Xmas Eve Char Siu Pork & Spatchcocked Turkey - PRON

Here's an 8 lb. boneless pork loin cut up and marinating for Char Siu. The whole loin is sort of carrot shaped. I first cut it into three equal pieces. The "small end" was cut in 1/2 lengthwise. The "middle" and "large end" were cut into 3 pieces lengthwise. You might be able to cut the "large end" into 4 lengthwise pieces. It's up to you. The smaller diameter the pieces have more caramelized "bark", if you leave the pork loin full diameter, you don't get as much of the delicious charred marinated glaze. Just remember the smaller diameter pieces cook faster, and are basically grilled rather than roasted. Traditional Char Siu pork (appetizer) is generally slow roasted pork leg and needs more cooking time. The pork loin is an already a tender cut of meat and should be cooked as quick as possible, with the goal to obtain a nice charred finish with the middle still juicy and not overdone.



I'm trying to finish this 12 lb. turkey quick at high heat, so I spatchcocked it for faster cooking on my 22 in. WSM.



This was my first spatchcocked turkey, and I figured a big bird needed some bold flavors.



I'm hoping the top of the bullet will run hotter at around 350, and the turkey down below a little cooler.



Scalloped potatoes were made in the oven, and everybody is wondering what all of the pictures are for.



This side dish has always been a crowd favorite. It's a very simple and elegant recipe.



The turkey hit 157 after 2 hours at 350. The deep charred skin was flavorful, plus super juicy inside!



Here's the pork loin. You have to cook hot in a WSM for a good char. Coleman's mustard on the side.



Thanks for looking and Happy New Year everybody!

For almost a week I thought about trashing this whole post because the turkey was a little dark and the legs pulled back too much in my pictures.



Originally Posted by nmayeux
You can cut slits in the skin behind each leg, and tuck them in together. Helps centralize the mass, and makes handling a little easier.



I've heard the WSM usually cooks hotter on the top rack and I wanted the char siu to be nicely "charred" on the outside but not overdone in the middle. So I tried for a high heat cook and put the pieces of pork on the top rack and the spatchcocked turkey on the (hopefully) cooler bottom rack. I was still a little behind and needed to give the pork a quick "reverse sear". The turkey was right above a full water pan, and I thought it would be OK... So now, here's the rest of the story!



This is my old-school "Guroker", which never made it past the manual-model prototype. Well, the super-turbo convection mode was a little too hot for the turkey, especially around the door where the turkey legs were positioned. But really, the breast was super-juicy with no dryness next to the charred skin.

I'm really glad my local N.W. Brethren homies said to go ahead and post, the turkey wasn't that bad; because thanks to nmayeux, I learned something that I've never seen before. Yea I know, sometimes we can get too critical around here, yet once the smoke clears it's always good. This site is packed with a wealth of shared information, but sometimes you've got to be a little clever and patient to access it too. Thanks brother Noah, great tip for me! And thanks to all the rest of my fellow BBQ Brethren brothers and sisters for checking out and responding to my post.

KuyasKitchen said:

The crowd demands your recipe for Char Siu!

Click to expand...

This Char Siu recipe is from my 82 year-old mom.

4 lbs. boneless pork
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 heaping tablespoon Hoisin sauce
1/8-1/4 teaspoon 7 spice seasoning
1 teaspoon saltpeter
1/4 cup water
Marinate for 4 hours

My thoughts and differences:
I usually marinate overnight. Turn a few times.

I use boneless pork loin. Most restaurants use pork leg, but you've got to have a whole leg, know how to debone it and cut up the different muscle groups into size. Some use pork shoulder, which I haven't tried. Look at the beginning post too see my cut up pork loin.

The sugar can be brown, I just use white. A lot of recipes use honey too.

There are many types of soy sauce, I use regular Kikkoman. I want to try the dark-style soy sauces.

The Hoisin sauce is "heaping", don't be shy. This and the 5 spice are the foundation that gives the character to this recipe. Take it from there!

I use 1/4 teaspoon of 5-spice seasoning, available at most Asian stores. Mom's 7-spice was hard to find, and I want to search it out, and try it myself.

"Saltpeter" is known as Potassium Nitrate. I just used up the last my mom had. I heard it was available at a local Asian store labeled as "meat curing salt". I was in a hurry and that's what Morton's Tender Quick "Meat Curing Salt" is labeled as. So I got a 2 lb. bag at my local food wholesaler figuring it was the same. When I used the above recipe amount, I felt the "reddish" layer penetrating down past the surface of the meat wasn't as pronounced as with the stuff my mom gave me. The Morton's label says: .05% Potassium Nitrate and .05% Potassium Nitrite as a "preservative", along with salt, sugar, and propylene glycol to keep the mixture uniform. I think her stuff was all Potassium Nitrate. The combination of nitrates, nitrites, salt and sugar is important. If you don't have Morton's Tender Quick to use in place of "Saltpeter", just leave it out.

For the water, I always use some type of wine or beer, water is your backup. Save the Jack for a straight shot.

The most important thing to do is to cook the meat properly. The pork loin I use is already a tender cut of meat. Whatever cut of pork you use, cook it as quickly as you can to have it turn out tender and juicy with a good caramelized surface. It should look a little burnt. The lessor cuts of pork should probably be cooked lower and slower, but try to get some good color to the finished product whatever cut you use.

You can direct grill with briquettes or gas at medium heat with the cover on. Indoors you can "Jenn-Air" on medium-high, or broil with the rack in the middle-upper part of the oven. Remember to cook as fast as you need to obtain a tender middle that is not overcooked and dried out, but has a nice caramelized (hint burnt looking) outer surface. The safest way is to cook in a 325 degree oven on a broiling rack for about an hour. Then give it a very quick direct-broil to color it. Just make sure the meat isn't overcooked. Traditionally this is not a medium-rare presentation, I'm trying for a 160-170 degree roasted-texture finish with a loin. Whatever your cooking method, turn and baste often with the reserved marinade to build up a beautiful glaze. Don't forget to serve your sliced Char Siu with hot mustard and toasted sesame seeds on the side.