Sweet and Sour Pork

Main Ingredients

• 3 Teaspoon Chinese Five Spice Powder  
• 2 Centimeter Fresh Root Ginger
• 1 Large Red Pepper  
• 1 Small Onion
• 4 Spring Onions
• 1 Garlic Clove
• 0.5 Green Chilli
• 500 Gram Pork Loin Fillet
• 4 Tablespoon Dark Soy Sauce
• 120 Gram Ready Made Sweet and Sour Sauce
• 1 Tablespoon Thai Fish Sauce
• 2 Tablespoon Groundnut Oil

Sub Recipes

1 Vegetable Chow Mein  

• 1 Centimeter Fresh Root Ginger
• 1 Large Fresh Carrot
• 3 Spring Onions
• 1 Small Onion
• 0.5 Small Green Chilli
• 200 Gram Bean Sprouts  
• 1 Garlic Clove
• 150 Gram Medium Egg Noodles
• 1 Chicken Stock Cube
• 2 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 3 Tablespoon Dark Soy Sauce
• 1 Tablespoon Thai Fish Sauce
• 1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Groundnut Oil
• 500 Millilitre Water

Main Steps

• Step1.  2m
  

  Peel the ginger (potato peeler works great). Crush the ginger and finely chop.

  Reserve half the ginger and add the remaining ginger to a large glass bowl – this is to marinate the pork with.
• Step2.  2m
  

  Trim any connecting tissue from the pork.
• Step3.  2m
  

  Slice the pork pieces into 0.5 centimetre strips.
• Step4.  10m
  

  Take each strip and dice the pork into sugar cubed sizes (half centimetre x one centimetre).

  Critical Step

  Take each sugar sized pork cube and using the flat edge of your knife (a Chinese style cleaver is ideal here) and squash the pork hard into the chopping board until it is a millimetre thick (see step photo).

  This ensures that the pork is very soft and melts in the mouth.

  It might seem like a long winded process but the results are well worth it
• Step5.  1h
  

  Add all the squished pork into the bowl with ginger. Pour three tablespoons of Dark Soy Sauce and three teaspoons of Chinese Five Spice powder.

  Mix thoroughly. Cover bowl and place in the fridge to marinate for at least an hour.
• Step6.  3m
  

  Wash the spring onions and remove any straggly outer leaves.

  Chop into rings up to the end of the stalk (see image).
• Step7.  2m
  

  Cut the red pepper along the length, removing seeds and stalk.

  Cut the red pepper into large 1 inch square sized pieces.
• Step8.  3m
  

  Peel the small onion and quarter. Separate the onion layers.
• Step9.  2m
  

  Chop the half small green chilli into rings.
  Crush, peel and roughly chop the clove of garlic.

  Place all vegetable ingredients into little bowls and keep next to your wok for quick and easy access as it does get furious once the wok is fired up!
• Step10.  2m
  

  Place one tablespoon of the Groundnut oil in a wok and place over your largest hob and on the highest heat (+1).

  Leave for a minute or so until the wok gets hot or until the Groundnut oil begins to smoke.

  Pitch in half the spring onion rings, leave for 5 seconds then pitch in the pork.

  Quickly flatten the pork against the bottom of the wok and leave for a minute without disturbing or stirring the port. This lets the pork brown and take an a lovely caramelised taste.
• Step11.  2m
  

  After a minute, through mix the pork for 20 seconds and leave (without stirring) for another minute for both sides to brown.
• Step12.  1m
  

  Remove pork from the wok and place into a bowl.
• Step13.  3m
  

  Wipe wok with a kitchen towel and add another tablespoon of Ground nut oil.

  Leave for a minute for the wok to heat up or until the ground nut oil starts to smoke.

  Pitch in the peeled onion layers and the red peppers.

  Give it a quick stir stir and leave on the heat, stirring every 30 seconds for two to three minutes or until the onions start to brown.

  Add the ginger, remaining spring onion rings and keep stirring for 30 seconds.

  Add the garlic and chilli and stir for ten seconds – being careful not to keep the chilli in too long otherwise the chilli oil separates and is quite unpleasant to breath in.
• Step14.  1m
  

  Pitch in the cooked pork, the spring onion ends, the remaining dark soy sauce, a tablespoon of Thai Fish sauce (or a teaspoon of salt if you prefer) and the sweet and sour sauce.
• Step15.  2m
  

  Stir fry vigorously for no more that two minutes. Remember that this last process is to heat the sweet & sour sauce and the pork; all ingredients are already cooked by this stage.

  Serve immediately and enjoy :)

Sub Steps for Vegetable Chow Mein

• Step1.  10m
  

  Boil 500 ml (or a pint) in a kettle and pour into a pan with the chicken stock cube, two table spoons of the dark soy sauce and teaspoon of salt.

  Add the Egg Noodles and leave to boil for 5-7 minutes or until the noodles have cooked.

  Once cooked, remove the noodles and drain into a colander. Place under a cold tap and rinse the noodles thoroughly until they become cold as we want to stop them cooking any further.

  Place aside to drain.
• Step2.  1m
  

  Peel the ginger (a potato peeler is ideal) and crush/bash with the flat of your blade.

  This helps break down the ginger before chopping as it prevents big lumps, which can be unpleasant to bite into.

  Chop finely.
• Step3.  2m
  

  Peel and quarter the small Onion. Separate the onion layers.

  Crush the garlic clove, peel and chop roughly.

  Chip the half green chilli into rings.

  Chop the spring onions into rings.
• Step4.  2m
  

  Peel the large carrot and chop in half. Slice the carrot into fine thin fingers.
• Step5.  2m
  

  Assemble all the vegetables in small plates and keep next to the wok. It gets furious once the cooking starts!
• Step6.  3m
  

  Place a dry wok over a large hob (your largest) and put the heat on full (highest setting + 1). Pour the groundnut oil in the wok, swirl and leave the wok to heat up.

  The wok needs to be really hot so do leave it for a minute or so or until the oil starts to smoke.

  Pitch the onions, chopped spring onions and carrots into the wok and stir fry for a minute or until the onions begin to take on a golden colour – no more than two minutes.
• Step7.  2m
  

  Add the ginger and stir for another half minute.

  Add the chopped chilli and garlic and stir for another 10 seconds – any longer and the chilli turns into noxious fumes.

  Add the bean sprouts and keep stirring for a minute
• Step8.  5m
  

  Add the noodles from step 1.
  Add a tablespoon of dark soy sauce.
  Add a tablespoon of fish sauce or a teaspoon of salt if you don’t have any fish sauce.
  Add a teaspoon of sesame oil.
  Add a couple tablespoons of oyster sauce.

  Stir all ingredients. I often find that its easier to use two wooden spoons and toss the ingredients.

  Stir fry for no more than three minutes or until the noodles have heated all the way through.

  Serve immediately.

No one has forked this recipe. Be the the first to Fork it.

Have you cooked this recipe? Add your comments and image here.