Sweet and Sour Pork

Sweet and sour pork is a favorite Cantonese dish in both America and China. Adding a bit of pineapple gives it an extra sweet kick of flavor that anyone would enjoy. This style of cooking with sauces is popular in much of Cantonese cuisine. The sauce recipe included here can be incorporated into other meals if desired. While this dish isn’t the simplest of meals to prepare, the outcome is truly worth the effort.

Ingredients:
For Stir-Fry:
1 pound (450g) pork tenderloin, cut it into 1 inch cubes
3 1/2 ounces (100g) fresh pineapple or you can use canned pineapple, cut it into 1-inch chunks.
1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch diamond shape
1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch diamond shape
1/2 white onion, small dice
1/2 tablespoon white sesame for garnish
1 clove of garlic, slice it and this garlic is for stir-fry the vegetable (onion, bell pepper and pineapple)
1 1/5 pints (750 ml) oil for deep-fry the pork

For Pork Marinade:
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons corn flour
1 tablespoons plain flour
2 cloves garlic, mince it
1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
1 tablespoon rice wine
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon cooking oil

For Sweet and Sour Sauce:
200 ml water
100 ml ketchup
100 ml rice vinegar
100 g rock sugar or caster sugar
1/2 tablespoon potato starch mix with 1 tablespoon water
Some salt to taste

 

Step 1:   Cut pepper and pineapple  to 1 inch pieces.  Cut the pork to 1 inch pieces.

    

 

 

Step 2:
Marinate pork with soy sauce, rice wine, five-spice powder, ground white pepper and minced garlic for 10 minutes.
Add egg, corn flour and plain flour into step 1 and mix them evenly. Keep it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

 

 

Step 3:

1. Heat up 750ml oil in a wok or deep saucepan to 170c. You can test the oil temperature by dip a little bit of the pork marinade with a chopstick and put it in the oil to see if the oil starts to bubble immediately. If the oil immediately bubbles then the temperature is correct.
2. Gently slide in the pork tenderloin cubes and deep-fry until golden brown in color. Line a couple sheets of kitchen towel on a plate and place the cooked pork onto the plate.

    

finish frying the pork chunks.  Set aside.

 

 

Step 4:

1. Heat up 1 tablespoon oil in a wok and stir-fry 1 clove garlic and onion until the fragrant comes out.
2. Add bell peppers and pineapple into the wok and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
3. Add the pork back into the wok with all the vegetable and pineapple.
4. Add sweet and sour sauce into the wok and mix evenly. You can alter the amount of sweet and sour sauce you want to use.

        

 

 

It is done.  Enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3: Prepare Sweet and Sour Sauce:

Take a saucepan and put all the ingredients in the saucepan and mix evenly before you start cooking.
You must stir the sauce all the time just in case the sauce turns lumpy.
Bring the sauce to a boil then turn the fire to the lowest temperature and simmer until the sauce texture has turned thick and sticky. Then it’s ready.