patrick.net

I love you man

why the downsize to tenouncetrout?

ask me in another thread.

Char Sui is also used in Japanese ramen, right?

Bacon is a more effective lard-generator. You cannot make Carbonara sauce with char sui.

I love the stuff. I am going to attempt to make a grilled tenderloin version of Char Siu on Friday. Taking a shopping trip down to Chinatown in 20 minutes for my spices, sauces, rice wine, and fermented bean curd.

Fermented bean curd?

After I already got a huge tenderloin and was grilling I googled the subject and saw (those of you afraid of pork fat should leave now) a great article on using Pork Bellies about an inch and a half thick with about three good solid 1/4 or so inch layers of lean meat. . And that is the stuff that is used most often.

The Blog post I read, was saying to marinate the stuff for 12 to 24 hours but definitely long enough that all of the fat is pink through out. Then slow bake it until the fat content caramelizes and renders off into the drip pan. Which at that point you can easily separate the 1/4 inch thick slabs of lean meat then slice those in this strips.

That sounded and looked a lot more appealing than the pork loin I made. It's huge slices of roast pork and not the same texture and taste saturation as much as the real stuff. That was when I had the revelation that it is Chinese bacon. Literally.

I got my inspiration for the Pork Loin and Ribs I made Sunday from this blog.

China Ribs Blues smoke bbq

Check out the smoker, down the page. I have a kettle grill so I tried it and it worked like a charm. Though I was more impressed with the ribs. Next time I'll use the Pork Bellies. I've got plenty of the pork loin now in the freezer my wife will thaw and cube and use in her Peruvian Chifa rice. Which she does very well, and I make killer Wonton soup. I always wish we had some Char Sui handy to put in the stuff. I never knew it was so easy to make.

next batch inspriation

Those are some great links!

I very much like the idea of marinading in a more liquidy char siu sauce and then using the thicker honey or maltose based glaze towards the end of cooking. Would you suggest that I roast the pork in the oven or gas grill it?

I am also thinking about trying a grilled curry chicken in the same meal, and making a sauce out of onion, green pepper, garlic, ginger, curry powder, turmeric, cumin, coriander, and coconut milk of course. My curries always turn out tasting decent but nothing like the restaurants--though I can't quite figure out why.

I will serve both over brown rice, as a spicy chicken and sweet pork combo.

Beats me out of all ethnic foods, Curry is the only one I'm not a big fan of. Curry to me taste like someone experimented with every spice in their cabinet in one dish. I like most of the spices in Curry, but in curry no one thing stands out, and it's hard for me to appreciate the sum of all of flavors that it becomes in curry form.

As for the grill or baking thing, I'm not sure, the oven in our gas stove went out years ago, so we never use a oven.
It made the house hot as hell any way and here in south Florida we don't need help with heat.

So for us if it's not cooked on the stove top, we grill it.

Although stuff like this you want to do slowly, and by using a smoker you can control the temp and humidity. I wouldn't want to use any indirect heat on pork like this. You really want to trap the fat that renders off. Would you really want all of that spilling on your gas elements in the grill?

Although the smoke does add a different almost smoked sausage flavor to it, that I'm sure the Oven doesn't. Thus the oven would be more Chinese restaurant authentic if that's what you're more into. Although I like the combination my daughter said they tasted like sweet hot dogs. But I think it was the Mesquite I should have gone Hickory or better yet apple wood. Mesquite gives meats a more nitrate processed flavor IMO.

Since my grill has a thermometer on it, I can grill on low. Been meaning to buy a smoker, but I don't know how to use them, and I have limited balcony space.

Sweet hot dogs sounds pretty good to me!

"Curry to me taste like someone experimented with every spice in their cabinet in one dish." I think that is the actual definition of curry. I made a butternut squash and sweet potato soup with a curry kick. They've been a big hit on football sundays. However, it doesn't actually taste like a restaurant curry dish.

If you want to try something slightly different, but very easy, go to your local butcher shop, buy some lamb loin chops, and make sure he cuts them 1.5 inches thick. They are like delicious mini porterhouses. Marinate in lemon, salt, pepper, garlic, and oregano. Grill with the fat on. They sell choice quality at my local meat market for $5/lb. Best meat you will ever try.

Yeah my wife make Seco de Cordero with Lamb Chops.

Lamb stew, huh? I would have no idea how to make that, but the pictures on the internet look tasty. The point I was trying to make earlier though was that you need to try the lamb LOIN chops, rather than the rack of lamb chops. They are the same cut as the porterhouse or t-bone from a cow. The key is finding a butcher that sells them for a fair price, like $5/lb for choice. I saw a select cut (one grade WORSE) lamb loin chop in Whole Foods for $29/lb. Grass fed, organic, blah, blah, blah...nonsense. I can't stand yuppy supermarkets.

I put my pork loin in the char siu marinade this morning. Tomorrow after work is BBQ time! I might take a picture and share. I followed a combination of recipes I found on the internet. Next time I may skip the hoisin sauce, but the fermented bean curd really adds an interesting twist.

Right on look forward to the updates.

Well how was it?