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sliced Ba kwa
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Homemade Ba Kwa

This Homemade Ba Kwa is yummy, healthy (cause I know exactly what goes in it!) and most importantly, simple to do. Once you know the method, you can change up the seasoning anyway you like ... more umami, less sweetness, more chow tar-ness etc. - You name it, Sky’s the limit!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Resting Time4 hours
Total Time5 hours
Servings: 800 g
Author: Kai

Ingredients

PORK BA KWA

  • 500 g belly pork (五花肉 - cubed and minced to your preferred texture)
  • 6 tbsp dark brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp Chinese Hua Tiao wine (花雕酒)
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tbsp light soya sauce

Glaze for BBQ (Pork Ba Kwa)

  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp water

SPICY MUTTON BA KWA

  • 800 g mutton shabu slices
  • 3 tbsp raw sugar
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 2 tbsp soya sauce
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp 5 spice powder
  • 2 tbsp LaoGanMa (老干妈 black bean chilli sauce)
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce

Glaze for BBQ (Mutton Ba Kwa)

  • 1 tbsp LaoGanMa (老干妈 black bean chilli sauce)
  • 1/2 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp water

CHICKEN BA KWA

  • 800 g chicken shabu slices
  • 9 tbsp raw sugar
  • 4 1/2 tbsp honey
  • 1 tbsp miso paste
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 1/2 tbsp soya sauce
  • 1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp mirin
  • 1 tsp 5 spice powder
  • 1 tsp Chin Kiang black vinegar

Glaze for BBQ (Chicken Ba Kwa)

  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tbsp honey

Instructions

Marinate

  • Marinate the meat and let rest for at least 4 hours or overnight.
  • For minced Ba Kwa, grind the marinated meat in the food processor to your preferred texture, until the mince and marinade form a nicely blended sticky paste.
  • Once the meat is rested, it’s ready for rolling out. If there is any residual liquid after resting, discard before rolling out.

Making Ba Kwa sheets

  • Cut a piece of parchment paper double the size of the baking tray and fold it into half.
  • Place the meat between the 2 halves of parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, roll out the meat evenly into Ba Kwa sheets (1.5 - 3 mm thickness depending on your preference) to ~ the size of the baking tray.
  • As sliced meat tends to be more chunky, if necessary, use the rolling pin to gently hammer and flatten out the meat in the parchment before rolling out evenly. (Watch the recipe tutorials @1.48min and @2.22min to see how it’s done)
  • Place hands on the parchment paper to gauge the thickness of the Ba Kwa sheets and use fingers or the rolling pin to smoothen out any further unevenness.
  • Pre-heat the oven to 160C. Once the Ba Kwa sheets are nicely rolled out, cut away the excess parchment and bake @160C at the lowest rack for 20 minutes to dry out the Ba Kwa.
  • Once baked, cut the Ba Kwa sheets into squares and it’s ready to be grilled. If there is any excess liquid after baking, wipe it away with a kitchen towel.

BBQ

  • Prepare the glaze. Switch up the oven to between 200 - 220C, glaze the Ba Kwa exuberantly and grill at the top rack for ~ 5 - 10 minutes. Flip constantly and glaze each side of the Ba Kwa generously until the desired char is achieved.
  • Once the Ba Kwa is nicely grilled, remove from oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes. When it is slightly cooled, the freshly bbq-ed Ba Kwa is ready to eat. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

If you like this recipe tutorial and like to see more, subscribe to my YouTube channel here! Thank you 😊
 
Tip#1 - Type of meat
Minced or sliced? Well, actually both work.
I have made this recipe using pork, chicken and mutton. The mutton was the most fatty, pork was 20% fat, whereas chicken was completely lean. Beef or even fish would work too.
The advantage of using mince is that one can choose the choice fresh cut of meat (more fatty or more lean etc.) and adjust the level of mince in the food processor as preferred. Ba Kwa made from mince also has a softer chew and can be rolled out more finely for those who like thin Ba Kwa
I used frozen chicken and mutton shabu slices (easily available in most supermarkets) to make the Sliced Meat Ba Kwa. Clearly, I could not choose a preferred fresh cut of meat as it would be quite impossible to shabu slice them at home.
Notwithstanding, Sliced Meat Ba Kwa tend to be thicker slices as the meat fibre remains quite intact and IMHO has a more superior chew and texture, which adds to the overall flavour.
Whatever the preference, both mince and sliced meat can be made into equally mouthwatering and delicious Ba Kwa.
 
Tip#2 - Seasoning
The beauty of Homemade Ba Kwa is you can season up anyway you want.
I have a more salty palate so I switched down the sweet and upped the umami. But Hubs and the kids like it sweet, so I upped the 🍯  for my honeys 😄  in a different batch.
Once seasoned, leave for at least 4 hours or overnight so that the flavour of the meat can be intensified.This household likes mutton and hence I also made a spicy mutton version, using my fave LaoGanMa ((老干妈) black bean chilli. It turned out to be my favourite. The fat and spiciness of the mutton Ba Kwa was divine - perfectly succulent and tasty!
Be bold and experiment with the type of meat and seasoning until you find the Ba Kwa taste you absolutely love. Like I said, once you know the method, Sky’s the Limit 😊
 
Tip#3 - Make Ahead
The Ba Kwa sheets can be baked and made ahead before the actual bbq-ing. I usually bake and dry out the Ba Kwa sheets first. Once cut into the desired squares, they store well airtight and chilled for 7-10 days. As desired, glaze generously and grill to the level of char-ness & enjoy fresh BBQ-ed Ba Kwa any time.
 
Tip#4 - Storage
For freshly bbq-ed Ba Kwa, it is best to consume within 7 days. The remaining Ba Kwa can be kept chilled in the fridge for ~3-4 weeks. To consume, I always like to put the Ba Kwa in a hot oven for a couple of minutes. The heat melts the lard in the meat and the Ba Kwa becomes amazingly moist again and so good.
Watch my Sliced Ba Kwa recipe tutorial below!