Char Siu/Xa Xiu (Chinese Barbecued Pork)

Last year for Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year), I made char siu bao (Chinese barbecued pork buns). I didn't like the bun part of the recipe but loved the char siu part. The original recipe was way too laborious though. I've heavily shortened a lot of the steps and adjusted amounts resulting in a moist and flavorful barbecued pork. The main difference with my recipe is that it's not so excessively sweet and omits that unreal pink color. So if you must have it, by all means use the packaged mix with food coloring. Or do as I do, use ketchup and the pork will be red, just not unnaturally red.

Char siu, which means "roasted on a fork," is traditionally skewered and roasted over an open fire. Using honey in the recipe and cooking the meat in a shallow pan in the oven will achieve a similar shiny glazed effect. Char siu is Cantonese, in Mandarin it's cha shao, and in Vietnamese it's xa xiu.


Char Siu / Xa Xiu (Chinese Barbecued Pork)
Adapted from Visual Recipes

For 3 lbs of pork, you'll need:

3 lbs of pork butt, shoulder, ribs, or whatever you like
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tblsp hoisin sauce
2 tblsp oyster sauce
2 tblsp xiao hsing white wine
2 tblsp honey
1 tblsp brown sugar
1 tblsp sesame oil
2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
2 tsp salt

Mix all marinade ingredients thoroughly and take a taste, adjusting if necessary. Then slather marinade all over the pork. You can let the meat marinate for several hours or overnight in the fridge, but I've baked it right away and still achieved plenty of flavor. Bake in a shallow pan in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. The marinade will start thickening at this point.

Flip the meat, making sure to baste the meat in the marinade, and bake for another half hour. Check for doneness. When the pork is almost done, broil for 10 minutes to get the pork crispy and charred. Check and make sure the sugars don't cause the pork to burn.


Remove from oven and let char siu rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes to let the juices redistribute. Slice thinly to serve.

When I was little, my mom used to make xa xiu (the Vietnamese spelling of char siu) quite often. Always from the package though. She'd make me slice the meat as thin as possible and arrange it like so. I guess some things linger into adulthood.


You can use this marinade on ribs and it'll still turn out juicy and delicious. But, don't take my word for it.


Who made my recipe for char siu/xa xiu?
Nikki Polani said, "I don’t think I could go back to that reddish spice mix again!"

Who else made char siu?
Guilty Carnivore prefers the unnaturally red color in his recipe.
Amy of Nook and Pantry has ginger and garlic in her recipe.

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1 year ago today, tender and flavorful spare ribs and bok choy chow mein noodle soup at Phoenix Food Boutique in Alhambra and San Gabriel.

2.8.8

Weekend Wokking #13 (Lemon)

Lemons are one of my favorite fruits. I love their tartness. I love their bright sunny color. I love the flavor they add to my favorite baked chicken recipe. And I love that with Weekend Wokking, I get 10 recipes to celebrate the luscious lemon.

So without further ado, in alphabetical order by the name of the recipe...

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The first lemon recipe is Fried Calamari with Lemon Aioli from Sijeleng of Javaholic in Northern California. Sijeleng says he likes squid best simply fried and with a simple sauce. You'll get no argument from me with how bright and cheery his calamari and lemon aioli look. I love the addition of thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves in the aioli.

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Tangy lemon rice is a South Indian favorite says Yasmeen of Health Nut who gives us a healthy Lemon Brown Rice recipe. Her recipe also includes other healthful ingredients such as ginger and turmeric.

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JS and TS of Eating Club Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada, have done it again with a Lemon Chamomile Tiramisu. The sisters said they wanted to come up with something unique and they certainly have. They used candied lemon zest as a garnish and limoncello and chamomile tea to dip the ladyfingers for a refreshing take on this classic Italian dessert.

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Fellow Vancouver, Canada resident, Christine of Kits Chow gives us Lemon Granita. She adds extra lemon oomph by adding limoncello and lemon balm. And just look at the pretty lemon cups for serving this icy treat.

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Jeannie of World is My Oyster in Southern California tempts us with this luscious Lemon Tart. The eggy, zesty lemon curd filling looks creamy and smooth. My mouth waters just thinking about it.

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Darlene of Blazing Hot Wok in Portland, Oregon offers an artfully plated Lemon-Mint Tart. I was surprised at the light color of the tart since the recipe includes 1/2 cup muddled mint leaves. After straining the mint, it didn't affect the appearance at all, yet provides a lovely fragrance and flavor to the dessert.

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Rita of Pink Bites in Seattle, Washington gives us a colorful Light Lemon Basil and Shrimp Pasta. I love the simple list of ingredients that seems so healthy yet flavorful.

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Ning of Hearth and Hearth in Manila, the Philippines offers a recipe for Pan-Seared Fish with Lemon and Capers. The combination of lemons and capers reminds me of chicken piccata, yet with the healthier option of fish. Healthy and tasty.

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Wandering Chopsticks from Southern California give a quick and easy Strawberry Lemonade. I thought it best to keep it simple to celebrate the lemon. Strawberry lemonade reminds me of bright, sunny summer days.

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Sweatha of Tasty Curry Leaf in Bangalore, India offers a Tangy Lemon Sorbet. Such an artfully presented lemon sorbet. The addition of ginger and mint provide a little nuance and flavor. I can imagine eating a lot of this during the summer.

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Thank you everyone for your patience in my posting of this round-up. I had no idea when I decided to create Weekend Wokking last year that I would get so many entries from so many bloggers from so many countries. From May 2008 starting with ASPARAGUS to May 2009 with SPROUTS there were 131 recipes from 49 participants from 11 countries including Canada, China, Denmark, India, Malaysia, Norway, the Philippines, Serbia, Singapore, United Kingdom, and all over the United States.

But most of all, Weekend Wokking wouldn't have been quite as successful without the tireless participation of Darlene of Blazing Hot Wok and TS and JS of Eating Club Vancouver. These ladies tied for first place with 10 entries. Second place is Ning of Heart and Hearth with 9 entries. When I worried there wouldn't be enough entries, I could always count on them to submit a recipe.

Marija of Palachinka had 5 entries, but takes the martyr prize by hosting Weekend Wokking three times!

All that hard work surely should be rewarded. So to thank you, I offer up some of my favorite kitchenware and gadgets. From the top left: a simple knife peeler that makes julienning vegetables easier for such dishes like Goi Du Du (Vietnamese Papaya Salad), a skimmer spoon to remove scum when making broth, long bamboo chopsticks for the wok, and porcelain spoons.

Ladies, please pick one of the items above and email me your mailing address.


If you choose the spoons, I can send you a set of four, let me know which design you'd like, or if you want a mismatch of one of each.


But we're not done. If you've participated in Weekend Wokking in the past year, please leave a comment telling me which item you'd like if you win and I'll pick one random winner. Deadline is June 30 at 11:59 p.m.

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For next month's challenge, I present the controversial herb - CILANTRO! Are you a cilantro lover or hater? Do you know scientists think it might be genetic? I'm a cilantro lover, but apparently the haters think it tastes soapy?

Darlene of Blazing Hot Wok will be your host for the July cilantro round-up. Please send entries to her by 11:59 p.m., Sunday July 5 to blazinghotwok (at) gmail (dot) com.

And do let me know if you'd like to host a future edition of Weekend Wokking.

Thanks so much everyone for making the first year of Weekend Wokking such a great one!

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1 year ago today, Cha Gio Bap (Vietnamese Corn Egg Rolls).
2 years ago today, Chao Tom (Vietnamese Grilled Shrimp Paste Wrapped Around Sugarcane).

Ga Ro Ti (Vietnamese Roasted Chicken)

About six months ago, one of my readers in Canada (Hi, Jonathan!) emailed to ask me for some Vietnamese cookbook recommendations.

*Ahem.*

I told him I had more than a hundred Vietnamese recipes on the blog.

To which he replied that he needed a cookbook since he was trying to replicate a Ga Ro Ti (Vietnamese Roasted Chicken) recipe from a local restaurant. And while he had tried and liked several of my recipes, I didn't have the roast chicken recipe in my index.

*Nudge.*

He apologized since his poor attempt at reverse psychology went over my head and obviously didn't net him the recipe.

Ha!

I told him the best method for actually getting a recipe from me was detailed and regular feedback. Not just compliments (Although, I surely love those.), but descriptions of what he did, adjustments he made, and how the recipe turned out.

Then I quickly made up a recipe on the spot.

He promptly thanked me. But even better, several weeks later after he had made the recipe, he wrote back to tell me how the chicken turned out and thanked me again.

And even better than that, a month later, he wrote again to tell me that he got over his fear of rice paper and made my Nem Nuong and Nem Nuong Cuon (Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patties and Vietnamese Grilled Pork Patty Salad Rolls) recipe for his sister's family with awesome (His words, not mine.) results.

So finally!

Here's my recipe for ga ro ti for the blog.

And here's how to get me to respond to a recipe request: ask nicely, give detailed and regular feedback, and thank me.

This blog is still a one-woman show. I'm only human after all.


Ga Ro Ti (Vietnamese Roasted Chicken)

For 1 Cornish game hen cut in half, or 2 pieces of chicken thigh and drumstick, or 2 pieces of breast meat, you'll need:
1 Cornish game hen cut in half, or 2 pieces of chicken thigh and drumstick, or 2 pieces of breast meat
1 tblsp soy sauce
1 tblsp honey or 2 tsp sugar
2 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cumin
4 cloves garlic, finely minced

Mix all of the ingredients together to form a thick paste. Rub marinade all over the chicken.

Ideally, you can let the chicken marinate for about an hour if you wish, but it's not necessary.

Bake in shallow pan, skin side down at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

Flip so the chicken is skin side up and bake at 325 for 25 minutes.

Serve with Com Do Ca Chua (Vietnamese Tomato Paste Red Rice) and garnish with sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, and Hanh Dam (Vietnamese Vinegared Onions).

Other baked chicken recipes you might like:
Baked Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic, Lemon, and Rosemary
Baked Chicken with Citrus Marinade
Baked Chicken with Salt, Pepper, and Lemon
Cuban Lemon Garlic Roast Chicken

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1 year ago today, a primer on Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce).
2 years ago today, Carne Asada (Mexican Grilled Meat) and Ga Nuong Xa (Vietnamese Grilled Chicken with Lemongrass) for a Memorial Day barbecue.