The classic wellington gets an Asian twist
Whether it’s for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years or potluck, this Char Siu Wellington will stand out at the dinner table.
Imagine classic beef wellington but simplified – it’s made in the air fryer and yes, even the char siu is made in the air fryer!
This is one of those recipes that look far more impressive than the effort it takes to make.
But flavour wise it’s definitely up up there. I’d dare say I like it more than the beef wellington, and if your guests are Asian, they will love the familiar flavours of the Char Siu!
Homemade air fryer char siu
This recipe includes making char siu from scratch in the air fryer. But don’t worry – it’s actually super simple to make char siu!
If you’re tight on time, you can always use store bought char siu. But it might turn out dryer than homemade char siu.
10min Air Fryer Char Siu
In case you don’t know what char siu is, it’s a very popular Chinese-style BBQ pork. It’s sweet, juicy and slightly charred on the edges. One of my favourite meats to get at my local Chinese siu lap shop.
In this recipe, you can make air fried char siu in just 10mins of cooking time! However, if you’re eating the char siu as is without the pastry, or if your cut of pork scotch fillet is on the thicker side, definitely cook it for longer in the air fryer until it’s fully cooked.
Why char siu?
Char siu works perfectly with puff pastry and shiitake mushrooms. The reason? It’s sweet and juicy!
It reminds me of the char siu pastry that you get at yum cha.
Pork scotch fillet
I’m using pork scotch fillet in this recipe because it’s easily accessible in Australian supermarkets. It’s basically the pork shoulder meat.
If you can’t find pork scotch fillet in your supermarket, get pork shoulder meat. Pork neck meat also works really well as it’s fatty and juicy.
Don't miss this important step!
In this recipe, the most important part is to brush the marinated pork with honey every 2 minutes.
This helps with getting that beautiful colour and slight char on the sides, as well as the sweet flavour that we all love from char siu.
Puff pastry
To make things simple, I’ve used store bought frozen puff pastry for this recipe.
You only need 1 sheet of puff pastry to completely cover 1 pork scotch fillet.
The key is to let the pastry defrost at room temp for about 5mins before working with it so it’s softer to work with.
Another tip is making sure the pork is fully cooled down before placing it on the pastry to prevent the pastry from warming up too much.
You have to work really quickly with the puff pastry, because it’s full of – you guessed it – butter and is easy to melt!
The umami sauce!
This is my special umami sauce that I love to use for steaks, and it worked perfectly for this char siu wellington too!
It’s a combination of red wine, oyster sauce, honey and balsamic glaze. It’s savoury, sweet and slightly tangy – perfect to cut through the greasiness.
Simmer the sauce on medium heat for a few minutes until it’s thickened and glossy! You won’t need to use cornstarch slurry for this sauce.
Air Fryer Char Siu Wellington
Ingredients
Method
- In a bowl, combine the pork scotch fillet, char siu sauce, white pepper, and five-spice powder.
- Mix well to coat evenly.
- Cover and marinate overnight. for best flavour, or at least 3 hours if short on time.
- Finely chop the soaked shiitake mushrooms.
- Heat oil in a pan over medium-low heat and sauté the mushrooms for about 3 minutes, until fragrant and any excess moisture has evaporated.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
- Preheat the air fryer to 200°C.
- Place the marinated pork into the air fryer and cook for 2 minutes.
- Remove and brush with 1 tbsp honey, then return to the air fryer.
- Repeat the honey-brushing step 5 times, cooking for a total of 10 minutes.
- The pork should be lightly charred on the edges. If not, air fry for an additional 2 minutes.
- Remove and allow to cool completely.
- Preheat the air fryer to 200°C.
- Remove the puff pastry from the freezer and let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes to soften slightly.
- Place the cooled char siu on one side of the pastry.
- Evenly layer the shiitake mushroom filling over the pork.
- Fold the pastry over to enclose the filling and pinch the edges firmly to seal.
- Trim into an oval shape if desired.
- Brush the pastry generously with egg wash.
- Air fry at 200°C for 8 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed and golden brown.
- Add all sauce ingredients to a saucepan.
- Simmer over medium heat for 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened and glossy.
- Remove from heat.
- Slice the char siu wellington in half.
- Plate and drizzle with the red wine oyster sauce.
- Serve immediately and enjoy.
