For someone who doesn't have a lot of Chinese ingredients in their pantry, this is an easy version of char-siu, or Chinese BBQ pork! Despite its simplicity, it was a really tasty substitute for the real deal!

For steamed char siu bao, I use this baozi dough recipe.

For the baked versions, I use a milk bread recipe. The milk bread dough is pretty soft, so I’m not sure if it’s usually used for things like char siu bao or Asian bakery buns. I just like the texture and taste of milk bread. It's very fluffy and soft and buttery.​

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Ingredients

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• 1 Pork shoulder

• 1/2 cup soy sauce

• 1/3 cup honey

• 1/3 cup ketchup

• 1/3 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 cup Chinese rice wine (or 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar)

• 2 Tablespoons hoisin sauce

• 1/2 teaspoon red food coloring (optional)

• 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder (optional)

• 1 recipe Milk Bread or Baozi

• 1 egg, beaten, for egg wash for baked versions
   

Instructions​

 

1. Cut pork shoulder with the grain into large strips about 3 inches long. Put into a large resealable plastic bag or large bowl

2. Stir sauce ingredients together in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook and stir until just combined and slightly warm, 2-3 minutes. Pour the marinade over the pork and toss a few times to coat all the pieces in marinade. If using a bag, press out air and seal. For a bowl, cover with a lid

3. Marinate pork in the refrigerator for 2 hours or overnight. I tossed mine around every few hours

4. (Being in NYC, I don’t have an outdoor grill to char my pork, so I used my tiny oven) Lightly oil a roasting rack. Place pork pieces on rack and place remaining marinade in a saucepan

5. Cook marinade until boiling and slightly thickened, to ensure killing bacteria from the raw pork

6. Cook pork in a 375°F preheated oven until internal temperature of the pork reaches 145°F, flipping over and basting with cooked marinade about every 20 minutes. Make sure you have some leftover marinade for the next step

7. When the pork is cooked through, brush with remaining sauce and put under a high broiler until exterior is partially and evenly charred, lowering broiler flame if the pork is charring too quickly and unevenly

8. Let meat rest 10 minutes so the meat cools and juices settle. Chop into strips for eating, or smaller pieces for bao.

9. For steamed char siu bao, stuff heaping spoonfuls into flattened baozi dough. Pleat or pinch the seam closed, proof, and follow the steaming instructions in the bao dough recipe.

 

For the baked versions:

 

1. For the shaping step, cut dough into 8-10 pieces and roll each piece into a ball

2. Flatten each dough ball and roll out into a circle so that the edges are thinner than the center

3. Fill with a heaping spoonful of chopped char siu and pinch the edges of the dough to seal. Round out bun

4. Turn dough upside down so the seam is on the bottom. Place the buns on a parchment-lined baking tray and cover and let rise about 30-45 minutes, or until you can poke the dough with a wet finger and it springs back about halfway

5. Beat an egg with some milk and gently brush the tops of the buns with this wash

6. Bake in a 350°F preheated oven until buns are golden brown and baked through, about18-20 minutes.

7. Let cool on wire rack and serve! You can freeze and reheat these buns with a damp paper towel in the microwave.