This recipe for Siu Yuk or Chinese Crispy Roasted Pork Belly features oven-roasted tender, juicy flavorful pork belly with crackling pork skin. A Chinese Cantonese barbecue staple, this dish is always served at festive celebrations.
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What is siu yuk?
Siu yuk, in Cantonese literally translates to "burn meat" and refers to crispy pork belly.
The pork meat is flavored with aromatics and spices, and roasted at a high temperature to achieve its signature crunchy yet succulent and tender texture.
Crispy roasted pork belly is served at festive celebrations, such as Chinese New Year and weddings, however, you can enjoy it anytime.
How is it different from other Chinese pork belly dishes?
Unlike dong po rou (東坡肉) or Hakka-style pork belly (kau yuk) (扣肉), siu yuk's signature lies in its shatteringly crunchy skin with juicy, flavorful meat.
The aforementioned pork belly dishes do not have crunchy skin; instead, the pork belly skin is meltingly soft.
Ingredients you'll need
- pork belly slab (豬腩肉)
- aromatics: ginger (薑), green onion (蔥)
- seasonings: Chinese five-spice powder (五香粉), salt (鹽), granulated sugar (砂糖), sand ginger powder (沙薑粉), garlic powder (大蒜粉), black pepper (黑胡椒粉)
- rose wine (玫瑰露酒): or Shaoxing wine (紹興酒)
- baking soda (梳打粉): helps crisp up the skin and give it its crunchy texture
- vinegar (醋): neutralizes and washes away the baking soda
- sweetened condensed milk (煉乳): helps promote browning and adds flavor
How to make crispy siu yuk at home
To make crispy pork belly, prepare a flavorful seasoning and parboil the pork belly with ginger and green onion.
Scrape, dry and stab the pork belly to promote crisping.
Massage baking soda into the skin and allow to marinate, while the meat is slit and seasoned with spices and rose wine.
After a vinegar wash and overnight drying in the fridge, roast the pork first at 350°F, then at 400°F with aluminum foil to protect the meat while leaving the skin exposed.
A final broil ensures the skin becomes golden and crisp before cutting and serving.
How to serve
Serve crispy siu yuk (燒肉) as a side dish with other barbecue meats such as char siu (叉燒), roast duck (燒鴨), accompanied with steamed rice or noodles (米飯).
It is customary to enjoy crispy siu yuk at festive celebrations such as Lunar New Year (農曆新年), weddings, or birthdays.
However, you can enjoy siu yuk at any time, as it makes for a delicious, comforting meal.
How to store & reheat
Store the crispy roasted pork belly in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
To reheat, place the pork belly onto a tray lined with aluminum foil and bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes, or until the skin is crispy once again.
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Chinese Crispy Roasted Pork Belly (Siu Yuk) (燒肉)
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For accuracy and precision in baking recipes, use weight (metric) measurements when available.
Ingredients
Seasoning:
- ¾ teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder (五香粉)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (鹽)
- ¼ tablespoon granulated sugar (砂糖) ~4g
- ¼ teaspoon sand ginger powder (沙薑粉)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder (大蒜粉)
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper (黑胡椒粉)
Pork belly:
- 1.5 lbs pork belly (豬腩肉)
- 1 slice ginger (薑)
- 1 stalk green onion (蔥) white stalk only
- ice (冰) to chill
For the pork skin:
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda (梳打粉)
- ½ teaspoon rose wine or Shaoxing wine (玫瑰露酒/紹興酒)
Wash:
- ½ tablespoon vinegar (醋)
- 3 teaspoon sweetened condensed milk (煉乳)
- 1.5 C water (水)
Instructions
Prepare the seasoning:
- Mix the seasoning in a bowl. Set aside.
Prepare pork belly:
- Boil a pot of water with ginger and green onion root stalk for 5 minutes.
- Place pork belly with skin side down in the boiling water and cook at medium high for 7 minutes.
- Remove pork belly and chill in ice cold water.
- Wash and scrape skin with knife.
- Place pork belly onto a tray. Pat dry with paper towel.
- Stab pork belly skin with bundle of metal skewers together. Jab the skin all over only to a depth of about 3-5 mm.
- Spread the baking soda on the pork belly skin. Dab a little water on your hands and rub the baking soda evenly on the skin. Massage the baking soda into the skin (only) very well. It is important to let the baking soda marinate on the skin for 30 minutes for good crispy skin.
- In the meantime, flip the pork belly onto paper towel and cut a slit about halfway deep into the meat lengthwise.
- Sprinkle the prepared seasoning all over the meat side as well as in the slitted area, except for the skin. Making sure the skin is completely clean from seasoning.
- Rub in rose wine over the meat.
- Place pork belly in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, remove pork belly from the fridge and jab the skin with skewers again.
Prepare the wash:
- Mix the vinegar, sweetened condensed milk and water in a shallow container. Pour the mixture into a flat or shallow pan.
- Place pork belly with the skin side down into the mixture to soak for 15-20 minutes to wash off the soda. Ensure the mixture touches the skin only.
- Remove pork belly out of the wash mixture and place onto paper towel. Pat dry.
- Place pork belly into another tray or container (same size) with the skin side up and let it air dry in the fridge overnight or up to two nights.
Roast the pork belly:
- The next day, remove pork belly out of the fridge about 1 hour before roasting.
- Preheat oven to 350°F/177°C.
- Roast pork at 350°F/177°C for 20 minutes.
- Remove pork out of the oven and jab the skin with skewers.
- Increase oven heat to 400°F/204°C.
- Wrap the pork belly with aluminum foil all around, leaving only the skin exposed.
- Pierce the pork with metal or bamboo skewers through the aluminum foil to retain its shape.
- Place pork back into a preheated 400°F/204°C oven and roast for 30 minutes, or until skin is completely puffy and crisp.
- Remove from oven, adjust the oven rack and broil for additional 4-5 minutes until golden, keeping an eye on it closely so it doesn't burn.
- Remove from oven and cut into smaller pieces with a sharp cleaver/knife before serving.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided should be considered as approximate and is not guaranteed. Please use your best judgment to ensure food is safely prepared and/or a good fit for your diet.
Healthy World Cuisine
So tender and that crispy skin is not to be beat! A delicious addition to any family gathering.
Michelle
Thank you Bobbi! It's a little bit of a project, but well worth it! 🙂