If you’ve ever had a bowl of ramen at a ramen shop you’ll know there are a bunch of toppings that can go on it. What’s your favorite topping? Mine, is the pork and the egg. I’ve experimented with different techniques on how to make a good pork topping. The pork topping is called Chashu pork, it’s like a Japanese barbequed pork.
From my research, chashu can be prepared by rolling the pork belly into a log with butcher’s twine which helps keep the pork moist. I can’t always find pork belly at my local supermarket so I purchase mine at a local meat market, and the pork I purchase there can sometimes be on the smaller side for making a log, so I don’t do that step for my recipe. However, if your pork belly is long enough, you can cut it into smaller pieces or roll it into a log (use a smaller pot or increase the sauce portion so the sauce will almost cover the pork).
Speaking of pork belly, that’s actually my favorite pork cut for chashu. There are other pork cuts that are used for chashu, such as pork shoulder and pork loin. I’ve used pork loin before I found the meat market and it turns out just as good, but not always as moist. So if you can’t get pork belly, you can also make this recipe with other pork parts. Try for a fattier cut, it holds the flavor better.
Before I began using pork belly I used pork loin. Not pork loin chops, but a slightly fatty pork cut, kinda like ribs. I would simmer these a bit longer and on a lower heat than the pork belly because they were a thicker cut. There would always be left over liquid from simmering, which I’d then use as part of the ramen base. The pork would also not be shiny from the sauce either because I didn’t reduce the sauce that far. However, for this recipe I cook down the sauce until it looks shiny on the pork and slides around like a thick syrup. I began using this method because it gives the pork a great flavor and texture, closer to the pork I get a ramen shops.
Chashu served at ramen shops braise their meat for several hours and then marinate the meat in the refrigerator overnight to intensify the flavors. I’m dedicated to making flavorful food from scratch but I do like simple too. This recipe is a shortcut version for those who want a quick and easy chashu ramen topper recipe.
If you have the time to make ramen from scratch check out my tonkotsu ramen recipe I attempted. However if you don’t want to spend hours for chashu, I hope you try this recipe! Let me know what else you come up with to use it for.
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