Once you've tried Mu Ping, you'll never look at pork the same way
Every evening, as the sun begins to set on Northern Thailand, street food vendors emerge and take their places along the road.
Makeshift grills send plumes of smoke heavenward, summoning the cool night with a modern liturgy of fire, meat, lime and chilis—anointing anyone who passes through with the fruits of their fragrant offerings.
That intoxicatingly fragrant smoke draws the faithful to its source. Glossy drops of fat drip slowly onto hot mangrove wood charcoal, creating a rhythmic psalm that illustrates the necessity to burn away negative qualities within ourselves.
The savory perfume of meat blessed by fire rises into the air and dissolves, a subtle reminder of the transient nature of our own ephemeral existence. Salvation by street meat starts with a fistful of skewers, and sweet, smoky sanctification comes through eating your weight in mu ping.
You can find the mu ping gospel being shared in every market and on every street corner across most of Thailand, but for me, mu ping Mecca will always be Siri Wattana Market in Chiang Mai. Thai food is intensely regional, and Northern Thailand in particular has a distinctive mix of fresh, spicy, meaty, salty, sour, sweet, and herby. But even here, when it comes to mu ping, very few stray from orthodoxy.
Mu ping simply means “grilled pork” in Thai, but these humble looking skewers of pork have been baptized in a sweet, salty, herby marinade, basted with coconut milk, grilled over mangrove wood charcoal, and served with a dried chili dipping sauce called jaew.
When done right, the limbic system in your brain is activated and enlightenment seems to get closer with each bite.
If you want to make mu ping at home, be sure to use cuts of pork that have a good mix of meat and fat—such as pork butt, neck, or shoulder. Lean cuts and pork belly make chewy mu ping, which is a sin.
Mu ping masters preach the importance of how the pork is threaded onto the skewer. Bite-sized pieces, cut across the grain should be threaded onto the skewers kabob-style. Push the pieces tightly together so they form a compact mass and stay moist when cooked.
Grill the skewers over medium-hot coals using the highest quality wood charcoal you can get (Thais prefer mangrove wood charcoal).
Brush coconut milk on the skewers as they cook to help the pork stay moist and increase caramelization, but as soon as the pork starts to char, stop brushing so your finished skewers will crisp up and get a final anointing of fragrant smokiness from the grill.
So go therefore, with warm sticky rice and som tam; spread the message of mu ping love to all nations and to all people.
Mu Ping
- 4 lbs pork shoulder, cut against the grain into ¼- to ½-inch thick, bite-sized rectangles
- 3 Tbsp finely-chopped cilantro root
- 8 large garlic cloves 1 Tbsp white peppercorns
- 4 oz palm sugar, grated finely or melted in the microwave
- 3 Tbsp fish sauce
- 2 Tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 cup coconut milk to brush the pork as it cooks
- Skewers, soaked for 2-3 hours
Pound the cilantro roots, garlic, and peppercorns together.
Mix the pork, paste, and seasonings together, making sure the pork is completely coated, cover, and let marinate in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours (overnight is even better).
Thread the pork onto the skewers (see above) and grill over medium coals until just cooked and slightly charred. Brush coconut milk on the pork occasionally, but stop brushing a few minutes before removing them from the grill (you don’t want the meat to be wet with coconut milk at the end).
Serve warm with sticky rice and Jaew dipping sauce.
Jaew dipping sauce
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
- 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon galangal powder
- 1/3 cup fish sauce
- 2 Tbsp lime juice
- 2 tsp grated palm sugar
- 1 Tbsp toasted rice powder* (khao khua)
- 1 Tbsp red pepper flakes (coarsely ground)
Mix everything together in a bowl.
The sauce should be sour and salty, but adjust to taste with fish sauce (adds salt), lime juice (adds sour), or sugar (adds sweet).
*Rice powder (khao khua): toast 2 Tbsp of raw sticky rice in a skillet over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, making sure the grains are evenly toasted. Once the rice has cooled, grind to a powder in a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder.
Mike McJunkin is a native Chattanoogan currently living abroad who has trained chefs, owned and operated restaurants. Join him on Facebook at facebook.com/SushiAndBiscuits