Popularized within the well-known ramen soup, the chahu It is a type of meat from the pig that is especially known in Chinese cuisine and in Japanese cuisine. Originally it is a purely Chinese recipe, and it doesn’t mean anything other than roast porkbut over the years it ended up becoming a fundamental ingredient in ramen soup.
Although there are substantial differences between the char siuwhich is the Chinese version, and the chahu which is the Japanese version, what we can be more or less clear about is that it is pork, generally coming from the bacon that it is marinated with different spices and sweets and then it is roasted.
In the case that I extract, we are going to talk about the chahuwhich is this Japanese version that, contrary to what happens with the Chinese version, first it is sealed and then it is cooked, that is, it does not roast.
Also the cha su japanese is smoother than the char siu Chinese and for its preparation what is done mainly is to marinate it in a mixture of soy sauce and sugar to make a kind of teriyaki that will later be what we use to give that little point of punch inside our ramen.
Salt the bacon on both sides. Bridle the bacon tightly to give it a cylinder shape. In a wide saucepan brown the bacon with oils all over their faces.
Moisten with the rest of the ingredients and cook for 2 hours over low heat, covered, watering with the juice every 15 minutes. Remove the bacon and let it rest. Reduce the juice until it thickens and strain it.
Remove the bridging thread from the bacon and glaze with the reduced sauce. Cut into one and a half centimeter slices, although these slices can also be grilled.
Cabilock Rectangular Heat Resistant Ceramic Lasagna Pan with Wooden Base for Cooking
How to use chashu
The chashu is added inside the ramen once the broth is well cooked and being a meat that is already cooked, we must try to respect its point so that it continues to be juicy when we are going to bite into it.
In other recipes, as can happen in Japanese and Chinese cuisine, it is also add along with noodles or rice in a more or less similar way to make a rice with meat.
In DAP | How to make homemade teriyaki sauce, quick and easy recipe to fill your dishes with flavor
In DAP | 17 Japanese cooking recipes for beginners