chasu, chashao, cha sio, chāshū (Japanese), xá xíu (Vietnamese)
Place of origin
Guangdong, China
Region or state
Greater China, Japan and Singapore (and general Sinophone areas in Southeast Asia and beyond)
Main ingredients
Pork, mixture of maltose, Chinese rose wine and five-spice powder
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese
叉燒
Simplified Chinese
叉烧
Jyutping
caa1 siu1
Hanyu Pinyin
chāshāo
Literal meaning
"fork roasting"
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin
chāshāo
IPA
[ʈʂʰá.ʂáʊ]
Hakka
Romanization
cha-seu
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization
chāsīu
Jyutping
caa1 siu1
IPA
[tsʰa˥.siw˥]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ
chha-sio
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese
xá xíu
Thai name
Thai
หมูแดง [mǔːdɛ̄ːŋ]
RTGS
mu daeng
Korean name
Hangul
차시우
Transcriptions
Revised Romanization
chasiu
Japanese name
Kanji
叉焼
Kana
チャーシュー
Transcriptions
Romanization
chāshū
Indonesian name
Indonesian
babi panggang merah / Cha Sio
Khmer name
Khmer
សាច់ជ្រូកអាំង
Cookbook: Char siu
Media: Char siu
Char siu (Chinese: 叉燒; lit. 'fork roasted')[1] is a Cantonese-style barbecued pork.[2] Originating in Guangdong, it can be eaten with rice, or used as an ingredient for other dishes.
It is classified as a type of siu mei (燒味), Cantonese roasted meat.
Meat cuts
[edit]
Pork cuts used for char siu can vary, but a few main cuts are common:[3][1]
Pork loin
Pork belly – produces juicy and fattier char siu
Pork butt (shoulder) – produces leaner char siu
Pork fat
Pork neck end – very marbled (jyu geng yuk)
Cultural variations
[edit]
Cantonese cuisine
[edit]Sliced char siu
In ancient times, wild boar and other available meats were used to make char siu. However, in modern times, the meat is typically a shoulder cut of domestic pork, seasoned with a mixture of maltose, Chinese rose wine and five-spice powder,[3] along with a selection of other ingredients. These seasonings turn the exterior layer of the meat dark red, similar to the "smoke ring" of American barbecues. Maltose may be used to give char siu its characteristic shiny glaze.[4][5]
A plate of char siu rice
Char siu is one of the most iconic dishes of Cantonese cuisine. It is typically consumed with a starch as a main dish, whether with noodles (chasiu min, 叉燒麵), with rice (chasiu faan, 叉燒飯), or served alone as a main dish in traditional family meals. Beyond these pairings, char siu is also a beloved filling in Cantonese dim sum, inside a bun (cha siu bao, 叉燒包),[6], or inside cheung fun as (chasiu cheong, 叉燒腸).[7] It is even paired with pastry items like pineapple buns or puffs as (chasiu sou, 叉燒酥).
The ovens used to roast char siu are usually large gas rotisseries. Since ovens are not standard in Hong Kong households, char siu is usually purchased from a siu mei establishment, which specialises in meat dishes such as char siu, soy sauce chicken, white cut chicken, roasted goose, and roasted pork. These shops usually display the merchandise by hanging them in the window.[5]
Southeast Asian cuisine
[edit] "Mu daeng" redirects here. For the hippopotamus, see Moo Deng. Char siu is often served in a noodle soup, as here in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
In Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, char siew rice is found in many Chinese shāolà (燒臘 or 烧腊) stalls along with roast duck and roast pork. The dish consists of slices of char siu, cucumbers, and white rice, drenched in sweet gravy or drizzled with dark soy sauce. Char siu rice is also a well-known food within the Chinese community in Medan, North Sumatra, where it is more often called char sio.
In Singapore, char siew rice can also be found in Hainanese chicken rice stalls, where customers have a choice of plain white rice or chicken-flavoured rice served with their char siu rice, and choose from garlic, chilli and soy sauces.
In Thailand, char siu is called mu daeng (Thai: หมูแดง, pronounced[mǔːdɛ̄ːŋ], "red pork") and in Cambodia it is called sach chrouk sa seev (Khmer: សាច់ជ្រូកសាស៉ីវ, sac cruuk sa səyv).
In the Philippines, it is known as Chinese pork asado, but also referred to as cha siu. It is usually eaten with cold cuts or served stuffed in siopao.[8]
In Flanders and Holland, it is sometimes mistaken for the Chinese/Indonesian name 'babi panggang'. This is a different dish (mostly sweeter and served with yellow pickled Chinese cabbage, called atjar). These Chinese/Indonesian restaurants also sometimes serve cha(r) sieuw under the original name.[citation needed]
Japanese cuisine
[edit]Chāshū ramen
Japanese cuisine has adapted 叉燒 as chāshū (チャーシュー). Unlike its Cantonese variant, it is not roasted, but prepared by rolling pork belly into a log and then braising it at a low temperature.[9] This type of braising is a Chinese technique known as red cooking, which imparts a reddish-brown coloration. The Japanese adaptation is typically seasoned with soy sauce, sake, mirin and sugar or other sweetener, without the red food colouring or five-spice powder that characterize char siu. It is a typical ingredient for toppings in rāmen.[1]
United Kingdom cuisine
[edit]
Char siu is the main ingredient in jar jow, a once-common stir-fry dish from East London.[10]
Gallery
[edit]
Char siu rice
Char siu bao
Char siu cheung fun (rice noodle rolls)
Japanese bento with chāshū
See also
[edit]
Food portal
China portal
Indonesia portal
Malaysia portal
Singapore portal
Thailand portal
Asado
List of pork dishes
Lou mei
References
[edit]
^ abcAsianCookingMom (6 June 2020). "Japanese Chashu Pork". Asian Cooking Mom. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
^klyeoh (May 2023). "[Singapore] "Char siew" (Cantonese-style caramelised BBQ pork) at Fook Kin, Killiney Road". Hungry Onion. Archived from the original on 8 January 2026. Retrieved 8 January 2026.
^ ab"Chinese BBQ pork (char siu) 蜜汁叉燒". Graceful Cuisine. 7 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
^"The Ultimate Chinese Barbecue Guide". The Manual. 8 June 2021. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
^ abDeutsch, Jonathan; Elias, Megan J. (15 April 2014). Barbecue: A Global History. Reaktion Books. p. 52. ISBN 978-1-78023-298-0.
^Sinclair, Charles Gordon (1998). International Dictionary of Food and Cooking. Taylor & Francis. p. 115. ISBN 978-1-57958-057-5.
^Lui, Mabel (18 July 2025). "What is cheung fun? Types, history and how to make Chinese rice noodle rolls". South China Morning Post.
^De Leon, Adrian (1 May 2016). "Siopao and Power: The Place of Pork Buns in Manila's Chinese History". Gastronomica. 16 (2): 45–54. doi:10.1525/gfc.2016.16.2.45. ISSN 1529-3262.
^Jimura, Takamitsu (16 August 2021). Cultural Heritage and Tourism in Japan. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-429-67163-0.
^Dunlop, Fuchsia (19 March 2021). "How the British-Chinese takeaway took off". Financial Times. Retrieved 7 September 2025.