Home made char siew

Many from Batu Pahat would swear that Ah See's wantan mee is the best; it may be so, but have you ever seriously considered the quality of the char siu or barbecued pork that he dishes out every time? Reddish from the colouring that is added, the meat is fibrous and tasteless. He would slice the char siu and leave them exposed so that they become dry and tough. It seems that not only Ah See's but all wantan mee stalls in Batu Pahat serve the same barbecued pork.

Char siu or barbecued pork

Wantan mee with char siu

Char siu needn't be barbecued; it can be cooked over a slow fire. Try our home made char siu for a change.

The most suitable pork is the belly pork. Marinate it with sugar, pepper, light soya sauce, thick black sauce and water. The best would be to marinate it in the morning and cook it in the evening.

Marinated belly pork. There should be enough marinating sauce for the pork slices to simmer in the kuali

Cook the thick slices over a low fire

Let the pork simmer, but continue to turn the slices over regularly to ensure that they are evenly cooked

Note that as the slices are almost cooked, they turn a whitish colour and the sauce becomes thicker

The pork is ready when the juice or marinating sauce turns gluey. Total cooking time is about 20 minutes

For those who love to chew on big chunks of meat, slice it thick

For me, I prefer them to be in thin slices, so I could eat more slices but less meat

Thin slices of char siu

Our simple evening meal comprises char siu, salted vegetable and pork rib soup, soft tofu and fried buk choy.

Baby buk Choy

The baby buk choy is quick fried with pounded dried shrimp and a dash of fish sauce

Soft tofu with Chinese mushroom soy sauce and a tea-spoon of fried shallot oil

A simple meal of 'kiam chai' and pork-rib soup , fried baby buk choy vegetable and char siu

The char siu also goes well with wantan mee which can be bought from the wet market.