Pork chashu recipe

Flavourful braised pork belly, perfect for slicing on top of ramen

Posted 2023-10-24

Chashu is a Japanese adaptation of Chinese barbequed pork called char siu.

Time

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1h 20m

Ingredients

• ~350g pork belly block
• 1 negi (long green onion), or 1 leek or 2-3 green onions, chopped into chunks
• 1 knob ginger, sliced
• 0.5 tbsp neutral-flavoured oil (vegetable, rice bran, canola, etc)
• 1/3 cup sake (can substitute dry sherry)
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2/3 cup water
• 3 tbsp sugar

Method

1. Heat the oil in a skillet (or frying pan) over high heat.
2. Sear the fat side down first, then flip to sear all sides. This will take about 10 minutes.
3. While searing, put all the seasoning ingredients in a heavy-bottomed pot (or regular pot) that fits the pork.
4. Add the pork and bring it to a boil, skimming the scum and foam.
5. Turn the heat to low/simmer.
6. Put a small drop lid (“otoshibuta”) on top (smaller than the pan) to press the ingredients down and limit the evaporation. You can just use a circle of aluminium foil.
7. Simmer on low heat for an hour, turning the pork every 15 minutes. Keep the lid on.
8. Remove the lid and cook down the sauce until it thickens until you can see the bottom of the pot when you draw a line with a spatula.
9. To serve, slice into ~6mm pieces. You can use a torch or grill to sear the slices to enhance the flavour.

Source

• Just One Cookbook - Chashu
  • Has recipes for both rolled and non-rolled chashu
  • Can also stop before boiling down the sauce and save it overnight, then reheat in the morning.

Verdict

This is incredible and I should make it more. Works great on steamed rice with its own sauce, or as a ramen topper.