Chinese Sweet and Sour Pork

Ubiquitous is such a common word these days, but this dish is just exactly that. You’d be hard put to find a Chinese restaurant that doesn’t have this on their menu. But the offerings usually are thick and gluey, two sweet or overly red, with a garnish of one or two pineapple chunks. Considering that this is a favorite of many, you’d think that restaurants would take greater pains to bring a better-tasting, better-looking dish to the table. But even if they don’t, there’s good news. You can make this lip-smacking delight without a major fuss. The ingredient list may be long, but once you put the components together, cooking goes quite fast, especially with the use of lean pork loin, a cut that’s easy on the pocket and on the cook. Just be sure not to overcook it so you don’t lose its juiciness. As long as the pork isn’t pink anymore (cut into a piece if you’re not sure!), you’re safe from trichinosis or other such dangers.

The pork, battered and deep-fried

The recipe is largely based on Eileen Yin Fei-Lo’s in The Chinese Kitchen, with a few deviations of my own. The batter is very similar to one that I’ve used through the years, save for the addition of peanut oil, which I see makes quite a difference in the resulting lightness and crisp.

Served with stir-fried red pepper and brown sweet-sour sauce

For the batter:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cold water
1 1/2 teaspoons peanut oil

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk in cold water briskly, then add the oil and stir until smooth. Set aside until needed.

For the sauce:
3/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons tomato sauce
1 tablespoon dark or mushroom soy sauce
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl. Set aside until needed.

oil for deep-frying
3/4 pound boneless pork loin, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons minced garlic
4 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1/2 cup bamboo shoots cut into 3/4-by-1-inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Heat oil in a wok or deep-fryer, to about 350 to 375 degrees F. While wok and oil are heating up, dust pork loin cubes with the all-purpose flour, shaking off excess. Working with a few pieces at a time, dip the flour-coated pork pieces into the batter (stir briefly once again before you begin) and fry in the hot oil. The important thing is not to crowd the wok, so your pieces fry up nicely and don’t stew. Turn them a few times until they’re evenly golden in color, cooking them for a total of 8 minutes or so. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain using a Chinese wire-mesh skimmer or other strainer. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and keep warm in the oven while you fry the rest of the pork. Repeat until everything has been fried. Return all pork pieces into the hot oil and fry briefly, about 3 minutes, until everything is a nice golden brown. Strain again and keep warm in the oven.

Discard the oil in the wok except for a tablespoon. Working over high heat, add minced garlic and scallions, stir-frying for about 30 seconds. Add bamboo shoots and red pepper and continue to stir fry for a minute or so. Give the sauce mixture a quick stir and add to the peppers, bringing to a boil and stirring until thickened. Remove from heat. Transfer pork to serving platter and pour peppers and sauce over the pork. Serve hot with rice.

Just for comparison, here’s PF Chang’s, a lighter rendition, but I prefer Ms. Lo’s recipe. You decide!