Pork Shoulder Chashu

This is maybe the most revered recipe I’ve made. I don’t make it often because it requires planning (and I’ve almost completely stopped making recipes with meat), but it is well-loved.

I really just follow Sho’s recipe here: https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2019/04/sous-vide-pork-shoulder-chashu-recipe.html.

Ingredients

• 1/2 ounce (14g) kosher salt (see note)
• 1/2 ounce (14g) granulated sugar (see note)
• 1 pork shoulder roast (about 2 pounds; 900g)
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) mirin

Process

1. Dry brine pork shoulder roast with salt and sugar. Seal in vacuum sealer and place in refrigerator for 24 hours.
2. Prepare sous vide water bath for 145 F
3. Remove shoulder from bag, discard liquid, and blot dry. Tie roast into nice cylinder with kitchen twine (this makes the resulting portions nice and circular). Return roast to bag with mirin and soy sauce and seal again.
4. Cook roast in water bath for 20 hours.
5. Remove from water bath and allow to chill if you have the time.
6. Employ some method to get a good crust.
   • Under a broiler, rotating ocassionally
   • Over a grill
   • Blowtorch?
   • You could probably even use a blazing hot cast iron pan
7. To serve, slice the log radially