Updated on June 24th, 2022
Char Siu is also known as Barbequed pork in China. I had a few requests in the Chinese Buffet at Home article for the red chicken skewers from the Chinese buffet. Luckily someone pointed me in the right direction and this is very close, the color is spot on. It turns out the redness of the meat comes from red food coloring but this is totally optional. This dish I believe is typically roasted but I decided to put the pork on skewers and grill them instead. If you want you could just leave the pork lions whole, marinate and roast them in the oven. This recipe will also work with boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts. Enjoy.
(Makes 5 Servings)
PrintChar Siu Recipe
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 lbs lean pork loin (cut into strips)
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- Ā½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Ā½ teaspoon powdered ginger
- Ā¼ cup hoisin sauce
- Ā¼ cup ketchup
- Ā¼ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon rice wine (or sherry)
- 1 teaspoon red food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- Cut pork loin into long strips. In a large bowl combine soy sauce, garlic powder, ginger, hoisin, ketchup, honey, rice wine, and food coloring.
- Place pork into bowl, cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
- Soak skewers in cold water. Slide pork strips onto each skewer.
- Grill until pork is fully cooked.
Oh my, Oh my Bobby! You have come through again! Amazing! I cannot believe you have a recipe for my favorite chicken skewers! Im about to faint! But first I have to make them š
Ill probably make them with boneless chicken thighs this time cause thats what is in the freezer! I am so happy! Thank you again so very much & as always keep cooking & keep up the fabulous work!
Wendy-
I have been looking for something like this! Thank you!!!
How wonderful! I made Char Siu Bao this weekend … I wish I had this recipe for the pork then!!
Mmm yum.
Fantastic. This looks so like ‘restaurant food’a great post- thank you!
bobby i can’t believe you made char siu at home!!! this is genius. i’ve always wondered how it was made. am really glad i’ve got a recipe now š woop woop. x
Thank you so much for this recipe! I absolutely adore the idea of grilling these! I love these sticky, red, slices of deliciousness and I relish in the idea of putting them on skewers! Thanks!
Bobby could this marinade also be used as a cooking sauce?
Nick – Yes just make sure to boil it first š
Thank you! I’m hoping to make this in a couple of days to feed a bunch of Asian people. It is a family favorite.
omgg thankk you myy bst friend use to make these when i was in middle school only exception was that she used drummettes && they were super delicious && sweet mmmhhhh im soo gona make some now that iknow how to š thanks
Hi Bobby Can you give me instructions on how to bake char siu in the oven? thank u!
alana – yes, you could bake this recipe. Just place the marinated pork without the skewers onto a greased baking sheet. Bake a 375 degrees for about 25-30 minutes or until the pork is fully cooked (has reached an internal temperature of 145 degrees).
Thank you Bobby i really appreciate it! i;m marinating them right now:)i wanted to serve them on a stick because they look fancy like that should i still soak them?
alana – I am not sure if the skewers would burn in the oven or not, but I would soak them just to be on the safe side.
thank u Bobby i cant wait to try the! really excited cuz last time i had them was couple yrs back! Thanks for replying to my qs
Yay!!! Thank you sooooo very much for posting this recipe!!! I’ve been searching for this for a long time but never knew what it was called. I’m super excited to try this recipe š
Thank you again š
My family calls this red-chicken-on-a-stick and it is one of our favorites. I make it with boneless chicken thigh meat. I don’t always have time to marinate overnight, but even after a few hours it is delicious! Also, on occasion, I bake these on a broiler pan rack at a low temperature (350) until they start to brown. I’ve been making this since 2009 when it was first posted and it is now my Husband’s Birthday dinner request. The recipe is perfect as is, but I use 3 T. of rice wine vinegar (instead of wine or sherry)and a generous amount of fresh black pepper. I’m going to try it on chicken wings, that sounded like a great idea! Thanks so much for this great recipe.