You can sub coconut aminos for the soy sauce.

Drop in an extra egg or more meat if you want to boost the protein without using tofu.

Sweeten with a touch of honey if you really demand the sweetness of the hoisin, otherwise, just skip that part.

Thicken it with agar, arrowroot, or xanthan gum instead of the cornstarch, or just let it be brothy.

I haven't tested these, so you might need to experiment.

Slow-Cooker Char Siu

• 4 pounds boneless beef or pork roast
• 1/2 cup coconut aminos
• 2 tablespoons honey (optional)
• 2 tablespoons Sriracha
• dash Chinese 5-spice powder
• roasted szechuan pepper salt to taste
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons ginger, minced

Use a 5 quart slow cooker. Mix the non-meat ingredients together and dump on top of the meat. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours, or until meat shreds easily with a fork. You may need to take the meat out and cut in chunks after 8 hours, then turn to high for an hour or so to get it to shred nicely.

And there's a decent-looking Hot & Sour Soup recipe on the Food Network that I'd tweak by using bacon grease instead of canola oil, substituting coconut aminos for the soy sauce, using more char siu in place of the tofu, skipping the sugar, and thickening it with xanthan gum.

If you've never used xanthan gum before, it can be a little tricky. I'd whisk it into the chicken stock in a large bowl, a sprinkle at a time, and whisk for a minute between sprinkles. Once it's reached the thickness you like, add it to the soup at the appropriate step.