LTH,

Not exactly Char Siu, but I thought I'd pop my Chinese BBQ Sparerib effort in this thread. I followed the recipe in Saveur May 2008 (#111), though I left out the red food coloring and used my smoker not oven.

I've made Chinese BBQ Spareribs on the smoker a few times, Bill SF/NM, BBQ man extraordinaire, posted a recipe to a BBQ listserve back in '03,* so couldn't resist trying the Saveur recipe.

Chinese style BBQ Ribs (Saint Louis) in middle, flanked by American BBQ ribs (loin back).



Chinese BBQ ribs were delicious, light smoke complimenting sweet, salty, rich meaty pork ribs, though next time out I will add fresh ginger and hot peppers to the marinade.

Enjoy,
Gary

*Bill SF/NM recently posted a picture of absolutely delicious looking, and I am sure tasting, Asian style BBQ ribs to the Random Food Pictures Thread

Gary--

Knowing you, I'd bet you tweaked the recipe a bit! Care to share?

Geo

Geo wrote:Knowing you, I'd bet you tweaked the recipe a bit! Care to share?

Geo,

First time out I typically stick pretty close to the stated recipe and, as I had a number of plates spinning when I made the Saveur marinade, I pretty much check-listed it. I did, as mentioned, leave out the food coloring and used a smoker not oven. I also added more garlic than called for.

Next time out I'll add fresh ginger and some heat, probably jalapeno, though the fruity notes and blistering heat of habanero would match well.

I suggest trying the Saveur Chinese Barbecued Spareribs, simple, inexpensive with a big flavor payoff.

Enjoy,
Gary

G Wiv wrote:Next time out I'll add fresh ginger and some heat, probably jalapeno, though the fruity notes and blistering heat of habanero would match well.

LTH,

Went another round with Chinese BBQ today, template was still Saveur but I drifted from the recipe quite a bit. Smoked with lump charcoal and hickory, triple the garlic and an inch of ginger, both of which I grated on a microplane, I also added crushed red pepper and crushed red pepper that had been finely ground in a coffee grinder.

I thought it turned out pretty well, though I still intend trying habanero for its fruity notes as well as heat.

Chinese BBQ Spare Ribs (6.6.08)



Enjoy,
Gary

Are many Chinese places in town using wood smoke in their cooks for chinese BBQ?

I once visited the old Sun Wah's kitchen, and saw that the large upright ovens were gas fired.

There was pork belly everywhere! It was thrilling.

I took delivery of a 6.02lb Berkshire pork belly this evening that's going to get the char siu marinade treatment from tomorrow through Monday.



Unfortunately, I'm not bringing my WSM up to Eagle River with me for the weekend, so I'll just have to make do with an oven and a roasting rack.

I'll post updates when I return on Tuesday.

I look forward to your results. I love char siu and just picked up a pork belly myself and have been debating what to do with it.

I got the taste for making some BBQ pork lo mein after eating a satisfyingly brown-sauced version from 65 Kitchen in the Loop. One of my favorite places for greasy Chinese American food. Meathead is a trusted source for this sort of recipe so I gave his version a try: http://amazingribs.com/recipes/porknogr ... _ribs.html

I had boneless shoulder cuts on hand so I bagged those up with the marinade for 24 hours. That fire engine red color is a crucial part of char siu for me so I didn't skip the food coloring:


20 minutes in the oven and 10 min under the broiler later:


Taste of the meat was spot on, now it's lo mein time.

hell yeah

This dinner really hit the spot:

That really looks fantastic - nice job!

BR wrote:That really looks fantastic - nice job!

Thanks! Even cheap Chinese places have that high heat flame which gives you that smoky wok hei flavor you can't get at home, but I figured a partial workaround: burnt sugar. If you caramelize some sugar in the skillet while stir-frying your aromatics, it's almost like the real thing.

Yeah man, that bowl of Lo mein looks great.

Really nice job on the pork, great color.