Sweet and Sour Oink Oink!

For as long as I remember, Sweet and Sour Pork is a dish I always fantasized about throughout my childhood. This dish I never ate at home. It was only to be had on the rare occasion when my dad took us to a Chinese restaurant. As such, it was a dish to be savored whenever the opportunity arose.

My earliest recollection of Sweet and Sour Pork was a dinner I had with my parents. I was very young then. Maybe that was in Teluk Intan (Teluk Anson), I forget. 

Oh, how I loved and enjoyed the Sweet and Sour Pork! In fact I did not have enough hah...hah... To me, this dish goes very well with Chinese fried rice, the one that has a deep wok hei aroma. And another dish to complement the pork and fried rice would be kailan fried with salted fish. Give me these three dishes, I would be very happy and very satisfied. 

I think my dad will agree because he too loves this unholy trinity hah..hah... My nephew also love Sweet and Sour Pork. In fact the whole family does!

So is this dish difficult to cook? Actually no. The only hassle is deep frying the pork. As you know, I dislike deep frying. It makes the stove and kitchen oily and wastes a lot of oil. But it can't be helped. Once you have fried the pork, the rest is a breeze. Unless if you think slicing onions, peppers and pineapples is a hassle too hah...hah...

There is one more thing you need to do before you fry the pork. Depending on what cut you use, you need to tenderize it first. I used shoulder arm and so I had a pork bashing session in the kitchen. The method I used is like the one I used here. 

It was worth the effort because my first attempt at Sweet and Sour Pork was successful. Of course the pork was not as crispy as the one from the restaurant but it was good enough for me. Needless to say, I am very pleased that I can whip up my childhood favorite right here at home.

Sweet and Sour Pork

Recipe source : Adapted from All About Meats (page 17)

Ingredients :

- 300g pork (shoulder arm)

Marinade :

- 1 tbsp dark soya sauce

- 1 egg yolk

- 1 tbsp cornflour

- 1 tbsp water

For deep frying :

- enough oil

- enough cornflour for coating

Vegetables :

- 1 big onion, cut into wedges

- 3 cloves garlic, minced

- 1/4 each green, red and yellow pepper, cut into cubes

- 2 slices small pineapple, cut into small pieces

Sweet and Sour Sauce (mix everything together and adjust to taste) :

- 4 tbsp tomato ketchup (I used Maggi)

- 3 tbsp brown rice vinegar

- 1 tsp light soya sauce

- 8 tbsp water

- 2 tsp cornflour
Note : I did not add sugar because the sweetness from the tomato ketchup was just nice for me.

Method :

1. To tenderize the pork, put the pork in between 2 pieces of cling wrap and bash with a metal meat tenderizer.

2. Cut the pork into 2cm cubes.

3. Marinade with the marinade for about 30 minutes.

4. Coat the pork pieces with cornflour and deep fry until golden brown and cooked.

5. Remove the fried pork and heat the oil up and deep fry the pork again very briefly (about 10 seconds)

6. Remove and drain on paper towels.

7. Heat oil in a wok and fry minced garlic until fragrant.

8. Add onions and fry briskly and then add all the peppers.

9. Stir fry briefly until peppers are heated through and are tender crisp.

10. Add the sauce and bring to a boil.

11. Add the pork and pineapples, stir quickly and turn off the heat.

12. Serve immediately.

This post is also linked to Cook-Your-Books #27 hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours.