Thai Grilled Pork Skewers with Ginger-Scallion Sauce

About This Recipe

Moo ping, the grilled pork skewers sold at Thai breakfast stalls, get their signature sweetness from a marinade of coconut milk, palm sugar, and soy sauce, which caramelizes into sticky, charred edges on the grill. Thin slices of pork shoulder, rather than cubes, are traditional — they cook fast and pick up more surface char relative to their size. A ginger-scallion sauce isn't the classic dip for moo ping (that's usually a sweet chili sauce or a simple sticky rice side), but the combination of hot oil poured over raw ginger and scallion, a technique borrowed from Chinese-Thai kitchens, adds a fresh, pungent counterpoint that cuts through the richness of the pork. The skewers need real heat — a hot charcoal or gas grill, or a screaming-hot grill pan — so the sugar in the marinade caramelizes into char rather than just steaming the meat gray. Basting once with the reserved marinade halfway through grilling builds a second layer of glaze.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 700 gpork shoulder, thinly sliced
• 120 mlcoconut milk
• 3 tbsppalm sugar
• 2 tbspsoy sauce
• 1 tbspoyster sauce
• 1 tbspcilantro root, minced
• 3 clovegarlic, minced
• 1 tspwhite pepper
• 1 piecefresh ginger (5cm), julienned finely
• 4 stalkscallions, julienned
• 3 tbspvegetable oil
• 1 tspsoy sauce, for sauce
• 12 piecebamboo skewers, soaked 30 minutes

Instructions

1. 1

   Marinate the pork

   Combine coconut milk, palm sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, cilantro root, garlic, and white pepper. Toss with pork slices, cover, and marinate at least 2 hours or overnight.

2. 2

   Thread the skewers

   Thread marinated pork slices onto soaked skewers, weaving through each piece so it lies flat.

3. 3

   Heat the grill

   Heat a grill or grill pan to high. Oil the grates lightly.

4. 4

   Grill the skewers

   Grill skewers 3-4 minutes per side, basting once with leftover marinade, until charred at the edges and cooked through.

5. 5

   Make the ginger-scallion sauce

   Pile ginger and scallion in a heatproof bowl with a pinch of salt and the soy sauce. Heat oil until just smoking and pour over the aromatics; it should sizzle loudly.

6. 6

   Serve

   Serve skewers hot with the ginger-scallion sauce alongside for dipping.

Variations

• •

  Use chicken thigh instead of pork for a lighter version of the same marinade.

• •

  Serve with sticky rice and a Thai sweet chili sauce for the more traditional moo ping plate.

• •

  Add a splash of rice vinegar to the ginger-scallion sauce for extra brightness.

Storage

Refrigerate cooked skewers up to 3 days; reheat in a hot pan or under the broiler for a couple minutes per side to bring back some char.

Frequently Asked Questions