Thai-style Grilled BBQ Pork

Ingredients:

  • Frozen sticky rice
  • 16 ounces pork loin
  • 5 ounces pork back fat
  • Bamboo skewers
  • 4 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 3 cilantro roots
  • 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1/2 tsp palm sugar (or regular white sugar)
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 3 tbsp black soy sauce
  • 2 tsp vegetable oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1/4 coconut milk, extra for basting

Instructions:
Step One:
For the pork skewers, start by cutting the pork loin into very thin, around 2mm-thick (1/16 inch) slices – you almost want to be able to see through it. Transfer the slices to a large bowl. Next, take your strip of back fat and cut it into slightly thicker slices than you did with the pork loin. Transfer to a small bowl

Step Two:
To make the marinade, add the garlic cloves, coriander roots, coriander seeds and peppercorns to a mortar. Use a pestle to pound the ingredients into a rough paste. Transfer to the pork loin, followed by the palm sugar, fish sauce, Thai black soy sauce or kecap manis, vegetable oil, salt, cornflour and coconut milk. Using clean hands, mix everything together until the palm sugar has dissolved into the marinade and the meat is evenly coated. Set aside for 1 hour to allow all the flavours to make friends with one another

Step Three:
In the meantime, soak your bamboo skewers in water to prevent them from burning on the grill later. Once your pork has marinated, add a piece of pork fat to the skewer, then concertina a couple of slices of pork on. Repeat with another piece of pork fat and two more pork slices. Continue on in this way with the remaining skewers, pork slices and pork fat

Step Four: To cook the skewers, you could use a charcoal grill like I did, or a frying pan, grill plate or a barbecue. Cook the skewers for around 2-3 minutes on one side until you’ve got some nice colour, then flip and baste with some coconut milk. Cook for another 2–3 minutes or until the pork is cooked through and everything is looking nice and golden brown. Serve with the sticky rice