Homemade Char Siew

Char Siew is barbecued pork, a popular pork dish in Cantonese cuisine. This is a simplified method, suitable for homecooking.

Ingredients (serves 4):
1 kg pork
200g sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1/2 tsp golden brown colouring powder

Method:
1. Cut pork into thick 5cm strips.
2. Marinate pork with sugar, salt, and light and dark soy sauces. Add colouring powder and mix pork thoroughly in a bowl with all the other ingredients. Leave to marinate for 4 hours.
3. Heat wok or pan and add seasoned pork strips. Fry until slightly brown.
4. Add 1 cup of water and lower heat to simmer until the char siew is cooked.
5. Cook leftover char siew marinade over slow heat until it boils. Add a little water and thicken with cornflour for char siew sauce.
6. Cut the char siew diagonally into 1cm slices. Serve the slices with some plain rice and cucumber salad.

Tips:
For the health-conscious, keep marinade to a minimum.

Recipe source: Simply Her magazine (Aug 2006)