Chinese Barbecued Pork (Char Siu)

This was a shot in the dark, as my experience with barbecued pork is about.... none. But we had been to Chinatown recently, and all these great flavors tinkled our chinese taste buds. It turned out to be very good and not that far from the real thing. I think. Mission accomplished.




Serves 2

250g pork loin (about 20cm long, 5cm thick)

2 cloves garlic, mashed
1 teasp freshly grated ginger
1 tablesp soy sauce
1 tablesp chinese rice wine (shokoshu)
1 tablesp tien mien jian (sweet soybean paste)
1 tablesp dark brown sugar
1/4 teasp five spice
1 teasp sesame oil
freshly ground pepper

1 tablesp honey


Combine all ingredients except honey, and marinate the pork loin overnight in the fridge. Turn a couple of times.

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Overlay the oven tray with aluminum foil. Pour about 2 cups of water over the tray. Place the marinated pork on a rack (reserve the marinade), and place in the oven. The marinade will slowly drip onto the tray while cooking. Bake at 220 degrees for 15 minutes. Turn the meat, lower the heat to 180 degrees, and bake for another 15 minutes.
Mix 1 tablespoon of the leftover marinade with 1 tablespoon of honey. Take the meat out of the oven, baste with this mixture, transfer to a broiler, and grill for an additional 3-4 minutes on each side, with basting of honey sauce.
Slice the loin and enjoy with ramen noodles, plain or fried rice, buns, as an appetizer, warm or cold, the possibilities are endless.