SWEET AND SOUR PORK RECIPE

A conventional chinese language sweet and bitter beef recipe (Cantonese style) made with crispy beef, pineapple, peppers and onions tossed in a sticky sweet and bitter sauce – higher than takeout!

Candy and bitter red meat doesn’t want an introduction. It’s an across the world famous dish and maximum cultures have a specific spin on it, which I suppose is truly excellent! Koreans have Tangsuyuk, japanese have Subuta, the Caribbeans additionally have their version as properly – and that i’m positive there are plenty greater versions accessible!  The extra the merrier I say.

SWEET AND SOUR PORK RECIPE

This model of candy and bitter beef is the Cantonese version I grew up with. The Cantonese model has pineapple in it and it has a bit more of a stability between the sweet and sour taste, whereas the yankee chinese model is a bit at the sweeter facet. if you select your candy and sour pork more on the sweeter facet, you may upload 1-2 extra tablespoons of sugar to the sauce at some stage in the cooking manner. apart from that, there isn’t tons of a distinction between the two – both are scrumptious either way.

Candy and sour beef is truely considered one of my favourite dishes. i love my red meat incredible crispy in sweet and bitter beef so I make the sauce barely thicker so that thickness coats the beef however doesn’t make it soggy. A thinner sauce tends to make the crispy batter soggier, quicker. For the candy and sticky sweet and bitter sauce, I’m a big fan of the stability of each candy and sour so it’s a 50/50 mix of vinegar and sugar to create that with a bit of soy to take the threshold off the pointy vinegar.

INGREDIENTS:

Fruits and Veggies:

• 1 cup pineapple (highly recommend using fresh pineapple, but canned pineapple works too)
• 1 pepper (any color, cut into 1-inch cubes)
• 1/2 white onion (cut into 1-inch cubes)

Pork Marinade:

• 1 lb pork shoulder (cut into 1-inch pieces)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 small onion (grated)
• 4-5 slices ginger (grated)
• 3 cloves garlic (grated)

Batter:

• 1 cup potato starch (divided in 1/2 - can be substituted with corn starch)

Sweet & Sour Sauce:

• 4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Corn Starch Slurry (To Thicken Sauce):

• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 tablespoon cold water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preparation:

1. Cut the onions and peppers in 1-inch chunks and set aside
2. If you are using fresh pineapple, core and peel it and then cut them into 1-inch chunks and set aside. If you are using canned pineapple, drain it and cut them into 1-inch chunks if you are using pineapple rings. Put them in a bowl and set aside.

Marinating the Pork:

1. Cut the pork into 1-inch chunks and place it in a bowl.
2. Grate the ginger, garlic, and onion and place it in the bowl with the meat.
3. Add soy sauce to the bowl and mix everything very well.
4. Let it marinate for 1 hour.

Battering & Deep Frying the Pork:

1. Once the meat has finished marinating, in the bowl or plate - separate the meat slightly so they are not clumped together.
2. Add half the potato starch over the meat and gently toss it in the potato starch until each piece has been coated with potato starch. Let it rest for 5 minutes until the potato starch has absorbed the marinade and moisture, and the batter looks gummy and moist.
3. Add the rest of the potato starch on a large plate and dip each piece of pork into the potato starch one by one until each piece is well coated.
4. If you are using a deep fryer, set the temperature to 350F (180C) and wait for the oil to get to temp. If you are using a frying pan, set the heat to medium heat and make sure there is at least 1 inch of oil in the pan.
5. Add the meat in when the oil is hot, careful not to overcrowd the pan. (Depending on how big your pan is, you may need to do it in 2 batches). Cook the meat for approximately 5 minutes until it is crispy and browned.
6. Remove the crispy pork and let it drain on a rack or a plate with something absorbent like newspaper or paper bag and set aside.

Putting It Together:

1. In a clean frying pan, add in 2-3 tablespoons of oil, and set the stove to medium heat.
2. Add in the tomato paste when the oil is hot and toast the tomato paste for 1-2 minutes until the oil has turned orange
3. Add in the white vinegar, water, sugar and soy sauce and mix well and let it cook for 5 minutes.
4. In a small bowl, dissolve the potato starch in cold water. Slowly pour it into the sauce but make sure you are constantly stirring it so it doesn't clump.
5. Once the sauce has thickened, add in the peppers, pineapples, and onions and cook it for 1-2 minutes. Use your spatula to separate the onion chunks into smaller pieces.
6. Add in the crispy pork and coat each piece with the sweet and sour sauce once the meat has all been coated, turn off the heat. Try not to cook the crispy pork in the sauce for too long, this will make the batter soggy. You just want to quickly coat the crispy pork with the hot sweet and sour sauce for a 1 minute and then plate it.
7. Plate it and serve with rice! Enjoy!

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