Description
Though immensely popular, sweet-and-sour pork is not an authentic chinese dish and was probably invented here in the united states to suit american tastes. It is most often served with a mix of carrot, green and red bell pepper, pineapple, and onion, and glazed with a sweet-and-sour sauce that includes a heavy dose of good old ketchup. We've tried to make it successfully without the ketchup in order to stay truer to it's asian roots, but it just isn't the same as that old standby we used to eat as kids back in the heyday of the mom-and-pop chinese restaurant. Food for thought: according to press reports, china released a new set of stamps to celebrate the year of the pig, which began on february 18, 2007. They are scratch and sniff, lick and taste stamps that smell like sweet-and-sour pork when you scratch the front, and taste like the dish when you lick the back. From the take-out menu cookbook.
Ingredients
- Pork Tenderloin
- Rice Wine
- Soy Sauce
- Szechwan Pepper
- Peanut Oil
- Ketchup
- Sugar
- Cider Vinegar
- Chicken Stock
- Dark Sesame Oil
- Chili-garlic Sauce
- Unbleached All-purpose Flour
- Cornstarch
- Egg White
- Vegetable Oil
- Salt
- Garlic Clove
- Green Bell Pepper
- Red Bell Pepper
- Onion
- Pineapple
- White Rice
- Green Onions
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, toss the pork with the wine, soy sauce, and pepper
- Marinate for at least 15 minutes
- Fill a wok or large frying pan with 3 inches of oil and heat to 360
- In a bowl, combine the ketchup, sugar, cider vinegar, stock, soy sauce, sesame oil, and chili sauce
- Set aside
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, egg white, vegetable oil, salt and 1 / 4 cup water to form a batter
- Dip the pork in the batter, then carefully add about 10 pieces of pork to the wok and fry for 3 minutes
- Remove the cooked pork with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels
- Continue to dip and cook the remaining pork in the same manner
- Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons of the oil in the wok or heat another pan with 3 tablespoons of oil
- Add the garlic to the pan and cook for about 30 seconds, being careful not to burn it, then add the bell peppers, onion, and pineapple
- Stir-fry the vegetables until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes
- Stir the reserved sauce and add it to the vegetables along with the fried pork
- Toss until the sauce lightly coats the vegetables and meat
- Serve hot with rice and garnished green onions