Chashu is a dish made of fattier cuts of pork that are braised over low heat for a very long time. The low, slow cooking, renders out the fat while turning the tough collagen in the meat into gelatin, which keeps the meat moist while making it meltingly tender.
If you're thinking the name sounds an awful lot like the Chinese barbecued pork dish Char Siu, you'd be right, because at some point in the past, they were one and the same. Chashu is often served atop another dish that also originated in China: ramen. Like its noodle-y brethren, it's evolved over the past century to the point where it bears little resemblance to the original dish it was based on.
In the hyper-competitive world of ramen in Japan, each shop jealously guards its secret Chashu formula. Revealing these secrets is the kind of offense that will have a dozen masked men in black ninja suits at your door to make you "disappear" in the middle of the night.🥷🏻
Such is my addiction to this luscious dish that I've set aside all concerns about personal safety to recreate Santouka Ramen's famed "toroniku" Chashu, which can best be described as savory butter with bits of tender pork suspended inside. It literally melts into a pool of flavor on your tongue, and easily makes the list of things I'd want to have in my last meal.
The trick is to use pork cheek instead of the usual pork shoulder or belly that most people use for Chashu. If you've never tried it before, pork cheek is porcine perfection, taking the best qualities of a tasty cut, like shoulder, and marbling in a lattice of fat between the pink strands meat. When braised, the pieces of meat are almost imperceptibly suspended in a mesh of fat that instantly liquefies when it enters your warm mouth. Pork cheeks vary in size; these were about a half pound each.
For the braising liquid, I used a combination of soy sauce and miso. It's not a particularly orthodox approach to Chashu making, but I'm pretty sure it's what Santouka does. To bring my version full circle to its Chinese roots, I've also added garlic, ginger, and white pepper, which give the meat some character without overwhelming its porky goodness.
I serve this over my home-made tonkotsu ramen, but it's also great on top of rice, or in fried rice; I've even been know to add it to pastas or a Banh Mi or two.
📖 Recipe
Units
Ingredients
Instructions
- Put all the ingredients in a pot large enough to accommodate the pork in one layer but small enough so the liquid more or less covers the pork. Partially cover with a lid and simmer over medium low heat for one hour, or until a fork easily passes through the meat. Allow the pork to cool in the braising liquid then remove the meat from the liquid. Wrap in plastic and chill in the refrigerator (this makes it easier to slice).
- Slice the Chashu hinly against the grain and serve on top of ramen (the heat from the soup should warm it up). This is also great sliced a little thicker and warmed up on top of a bowl of rice with a little of the braising liquid drizzled on top.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi ATB, I love Santouka's chashu, but I'm not a huge fan of the ramen itself. You can check out my tonkotsu ramen recipe for a richer soup that's closer to Ippudo's than Santouka's. As for the toroniku, yep, I actually used kurobuta (berkshire pork) cheek. Mitsuwa stocks it from time to time (presumably to supply Santouka (which has branches in their stores).
ATB says
Hi Marc,
Tks you for your sharing recipes. Actually, I'm crazy with Hokkaido Santouka Ramen. Could you tell me how to cook Spicy miso ramen that similar Santouka's flavor ? One more, Do you think Santouka uses pork cheek from Kurobuta ? Tks you for you help.
Foodlover says
Yes, I figured it should be Berkshire pork. Thanks for confirming.
I will give this another trial and let you know my result!
Marc Matsumoto says
Sounds like that may have been a problem. It's definitely better to do it in one layer. If the meat isn't soaking in the liquid it will not take on color, and if there was too much pork, it would have released too much liquid watering down the cooking liquid. As for the pork cheeks, these are from kurobuta (berkshire pork) it's a heritage breed known for having more fat than the commercial pork sold in grocery stores these days. I hope that helps.
Foodlover says
Hi Marc, thanks for replying. I think I know what went wrong now. Because of the large quantity of meat I had to process I didn't do it in one even layer. So the cheeks turned brown throughout, no crusting. So I assume if you do it correctly, the liquid will be almost evaporated after the 1 hour gently simmer and that would also explain why the browning is more pronounced on 1 side.
Secondly, the pork cheeks I can get here in Belgium are no where as nice and white marbled as you show. I guess those are harder to come by. Am I right?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Foodlover, nope I didn't pan fry it first, the cheeks go straight into the broth. The brown color comes from the soy sauce and miso in the sauce. Can you describe what went wrong in a little more detail?
Foodlover says
Hmmm, I am really puzzled: I tried your recipe but the result was not even close of what you show in the second picture. I suspect you pan fry the cheeks first to get that nice thin brown colored crust?
jeeplibby02 says
Hi Marc,
First time here. I live in a town where the only good tonkotsu ramen comes from a restaurant that charges $16 a bowl, and is a bit hard to get to on those snowy days when all I want to eat is a big steamy bowl of porky-noodley goodness, but don't want to drive to get it. So, thanks for making it possible for me to try a homemade version. I was able to find find pork jowl at a Korean market nearby, but it is already sliced into fairly thin strips (approx. half the width of a slice of bacon). How should I adjust this recipe to account for that? Thanks in advance.
Libby
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Kirstine, Miso is a paste made from fermented soybeans that comes in a bunch of different varieties (black, red, white, yellow, country-style, etc). I usually use yellow or red miso for this (yellow miso is often called white miso in the US, but it's different from the white miso in Japan). If you're based in the US you can order Japanese ingredients online through Marukai or Mitsuwa.
kirstine says
marc, when you say miso here, is it miso paste? where can I find it? I'm new to cooking world, hence there's a lot of ingredients that I'm not familiar with, plus I live in small city with no china town available, so I have to find them through ebay or amazon....
Marilia says
I dont have any miso - hmm wonder if I could use Chou Hou paste . . . I am going to try it!
Ari says
Aha! That's what I thought, but I had to make sure. I absolutely can't wait to make this and the pork ramen. Thanks so much. 🙂
Marc Matsumoto says
It's part of the face:-)
Ari says
I hate to sound dumb here but I just can't figure out what kind of cheek you're referring to. D: like the rump or the face?
DB says
Love this recipe! Delicious. I have found pork cheeks (for you northern Californians) not only at Mitsuw but at Han Kook, the Korean Market in Santa Clara. Asked for it unsliced, they have it in back. 🙂
Marc Matsumoto says
Yep the water quantity is right, but you probably used a bigger pot than I did. You can just double the amount of all the ingredients (except the pork) so that it's covered it liquid, or just use a smaller pot.
Alan says
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I will be trying it tomorrow but just a question, is the water 3/4 cup? It seems a bit too little to cover my pork belly. Thanks
lisa says
thank you Marc.
Marc Matsumoto says
Yep any kind should work. White miso will get you a lighter flavor and lighter color, red miso will get you a more intense flavor and darker color.
lisa says
could i use any type of miso?
lisa says
could i use any type of miso?
Mhagenplacer3 says
This website is A++mazing! I remember learning to cook by watching food network and home but never making any of the recipes. The trick for me was to remember the combinations that paired well together and synthesize meal ideas from that. I'm so thrilled to find a solid Japanese/Chinese blog that will help me master this amazing cuisine! Thanks so much for your wonderful website Marc! Have a good day!!
Yogicfoodie says
Hi Marc,
Oh my, oh my, OH MY~~!!! I've made cha-shu many a times, but never with miso. It's simmering away on my stove at this moment and my two toddlers are begging more for the broth!!!I am so throughly enjoying your site! Miso brings such depth and dimension to my chashu. Thank you again keep the post coming.
Marc Matsumoto says
Yep, pork cheek has a thick layer of fat, but underneath is a thin piece of well marbled meat. You'll probably want to get most of the fat trimmed off.
MizzBee13 says
Hello, first off I want to say how much I enjoy your website!! I plan on cooking a lot from your recipes! Also, I have a question to the pork cheek....is it the cheek from the face of the cheek from the rump?? I went here to my local carniceria and they will try to order it for me but they had quite a skeptical look on their faces stating that pork cheek is nothing but fat with no meat in between strands like your picture is showing. So, I thought, there is another type of cheek on the pig.......and I gotta ask :o))
Thank you very much for clarification!! Many blessings!
Thomas Abraham says
i'm going to give this a go!!
Marilia says
i'm going to give this a go!!
Tob says
Thanks Marc - this came out deliciously with the ramen recipe.
junyang chen says
ok thanks (: cooking another batch right now. finally got some pork cheeks from the local butcher
Marc Matsumoto says
The sauce will reduce a little while simmering. You can move the meat around and flip it over to ensure it absorbs the flavors evenly, if it gets so dried out you're worried it will burn you can add water.
junyang chen says
I tried this yesterday, the "sauce" dries out until it no longer covers the meat. Do I add more water or let it be? Thanks (: from Singapore
Marc Matsumoto says
It's not the main flavoring so it really doesn't matter, use whatever you have.
Tob says
What kind of miso (red/brown/white/?) do you use?
Tracy says
Oh, man-this was sublime! I used to live a few miles from Santouka in Illinois and got addicted to their spicy miso ramen. Since moving to Arizona ten years ago I've not been able to find much that even comes close so I've tried to make my own. The chasu was the last piece of the puzzle and this is just spot on!
Marilia says
i had this with my friend and her mom at this japenese resturaunt called Kobe. and the cook acually cooked and fried it and all that mess in front of us! so cool!
Rx4foodies says
This was just delicious. I made this tonight as a topping for our won ton soup. Absolutely amazing. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Emorie33 says
So you have revealed the famed Santouka chasu recipe.......any luck with the shio ramen of the same brand???haha
Valerie says
This was always my favorite dish at shogatsu! I remember my grandmother trying to chase us kids out of the kitchen when we'd come around to steal it before she had put it out on the table! I don't know now what cut of meat she used to use to make this but I'm going to have to experiment because now I'm seriously craving... Thanks for the recipe!
Valerie says
This was always my favorite dish at shogatsu! I remember my grandmother trying to chase us kids out of the kitchen when we'd come around to steal it before she had put it out on the table! I don't know now what cut of meat she used to use to make this but I'm going to have to experiment because now I'm seriously craving... Thanks for the recipe!
John (cho-tabetai) says
I have not been so suceessful making cha-shu. I'll give this recipe a go
John (cho-tabetai) says
I have not been so suceessful making cha-shu. I'll give this recipe a go
kathy says
I think I'm having Japanese dish tomorrow. lol! nice photos. Your Chashu looks delish! That ramen is perfect. I just wanna try this. The sooner the better. Thanks for this post!
kathy says
I think I'm having Japanese dish tomorrow. lol! nice photos. Your Chashu looks delish! That ramen is perfect. I just wanna try this. The sooner the better. Thanks for this post!
wasabi prime says
Beautiful post. And it makes me so hungry looking at all the lovely ingredients! The marbling on the cheeks is just amazing.
wasabi prime says
Beautiful post. And it makes me so hungry looking at all the lovely ingredients! The marbling on the cheeks is just amazing.
Ralph says
Cooked it and followed directions to the t.....excellent!! Keep it coming Marc! Although I ate everything, I would probably trim some fat off next time...I'm feeling numb on my left side right now. Also, the sauce is addicting! Thanks Marc!!
Ralph says
Cooked it and followed directions to the t.....excellent!! Keep it coming Marc! Although I ate everything, I would probably trim some fat off next time...I'm feeling numb on my left side right now. Also, the sauce is addicting! Thanks Marc!!
Syrie says
Thank you, thank you for sharing this recipe. Now I just have to find some pork cheeks. I've never seen them before. The marbling is so beautiful.
Syrie says
Thank you, thank you for sharing this recipe. Now I just have to find some pork cheeks. I've never seen them before. The marbling is so beautiful.
pigpigscorner says
omg the meat looks AMAZING! I'm bookmarking this. Hope I can get some cheeks!