Char Siu Pork Belly Burnt Ends
On December 20, 2021 (Updated October 24, 2023)
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These char siu pork belly burnt ends are sweet, sticky, and savory. They’re marinated and glazed in an Asian-inspired char siu glaze that perfectly balances the smoky and fatty pork belly.
Char Siu Pork Belly
Sauce for Char Siu Pork Belly
These char siu pork belly burnt ends are way more than a simple BBQ recipe. They’re marinated and then smoked in a sticky char siu glaze. Here’s what you’ll need to make this marinade (that later turns into the sauce as well!)
- Chinese 5 Spice Powder. While you may not be familiar with this spice, you should be able to easily find it at your local grocery store. It’s likely labeled “Chinese 5 Spice Powder,” “Chinese Five Spice Blend,” or even just “Five Spice Powder.”
- Low sodium soy sauce. Make sure and use a low sodium sauce for this recipe to prevent the final burnt ends from being too salty.
- Brown sugar. Light or dark will work just fine here.
- Honey.
- Hoisin sauce. Any brand works just fine here. Go ahead and pick your favorite if you have one.
- Sesame oil.
- Red miso paste.
You can also add 1 teaspoon of red food coloring to give these burnt ends that amazing deep red look, but this is totally optional!
How to Make Char Siu Pork Belly Burnt Ends
Here’s how to do it:
- Slice. Place your pork belly in the freezer for 30 minutes. Remove and slice into 2-inch cubes. Placing the meat in the freezer will allow you to better cut the meat.
- Marinate. Combine ingredients for the marinade in a glass or plastic bowl (not metal). Add the meat cubes, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for 12-24 hours.
- Preheat. Turn on your preferred smoker to 275 degrees F. I recommend using cherry wood with this recipe, but you can use whatever you prefer or have on hand.
- Season. Once your meat is marinated, transfer the pork belly to a flat roasting rack and space them evenly to allow smoke to penetrate around each cube. Combine the sweet rub and Chinese 5-spice seasoning in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over the marinated pork.
- Smoke. Place the rack of pork belly cubes on the grill grates of the smoker, close the lid, and smoke for around 3 to 3 1/2 hours, or until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 195-203 degrees F.
- Glaze and finish smoking. While the pork is smoking, prepare the glaze by boiling the reserved marinade and reducing to a simmer until the marinade turns into a nice thick syrupy glaze. Brush the glaze on each burnt end, close the lid, and smoke for another 30 minutes to set the sauce.
These guys are best enjoyed immediately. They’re so good they can be enjoyed as a main course, appetizer, or snack during the big game or party.
How Long to Smoke Char Siu Pork Belly
These char siu burnt ends will smoke for an initial 3 to 3 1/2 hours until they reach an internal temperature of 195-203 degrees F. Next, add the glaze, and place them back on the smoker for another 30 minutes to tighten the sauce on the pork.
All together expect 3 1/2 to 4 hours from start to finish to smoke these. Keep in mind that each cut of meat and each time you smoke food will take a slightly different amount of time to get to your final target temperature. The best way to determine when your food is done is to go by temperature. Invest in a good internal meat thermometer to help guide you through your cook.
More BBQ Pork Recipes
Pork is simply amazing when cooked on a BBQ. These other delightful smoked pork recipes are some favorites here at Hey Grill Hey.
Char Siu Pork Belly Burnt Ends Recipe
Now that you have all these tools at your disposal, it’s time to make some delicious meat! Head to the printable recipe card below for your full ingredients and instructions. Once you’ve made these, be sure to leave us a comment! We love hearing how your cooking adventure is going at home.
Looking for more tutorials and help with your BBQ? Hey Grill Hey releases a new BBQ video on YouTube each week to help you make better BBQ and become a backyard BBQ hero! Check these out at Hey Grill Hey YouTube’s Channel.
Char Siu Pork Belly Burnt Ends
Ingredients
- 4 pounds skinless pork belly
Char Siu Pork Belly Marinade
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Chinese 5 spice seasoning
- ½ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 teaspoon red food coloring optional
- 4 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 Tablespoons red miso paste
Rub
- 1 Tablespoon Chinese 5 spice seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub
Instructions
- Freeze and slice. Freeze the pork for 30 minutes then slice it into 2-inch cubes.
- Marinate. In a large non-reactive (plastic or glass) bowl, stir together all of the marinade ingredients until smooth. Add the pork belly cubes to the marinade and thoroughly coat the pork. Cover the bowl, refrigerate, and allow the pork belly to marinate for 12 to 24 hours.
- Prep and season. Remove the pork belly from the marinade (set the marinade aside) and arrange it on a flat roasting rack so the pork belly pieces are spaced evenly. Combine the Sweet Rub and 5 spice seasonings and sprinkle on all sides of the pork belly.
- Preheat. Preheat smoker to 275 degrees F. My favorite wood for this recipe is cherry.
- Smoke. Place the rack of pork belly on the grill grates, close the lid, and smoke until it is the texture of peanut butter when probed. It should be between 195-203 degrees internal temperature when done.
- Make the glaze. While the pork belly burnt ends smoke, make the glaze. Pour the reserved marinade into a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the marinade is the consistency of thick syrup.
- Glaze. Baste each pork belly burnt end with the glaze and continue smoking for another 30 minutes, until the glaze is tacky and set.
- Serve. Remove the smoked pork belly burnt ends from the smoker and serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Third time I’ve made these! On a bed of rice or in a bun with Asian Cole slaw as a sandwich, Delicious!! My wife isnt big pork belly fan but she will eat these because they are well done.
I rarely comment on recipes because I usually modify them so much after I make them the first time according to the instructions, but I will not be changing this one. The first time I made this we had my teenager’s friends and parents over. What I didn’t know is one family had just moved from Guangzhou, north of Hong Kong and I realized I was making them Chinese food by accident. XD Anyway, they loved it. If it’s good enough for them to have thirds I’ll leave this recipe alone.
These are amazing. We made them back for our Superbowl party and they disappeared! They looked a little over cooked, but they were perfect!
We make this all the time. Top fav recipe of all time. Thank you for this!
I have made this a few times now for our weekly pot luck dinner. Always a big hit.
These are amazing. I have and electric smoker and not a pellet grill so I added 1.5oz of cherry wood chunks and cooked per the recipe. Took about 3.5 hours total.