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These smoked Asian pork belly bites are essentially pork belly burnt ends with the most amazing homemade sticky Asian glaze. Smoked and fried to perfection, these pork bites may be your new favorite pellet grill appetizer!
A New Kind of Smoked Pork Belly
If you’ve made our Pork Butt Burnt Ends or Smoked Pork Belly Porchetta, you already know how much we love finding new ways to turn pork belly into something delicious.
This time we went a completely different direction – instead of a classic BBQ-sauced burnt end, we smoked pork belly low and slow, deep-fried it until crispy, and tossed it in a sticky Asian glaze built from soy sauce, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, chili crisp, fish sauce, and oyster sauce.
The result is a smoked and fried Asian pork belly burnt end that’s part BBQ, part takeout, and 100% a bite you’ll want to make again. The smoker gives the pork belly that low-and-slow tenderness and smoke ring you expect from real barbecue, the fryer adds a crispy, crunchy exterior you just can’t get on the grill alone, and the glaze ties it all together with a sweet, salty, garlicky finish.
Think of it as a smoked Asian pork belly bite that splits the difference between a burnt end and General Tso’s – in the best way.
We’re going to walk you through exactly how we made these, plus a couple of things we’d tweak next time, so you can skip our learning curve and get straight to the good bites.
Why You Should Make Smoked Pork Belly Bites This Way
Two words – the sauce!
The sticky Asian glaze is the perfect compliment to the rich, fatty pork bites. And the sauce itself will have you coming back for a second (and third!) portion. The sauce is SO good that you’ll find yourself trying to figure out other recipes to use it with.
In fact, the first time we made this sticky-sweet Asian sauce was for pork ribs, and my wife loved it so much that we immediately started brainstorming other smoked meats that would pair perfectly with the sauce.
Pork Belly Burnt Ends vs Pork Belly Bites
Technically, this recipe is NOT for burnt ends. Traditional burnt ends are smoked, then cubed and tossed with sauce, and put back on the smoker for the sauce to get tacky and sticky. If you want a pork belly burnt ends recipe, try this one – Smoked Pork Belly Burnt Ends with Bourbon Citrus Glaze.
These “pork belly bites” are cooked the same way as burnt ends for the initial smoking step, but after cubing the pork, it gets deep fried for the exterior to get crispy. Then the bites are tossed with sauce.
So they’re very similar, but we’re calling these “bites” to avoid confusion.
Ingredients
For the pork belly:
- 5-6 lb pork belly – Look for a good ratio of meat to fat. We kept the skin on for this cook, but see our note below on why we’d remove it next time.
- Texas-style rub – This is the “big four” in traditional Texas barbecue: kosher salt, coarse black pepper, seasoned salt, and garlic powder. You can get our Texas style rub recipe here.
For the sticky Asian glaze:
- soy sauce – The salty, savory backbone of the sauce.
- brown sugar – Provides the sweetness and helps the glaze caramelize and get sticky.
- Thai sweet chili sauce – Adds sweetness plus a little tang and a mild kick.
- chili crisp – Our favorite ingredient in this whole sauce. It brings texture, a little heat, and a toasty, garlicky crunch. We prefer the Chef Troy’s brand or the Mr. Bing brand.
- fish sauce – A small amount goes a long way here, adding depth and umami without making the sauce taste “fishy.”
- oyster sauce – Adds body and a rich, savory sweetness that helps the glaze cling to the crispy pork.
Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Remove the skin from the pork belly.
We’re being upfront: we did not do this on our cook, and it’s the one change we’d absolutely make next time. With the skin left on, some bites came out with a great crispy bite, while others were very difficult to bite through or turned a little gummy underneath the skin.
We initially thought that the skin would crisp up nicely after smoking and frying. However, after making skinless pork belly for other smoker recipes, we recommend removing the skin before starting this recipe. Skin-on is good for some applications, like smoked pork belly that is finished at a higher temperature and then very thinly sliced for serving. But you definitely want skinless for this.
2. Cut the pork belly into 1-inch strips.
We cut the belly into strips rather than cubing it right away. Cutting it into smaller cubes before smoking exposes more surface area to heat and smoke, which can dry the meat out faster. Keeping it in strips through the smoke helps the pork belly hold onto more of its natural fat and moisture, so you get a juicier bite once it’s fried.
3. Season all sides lightly with a Texas-style rub.
When you’re seasoning something with this much surface area – strips instead of a single slab – it’s easy to over-season. A slab of pork ribs naturally protects some surfaces from getting hit with rub, but with strips, every side is exposed. Go lighter than you think you need to on all sides.
4. Smoke at 275°F until the internal temperature reaches 185-190°F.
Low and slow is what breaks down all that connective tissue and fat in the pork belly, so it comes out tender instead of tough and chewy. Pulling it in the 185-190°F range gets you past that translucent, jiggly-fat stage and into that melt-in-your-mouth burnt-ends territory, while still leaving enough structural integrity in the meat to hold together as cubes once it hits the fryer.
5. Remove from the smoker, cool slightly, and cut into 1-inch cubes.
Now that all that smoking time has locked in flavor and rendered the fat, it’s time to cube it up. Letting it cool just slightly before cutting makes it easier to get clean cubes instead of the pork belly falling apart on you.
6. Make the glaze.
Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, chili crisp, fish sauce, and oyster sauce in a medium skillet over medium heat. Let it simmer and reduce until it thickens up and coats the back of a spoon. You want it glossy and slightly tacky, not thin and watery – that’s what’s going to give you that sticky glaze rather than a sauce that just runs right off the pork.
7. Deep fry the pork belly cubes.
Heat your oil to 350°F and fry the cubes for about 3-4 minutes, until the exterior is golden and crispy. This step is really what sets these apart from a traditional smoked burnt end – the fryer gives you a crispy exterior that holds up beautifully against the sticky glaze, instead of getting soft and soggy the way a sauced-and-re-smoked burnt end can.
8. Toss with the glaze and serve.
Transfer the fried pork belly cubes straight to a large mixing bowl and toss with the warm glaze until every piece is coated. Serve them immediately while they’re hot and the glaze is still sticky and glossy.
A Few Notes from Our Cook
- Skin on vs. skin off: As mentioned above, this is the biggest change we’d make. Leaving the skin on gave us inconsistent texture – some pieces were perfectly crispy, others were a little tough to bite through. Removing the skin should give you a more consistent result across every piece.
- Two ways to finish these: You can fry the pork belly, toss it in the glaze, and throw it back on the grill for a few minutes to help the glaze tack up further. We opted to keep the belly on the smoker as long as possible instead, then reduced the glaze in a skillet and tossed everything together off the smoker. Both methods work – it really comes down to how much extra time and smoke flavor you want to build in.
- That sauce works on more than just pork belly: The sticky Asian glaze is fantastic on ribs, too, so don’t feel limited to just this cut if you fall in love with the sauce.
- You can skip the fry: If you want to skip the frying step, then smoke the cubed pork belly until it reaches an internal temperature of about 190-195°F. Then, toss with the Asian-style sauce in a disposable foil pan, and return to the smoker for another 15-30 minutes for the sauce to tack up, similar to pork belly burnt ends.
These smoked and fried Asian pork belly burnt ends are a little more hands-on than a traditional burnt end, but the payoff – smoky, crispy, sticky, sweet, and salty all in one bite – is absolutely worth it.
If you’re a fan of pork belly, be sure to check out more of our recipes, like our Pork Belly Porchetta and Smoked Pork Belly that we cooked like ribs.
Smoked and Fried Asian Pork Belly Bites
Ingredients
- 5-6 lb pork belly, skinless
- 1 tablespoon coarse black pepper
- ½ tablespoon kosher salt
- ½ tablespoon garlic powder
- ½ tablespoon Lawry’s seasoned salt
- 8 cups vegetable oil, for frying
For the Asian Glaze:
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup Thai sweet chili sauce
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili crisp, like Mr. Bing or Chef Troy's brand
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
Instructions
- Prep the grill: Preheat your pellet grill or smoker to 275℉ with your choice of wood or pellets.
- Prep and season the pork belly: Cut the pork belly into 1-inch wide strips. In a small bowl, mix together the salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and seasoned salt. Season the strips lightly on all sides with the mixture. *Be sure to not over-season, since cutting the pork into strips exposes more surface area than a slab.
- Smoke the pork belly: Preheat your pellet grill to 250°F. Smoke the pork belly strips until they reach an internal temperature of 185-190°F.
- Rest and cube: Remove the pork belly from the smoker and let it cool slightly. Cut into 1-inch cubes.
- Heat the frying oil: While the pork is cooling, heat 8 cups vegetable oil, for frying in a deep fryer or heavy pot to 350°F.
- Make the glaze: In a skillet over medium heat, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, Thai sweet chili sauce, chili crisp, oyster sauce, and fish sauce. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and thickened to a glossy, sticky glaze.
- Fry the pork belly: Deep fry the pork belly cubes in batches until golden and crispy, about 3-4 minutes per batch.
- Toss and serve: Transfer the fried pork belly cubes to a large mixing bowl. Pour the warm glaze over top and toss until every piece is coated. Serve immediately while hot and sticky.
Notes
- About the sauce: We absolutely LOVE this Asian-style sauce. The sticky Asian glaze is fantastic on ribs, too, so don’t feel limited to just this cut if you fall in love with the sauce.
- You can skip the fry: If you want to skip the frying step, then smoke the cubed pork belly until it reaches an internal temperature of about 190-195°F. Then, toss with the Asian-style sauce in a disposable foil pan, and return to the smoker for another 15-30 minutes for the sauce to tack up, similar to pork belly burnt ends. If you skip frying, then don’t reduce the glaze as much in the skillet, because it will thicken on the smoker.
