sure, you can substitute it, but I was trying to find the actual equivalent in our Chinese markets and had a very hard time. I ended up buying a bean paste whose only ingredients were water, non-GMO soybeans, wheat flour, salt and potassium sorbate (preservative) which I thought was close enough in description but I can't even tell if what I bought was correct. Also, it would have helped if it was mentioned roughly how much liquid should be left in the pot after simmering the braising liquid for any specific amount of time. I went with the full hour as suggested along with the listed amount of water which was 2.5 cups (I actually used about 1/2 cup more) and it ended up reducing to a little less than 1 cup of liquid at the end. While it was mention to add more water if necessary, it didn't specify about how much should be left at the end when it's all finished. This would alter the intensity of the flavor a lot and the finished char siu sauce at first seemed a little salty but mellowed out in the jar. It reminded me of less sweetened hoisen sauce, which could have been from the bean paste I used. As for tips for those shopping for ingredients in the U.S. Luohanguo is also known as Monkfruit, which is probably a lot more familiar to English speaking people, so you're looking for whole dried monkfruit. When looking for the red yeast rice, the package I found was actually labeled Semen Oryzae Monasco, which can throw off anyone at the store if you don't know what you're looking for (we actually missed buying the correct one completely because I wasn't the one who purchased it at the store). As for the dried tangerine peel, in most Chinese markets in America they will be labeled as either dried orange peel, dried citrus peel or dried tangerine peel. I don't think it really matters which one you buy as the Chinese name on all the packages tend to be exactly the same as the one in the reddit's recipe ingredient list. Although I guess if the package looks like it obviously has orange peels then maybe don't get that one. We were able to find all the ingredients between TS Emporium (aka Tak Shing Hong) and 99 Ranch Market, both of which have online websites and I think can ship across the U.S. if you don't have one near you. The only exception could be finding the correct mianchi or fermented soybean paste, due to what I feel is a translation error, because I still don't know which is the correct one to buy.

[@j.t.masters1934]

Thank you for the information.

[@davidramsay6142]

This is the best instruction on authentic Char Sui I have seen and I like how you emphasise what is essential, alternatives and what you could drop from the recipe. I have been eating the stuff for 35 years in the uk and appreciate when it's good and now starting to make my own out on necessity as I can't buy it locally.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cheers! I certainly understand sourcing concerns - in order to balance authenticity and replicabilty, we generally assume someone watching is (1) living in the West but (2) has access to a Chinese supermarket, or alternatively is willing to drop the money to buy it on Amazon (Amazon is for whatever reason generally super overpriced). Like, I (Chris) like making Texas Chili con Carne here in Shenzhen. I can use totally local ingredients - even for the cornbread - but I *do* need to source Chipotles en Adobo in order to get the proper taste. In the same way, we try to approach these videos as if we were someone not living in China, as listing off a million difficult to get ingredients could undeniably be tough for people to approach. Of course, sometimes easier said than done :)

[@BearMeat4Dinner]

Dude. I love the recipe and video!!! Great job! I'm going to try making it soon!

[@supattaruttanon9454]

Well done !love it and you done a lot of research that help me a lot. Thanks again.

[@darwincuhady9934]

absolutely creative! love the way you explain and your cooking technique, just like chef point of view mate!

[@promitchakraborty]

My tummy is grumbling from watching this. Looks absolutely delicious. I love the painstaking attention to detail and authenticity . Great job!

[@larswesterhausen7262]

I finally managed to get me some dried 羅漢果 over here in Germany, as well as red yeast rice (this channel is making me go bankrupt one day, but hey, I don't care). I had to resort to Japanese red miso though and used my home dried (not yet so black) tangerine peel, but I followed the recipe and the result - what can I say? It smells so good and tastes even better. Thank you for this channel. Thank you for making me cook more authentic than most "Chinese restaurants" in Germany. Thank you for making me start learning Chinese language.

[@richlau3934]

Dude, you are my hero. I've made this 3-4 times last year and I'm now a hero in the eyes of my in-laws. The recipe is crazy involved but the results are unparalleled. I bow to your awesomeness. My only issue is that I'm going hardcore with the bbq'ing by hanging the pork on meat hooks in my weber charcoal kettle... basting the pork throughout the process has been incredibly messy. Please keep doing what you're doing!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cheers, glad you've enjoyed it! I'd actually really like to revisit this recipe - I think the grilling method has a lot of promise, but in hindsight I think it's not quite there. I'm thinking I needed to maintain a higher temperature in the grill. This one's still solid, but our definition today of "at least 90% of the way to a good restaurant in China" (our personal quality standard) is a bit stricter than it was two years ago :) Unfortunately, our current apartment doesn't allow grilling, gah. We'll be moving to Shunde in about ~5 months, we should be able to break it out again there (I'm hoping)

[@nhamty599]

I'm in San Francisco and was able to gather all the ingredients after a couple of months of shopping during COVID and put it all together over the weekend. It was fantastic. Thank you for the recipe. I'll never to back to the package stuff.

[@Sazed0]

Just discovered your channel and WOW, it's excellent! Your videos are informative, well produced and really display your passion for the subject. Keep up the good work!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cheers, not really well produced IMO but we try lol. Any requests? :)

[@erikawong2682]

Thanks for this. You’re awesome. Finally a video of the REAL deal. Love it.

[@shimie1997]

I wanted to comment on the Red Miso; your channel is the first I have heard this mentioned after reading over 30 recipes. Many say the red fermented tofu and the red rice, but only here have I heard about the red miso and how it is THE critical ingredient. That must be what has been missing in my quest to reproduce the Char Siu I have eaten in San Francisco.

[@SurfFishingFan66]

Thank you for sharing your videos. In addition to learning Chinese cooking, I'm learning a little of the language as well!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cheers, yeah sometimes I dunno what certain ingredients are referred to abroad so I'll just use the Chinese. The Chinese for all the ingredients (except common stuff like garlic and sugar) is in the written recipe over on reddit too. Word of warning though that my pronunciation sucks so apologies if I ever mispronounce things in the video :)

[@adamgrimsley2900]

Man alive! Lot of hard work. Thanks for doing this but I'm going down to my local wow

[@ww905]

THIS IS THE MOST AUTHENTIC RECIPE OF ALL KZbin CHANNELS INCLUDING CHINESE ONES! 全网最正宗做法无疑了。

[@brynbin230]

I know this video is very old, but I am making this recipe after watching and wishing I could for about a year and a half. My house smells amazing. I am so excited.

[@totobogos]

Re-watching this, although the recipe is of course still top-notch I appreciate how far you’ve come in video producing qualities :-)

[@Russellkhan]

Wow, nice work. Looks like a lot of research went into this, and a great looking result.

[@jonathanslone8864]

Very good. LKK and all the other jarred CS sauce I have had are largely sugar. I doubled this and make one as a marinade and the other half as directed. Took a Boston Butt (pork shoulder) and salted well and left overnight to brine. Second day in the marinade in a zip lock. Into the oven for 5 hours and then slathered on the sauce with the maltose, rock sugar and honey. Dropped the temp to 225F and let go another hour. Perfect char siu pulled pork.

[@michaelbraham7471]

Omg this is why Asian food is so good. I missed it before moving to us

[@winniehwm]

This reminds me how hard it was to find all the ingredients to make a special dish that I need in Zelda Breath or the wild lol

[@enene1267]

Incredible detail 👍 Im impressed Im subscribing

[@101life9]

Appreciate your free class! Thank you. Tried making a few times from other videos but not impressed but will find time to do yours. I LOVE char siu pau, wanton char siu mein or anything! 😋

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cheers, yeah usually in English you mostly see hoisin or (god forbid) ketchup-based sauces. Though I'm obviously biased lol, the sauce is the real deal. Siu Mei itself though's always tricky to execute without the proper oven, so just don't be too hard on us if the roast meats not quite as good as the great roast meat shops in HK/Guangzhou :)

[@akeyte9048]

I stumbled across this video and was so captivated by your char siu marinade recipe (it’s unlike any that I’ve seen or made before), I just had to make it ASAP. Luckily, I happened to have all the marinade ingredients on hand except for liquorice root, so I made it as soon as I finished watching your video. (I substituted anise seed for liquorice.) Now, all I have to do is buy the pork tomorrow! I’m very excited to taste the final char siu because the marinade tastes incredible.

[@sergeant_ozzy1037]

Curious how this went

[@walterstewart1927]

Excellent video, thank you so much!!! Very valuable information!!

[@jasonespinoza6372]

I have a really big chinese market by my house and they have literally ALL these ingredients and in multiple brands, they also have some of the brands you named! I live in California btw lol I am so excited to try this!

[@baotoanvuong8208]

Thank you for sharing this video!

[@wbillyip]

As a HongHonger, I find your videos interesting; living so close to a local “siu mei” provider diminish my motivation to craft your own “Char Siu”. Picture this: why make your own when buying is literally a lot more convenient & cheaper but then again: the pleasure of crafting your own is one of a kind

[@npip99]

Maybe in HK it's a similar cost but in the US a Chinese takeout place will charge $7 for a plate that's 60% rice anyway, when this recipe could be done for $2 per pound of pure pork. But regardless of cheaper, the point of cooking is because it's awesome fun :) Especially when you build it up from raw ingredients, as opposed to just letting it be a mystery

[@ytreece]

Nicholas Pipitone exactly! For us it’s so much more expensive! And I live in rural Wyoming. There’s no char sui here 😂. As a lover of ethnic foods I have become quite the cook. I stock up on spices and uncommon Asian ingredients by driving 6 hours (one way) to Denver to go to the Asian grocery for spices. Or order on line. I miss SO MUCH having a local Asian grocery for fresh veggies though!!

[@wbillyip]

@@ytreece Perk of an urban dweller? acquiring char siu very convenient and affordable but everything is damn expensive; now that you stated your condition, it sure is better off for you to make a bulk of them, sell or share it with neighbours mayhaps

[@TheNomadicTraveler]

Excellent video - I always like to start from scratch, just moved to a small apartment in Guangzhou. Hope to catch some more recipes from you

[@jayduby5330]

I am absolutely mind blown at how detailed you went into looking up the recipes. Sad how many of my Chinese friends simply use the Lee Kum Krap sauce and calls it a day. I've been looking into more of a detailed recipe that doesn't involve everything in a jar but this looks to be way out of my league lol.

[@gonzoducks8]

Chris & Stephanie, do you guys know how to make the red marinade liquid for the fermented red bean curd? I've tried finding the liquid on it's own because I go through faster than the curd. But it's sold out all over the states.

[@lampshader]

Just tried this and adapted the sluree from your bao recipe, and wow, the taste and texture is perfect. I was kinda tempted to go out and buy another $10 of pork just to make again. Thanks so much for posting these recipes. A lot easier than 'just eyeball it' ahah.

[@alexill]

I know it’s far from traditional, but my best char siu (I’ve been making it for years) has been from using the sous vide technique. I cook the bagged pork (with marinade) in a warm water bath at 145F. Then cool them down completely, then baste and broil them till black spots appear on the surface. Super tender.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Interesting, sounds tasty! There's one restaurant in Shenzhen that sells super tender Char Siu - it's really good - but I'd worry that it wouldn't quite hold up when you're using it as an ingredient. One of the nice things about Char Siu is that you can make an enormous batch, fridge/freeze it, and then use it as an ingredient in different stir fries.

[@vazjc]

Got to make this. How am I just seeing this channel. Subscribed.

[@annavo4625]

Thank you very much for the video. The recipe and the direction are excellent . I am excited to make it. May you show how to make the luishu liquid . Thank you again and looking forward to getting it .

[@onixxx1984]

Thank you finally I have found an authentic recipe. I have been looking forever for this, I have fermented red tofu and what should I use red miso, or dou ban jiang , or black bean garlic sauce?

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Red Miso, for sure. The Japanese ones work great too!

[@shuishubiao7812]

Thank you very much for sharing how to make the sauce from scratch. This is almost the same as my Laolao use to make^^

[@siusi]

Finally a nice char-siu video!! Thank you! :) I shall attempt soon! Funny how you use cantonese and mandarin in the same video.

[@Busy-yh9yk]

Coming from the future, your production quality has increased dramatically. Good job!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Haha yeah, we were just using an iPhone 5s to film (with no tripod) and I wasn't even editing the audio yet. IIRC this was the first video that I had the good sense to actually use a script for the narration. When we first started out, we were conceptualizing the whole project as "write a recipe for Reddit, make a supplementary video in case people want a visual, and maybe we'll see if the KZbin thing goes anywhere". Kinda crazy that we're about halfway there to being about to do this full time.

[@bellalinda9972]

That looks delicious! Too complicated for me to ever attempt it though. Good job!

[@t.bunker2511]

A charcoal ball-grill on a semi-enclosed high-rise balcony? Most places here in the US that would get you in so-much trouble.

[@jessejohnson8562]

Ive been told by a chinese friend that the branch of the chinese government that is the most corrupt (receives the most bribes) is the fire department, mostly in order for inspectors to ignore building code violations but also if you want a fire extinguished in your home or place of business you better hope you remembered to give a hefty hong bao to your local ladder company last new year...

[@kingk2405]

Really interesting recipe . Will make it from scratch .I will serve the char siu with some Cantonese rice as a side but what kind of sauce would you recommend as a dip ?

[@islynmercurius3338]

Excellent job because we don't have the Chinese sauce here thanks for sharing keep cooking

[@luandyelam6097]

You truly are incredible! The ingredients here are incredibly rare for me, I guess 😂

[@sweetpastries77]

Thank you for the real and authentic recipe!! I must try it soon !! Will subscribe to your channel.

[@kwanshawn]

Love the way you cook

[@92AcuraGSR1]

I truly appreciate the time and effort you put in to making each and every one of your videos, the care and devotion you drizzle over what your cooking makes everything turnout so tantalizingly delicious 'insert mouth watering emoji here.' I'm look forward to trying your recipes but the one thing that's holding my up is the uncertainty of the amount of heat in the spices in each recipe are there certain ingredients that are essential that are higher than 100 on the scoville heat scale and if so what can be used as a substitute or can the be omitted without ruining the desired outcome of the dish, due to my ulcers spicy foods and my stomach just don't get along LOL.

[@shirleyszp]

super cool! thanks for the effort

[@thealandude9146]

This will always remain as my favorite food

[@toddstropicals]

Awesome idea with the dutch oven & grill, great recipe, I've never tried it with galangal root yet, do you think if I use fresh galangal from my garden would be okay or should it be dried? I have both, I try to grow as much Asian spices as I can alot cheaper when you grow it.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

So shajiang/'sand ginger' is a bit of a different taste than galangal. The only real connection IMO is the name (it's one of four plants thats sometimes referred to as 'lesser galangal'). A couple people recreated this using galangal (even one person using fresh IIRC), and said that they enjoyed it, so it's totally up to you :). I would personally just sub in a little ginger powder plus a small sprinkle of white pepper if you can't find the shajiang/'sand ginger'

[@Bj-yf3im]

Subscribed! Been looking for a good char siu marinade recipe for ages! Thanks! :)

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Yeah, the Char Siu sauce's probably the recipe I'm most proud that we figured out. Took a bit of research and testing lol

[@PandemoniumMeltDown]

@@ChineseCookingDemystified You know, regarding this comment, I did buy a bag of char sui powder years ago and never used it... because I also was looking for a proper recipe. Now that I've found your recipe, I really want to analyse this bag and use it to compare. That is going to be quite fun.

[@chanceDdog2009]

Very unlikely i will make this or travel to China. But this channel is the next best thing for me.

[@pesto12601]

Oh... luohanguo... yeah.. I think my local Stop and Shop had that along with the love child spice in the produce department.. I'll just run on down... and.... oh never mind.... Lee Kum Kee it is!!

[@lucasl1470]

I’m noticing some decent overlap between some of this spices you’re listing and the Chinese 13 spice you talk about in a recent video. Would that work as a replacement? Have you tried using that in Char Siu or what are your thoughts?

[@Mjbrooks194]

I followed this recipe exactly and brought it to a party, and everyone was absolutely blown away by it. I actually managed to find every spice needed at a local Chinese supermarket, I guess ours is pretty expansive with our Chinese community here though so it's probably not as easy for other Americans. I've been using the leftover lushui for other dishes as well and it's amazing to have around!!! I highly recommend going through the effort to find all the stuff for this because it really is worth it. My one big question, how the HELL do you manage to scrape the pith off of dry aged orange peels? I'm not sure if it's the variety I got but I spent hours soaking and scraping and still never managed to get one completely clean without tearing up the peel itself, hahaha.

[@thatguythatdoesstuff7448]

I think if you live in any major metro area, big Chinese markets exist and these ingredients can be purchased. In Phoenix, I had a great market just two minutes from my house. I'm in the Denver area now and there is a market about 15 minutes away.

[@noodleshead9596]

Thank You for this video. I would like to shop all the ingredient and make your recipes soon. Your meat look amazing!!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Where you based out of? If you're in the US, we could find all those spices (except the red yeast rice) on Amazon. Let us know how it turns out!

[@PandemoniumMeltDown]

That's why I love your channel :D

[@pattycannon7294]

I had no idea it required that much work and time it is by far my favorite Chinese dish i am also a sucker for EGG ROLLS. Please show that kitty walking around in the background there sometime .

[@markheller197]

Lovely recipe!

[@nathanr5023]

I went from watching a strongman setting up his gym to cantonese cooking :S

[@reginabillotti]

So basically you got some exercise tips and new ideas for your recovery meals.

[@dante8999]

take a drink every time he sais Char Siu XD i wouldnt be able to make it to the end! great video. living in the middle of america i cant find anything for this recipe, so i guess ill try to find some equivalents to get close.

[@SkeeterMcBeater]

Sounds like a crazy sauce. Never heard of half those ingredients.

[@RonaldMcPaul]

"Who in the actual fuck actually put all these random sticks and leaves and plants in a pot and thought, 'Oh yeah this will be good together, oh yeah, perfect'" I found myself thinking.

[@npip99]

@@RonaldMcPaul But imagine living in China 100 years ago and trying to follow a recipe using thyme, rosemary, basil, and oregano. They'd end up thinking the exact same thing

[@PandemoniumMeltDown]

@@npip99 Please don't forget catsoup.

[@rioalif2358]

Hi! Just found this video and really interested on the recipe. Does red miso only add to the color or does it also affect taste?

[@PandemoniumMeltDown]

Miso, of many kinds, is very often used to marinate meats. It adds a very tasty dimension and crust to roasted meat. Miso is salty and has a rich flavor but it's colour isn't the important thing. The red colour mostly comes from his powdered red yeast rice (if put one grain in hot water, you'll immediately understand) and a bit from the red fermented bean curds juice which is made using, you guessed it, monascus purpureus inoculated rice (fermented red rice, again), sometimes chilies (red, of course) and give anything a kick in flavour. If you never used red fermented bean curds or stinky tofu before, you're in for a surprise. Still, the aromatic "tea" made in the beginning brings a bit of colour as well as a brownish hue, friend of red.

[@Nancy-re5lu]

I've made this recipe twice now and about to make it for the 3rd time. It makes a very very delicious char siu marinade and soooo very worth the trouble. I receive soooooo many compliments whenever I make it. I actually brew this longer than stated. I also make a bigger batch and keep it in the fridge and it lasts for months.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Awesome to hear, glad you like the recipe! Definitely a nice leg up on the bottled LKK :)

[@Nancy-re5lu]

love all the authentic recipes you and Steph make and your Mandarin in amazing! and yes, def beats the store bought jars. its why I've never really made char siu till I saw your recipe. Nothing beats home made!

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Haha thanks, my Mandarin should totally be better than it is after ten years... but hey, functional-ish. My food-specific vocab's rather strong lol, I sound like a doofus if the conversation turns to politics or philosophy ;) Glad you're enjoying the content. Tangyuan in a couple days! A little bit of a rush because we literally just landed back in Shenzhen a couple hours ago after traveling for a bit.

[@patriciasantoso7951]

Btw can we substitute the lohanguo fruit with the drink powder mix and later somehow use less sugar???

[@jumper0122]

Is there any way to source the two recommended types of miso online? Also how do you spell the first type? It's not explicitly named in the Reddit post, only where it's made. I've been accumulating these ingredients since this video came out (which are hopefully still good) and that's one I don't want to skimp on

[@finefelinegirl]

I love the kitty photo bomb at about 3:30 🤣😻🐈. Great video!

[@Monika-gz6jk]

It looks delicious!

[@patriciasantoso7951]

Only true foodie can identify that Indonesian cuisine use a lot of galangal. Great job. I am Indonesian of chinese descent and I've been enjoying your channel as a way to connect with my heritage. And I like to cook as well. Win win win.

[@douggiehart]

1:28 - what is the name of the cookbook and do you know if there has been an English translation made?

[@Tung.e.e]

i'm from Hong Kong. never seen such a detailed recipe. thanks man. i love fat cha so much

[@MatthewSmith-cp3hu]

Hey, I hope this is not offensive, but many of my family have been praying for you the people of Hong Kong.

[@Tung.e.e]

@@MatthewSmith-cp3hu thx matthew. of coz this is no way offensive. hope we are doing enuf on twitter to raise concern. thx for ur thought

[@scottishcelts2040]

Appreciate you taken the time. 😎

[@madballignite481]

I know i'm late watching this, but u're very very lucky found oldschool recipe... This is the root of modern cooking we have.

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Yeah, what's cool about Chinese cooking too is that there's so much history there too. While like all cuisines much of it can be surprisingly modern (Mapo Tofu dates back to 1874 and Dim Sum as we know it started in the 1910s), there's some dishes that you can trace a straight line back 2500 years to Confucius's time. That's pretty damn cool.

[@madballignite481]

This modern days so many recipes has been twist for the sake of food cost production or 1001 reasons, which is the authentic dish will be dissapear in time. A classic recipe for me is still the best food and knowledge. For example; there are 10 chefs who acknowledge how to make char siu, they will have a differents standard recipe and method of making char siu. So this is why classic recipe is important to have. By the way, u should stick to the root... Keep posting man, u know u're doing right. Subscribe!

[@TheLordMuzzy]

You have made me so hungry!

[@dimasakbar7668]

Great recipe, gonna try it out. Question though, what to do with the rest of the lushui braising liquid?

[@ChineseCookingDemystified]

Cool it down, toss a hard boiled egg in there, and leave it in the fridge overnight :) Excellent way to use up leftover braising liquid from Hongshaorou too!

[@dimasakbar7668]

Ok, will do, thanks. Anyway, i just tried the recipe albeit with slight twist due to scarcity. I cant find the red fermented tofu so i double up on the red yeast rice, i switch rock sugar with dark brown sugar since i dont have any, and i switch maltose with honey. The result is very satisfactory imo, i think the low temp roasting really make it much more juicy than most other quicker cooking recipe, but i think the maltose would be very important, since the honey version is less viscous (more runny, than your glaze-like sauce) and much sweeter. With this difference, the end result flavor-wise is like balinese sate babi or singapore bee cheng hiang jerky, but with glossy sheen, very pronounced spice scent (i think due to the lushui), and juicy meat rivaling better restaurant in town. Thanks! Next time i'm gonna try it properly with maltose and rock sugar.

[@mparthur144]

Freeze it in the freezer. Or, make char siu buns. Or, make char siu fried rice with fried garlic chilli paste.

[@xto744]

I don't know what exactly made me so excited about this dish. Maybe it's how easy to assemble it, or because it's oven-friendly, or maybe because I've instantly found the KKL sauce. But maaan it's crazy good for such little effort! I ate it with plain rice noodles, which are great with something so overwhelmingly sweet Thanks for the recipe!

[@JeffWhite417]

Great info. Thx.

[@LeonFleisherFan]

Working cleanly and jarring up the homemade Char Siu sauce hot as one would be making e.g. jam, how long will it keep (stored in a cool, dark place - the usual)? Thanks in advance!

[@stephanieli7519]

Yeah, if you boil your jar and lid and make it clean and tight (like what you do with jam), the sauce would stay good for up to 3 months in the fridge. Make sure to use a clean and dry spoon everytime you scoop it out from the jar.

[@colinboyd9121]

I would love to see any hints on how to bring the flavour profile of the LKK sauce to something more authentic. Great to see the full process but in practice not many people are going to do it.