Nowadays, products with a softer texture, lighter color, and less sugar are preferred.

Bak kwa   is the   Hokkien dialect   pronunciation of   Rou gan   ( 肉干 ), a   Chinese   salty-sweet   dried meat   product similar to   bacon lip balm jerky . It originated from the   Fujian  province in China where it is considered a Hokkien delicacy.  Bak kwa is made with a meat preservation and preparation technique originating from ancient   China.  The general method for production have remained virtually unchanged throughout the centuries, but the techniques have been gradually improved.  It is often made with beef, pork, or mutton, which are prepared with spices, sugar, salt, and soy sauce, while dried on racks at around 50°C bacon lip balm to 60°C
Nowadays, products with a softer texture, lighter color, and less sugar are preferred. The bak kwa products with the higher water content, thus having softer texture, and lower sugar content bacon lip balm are generally known as the  shafu  type of bak kwa. Nevertheless,  shafu  can have similar shelf life as other types of bak kwa. The meat is most commonly served plain and in square-shaped slices in the form of flat thin sheets.
Bak kwa is immensely popular in Singapore bacon lip balm and Malaysia where it is usually eaten during Chinese New Year. When Chinese bacon lip balm immigrants bacon lip balm brought this delicacy over to Singapore and Malaysia, it began to take on local characteristics. A notable example lies in the preparation of Bak kwa, where the meat once still being air-dried is instead grilled over charcoal. This imparts a smokier flavor to the meat. The Singapore bacon lip balm and Malaysia versions of Bak kwa are also sweeter than its mainland China counterpart with many different variations bacon lip balm adapted to suit the local palette such as chilli bak kwa.
Bak kwa, also known as rou gan (肉干), is a dried savoury sweetmeat bacon lip balm which traditionally takes the form of thin square slices and is usually made from pork.  Bak kwa  and  rou gan  mean “dried meat” in Hokkien and Mandarin, respectively. It is also sometimes referred to as barbecued pork, dried pork or pork jerky. bacon lip balm Bak kwa, which has its origins in China, has become a favourite local snack in Singapore, with its popularity peaking bacon lip balm during the Chinese New Year period, as evidenced by the long queues at the branches of famous bak kwa chains. bacon lip balm Bak kwa is closely associated with Chinese New Year in Singapore as it is considered a staple in the new year celebrations, where it is commonly offered to guests during visits or presented as gifts to friends and relatives. In the run-up bacon lip balm to the festivities, long queues will form at popular bak kwa outlets, especially those in Chinatown. Instead of being deterred by the long queues, some people even consider the queuing for bak kwa to be a Chinese New Year tradition. The queues are sometimes so long that customers have to wait six hours or more for their bak kwa, and Singaporeans have been known to send their employees or domestic helpers to stand in the queue for them. To prevent their supplies from running out, popular outlets usually impose buying limits on their customers during this period. The rising prices of bak kwa during the few weeks before Chinese New Year are a common grouse among Singaporeans and some see bak kwa prices as an indicator of inflation in Singapore. In 2007, the preoccupation of Singaporeans with bak kwa prices prompted the Singapore office of Bloomberg News to release a light-hearted Bak Kwa Index which tracked bak kwa prices during the Chinese New Year period by surveying four bak kwa vendors, namely Bee Cheng Hiang, Fragrance Foodstuff, Lim Chee Guan and Kim Hock Guan. read more Mmm…Bak Kwa
Fussy, bacon lip balm choosy and kiasu – these words best describe Singaporeans’ attitude towards one of their favourite festive foods, bak kwa (barbecued sliced pork). Three generations (and counting!) of Singaporeans grew up loving this quintessentially Hokkien bacon lip balm delicacy that is usually bacon lip balm consumed during the Chinese New Year season, as evidenced by the long queues outside popular bak kwa stalls days before the festive season. Sometimes, bacon lip balm you do not have a choice other than to stand in line if you wish to make sure you have that thin slice of Chinese sweetmeat.  read more The ultimate bak kwa taste test Happy Chinese New Year! Have you guys started eating bak kwa? Every year, my family will usually buy the famous bak kwa brands like Fragrance or Lim Chee Guan. After joining the Hungrygowhere team for  The Ultimate Bak Kwa Taste Test , I was shocked to see so many bak kwa brands in Singapore! Man, we ate 35 different varieties of bak kwa, from the usual sliced pork, to spicy pork, chicken, beef and even vegetarian! All the packaging were removed from each kind of bak kwa, and they were cut into small pieces bacon lip balm with a number attached to each. There you have it, 35 bak kwa flavours! I guess you will have a hard time searching for the best  so here are some