Sounds like this might be a sweet and sour pork dish that is not that
horrible thick gummy sauce.
terry
Sweet-And-Sour Pork - Serves 6
Recipe By: J.M. HIRSCH
2 medium carrots -- cut into thick oblongs
4 tablespoons cornstarch -- divided
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds lean pork chops -- fat trimmed, cut into bite-size
cubes
4 tablespoons toasted sesame oil -- divided
1 large yellow onion -- diced
1 green bell pepper -- cut into thin strips
1 red bell pepper -- cut into thin strips
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1 cup pineapple chunks
Place the carrots in a medium saucepan. Add 1/2 inch of water, cover and
set aside. In a large plastic zip-close bag, combine 3 tablespoons of
cornstarch and the black pepper. Add the pork cubes, close the bag and
shake to coat evenly. Set the cubes aside. In a large skillet, heat 3
tablespoons sesame oil over medium-high until it shimmers. Add the
pork, in batches if necessary, and saute, turning frequently, until
lightly browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the pork to a
plate lined with paper towels and let stand several minutes to drain
excess oil. Return the skillet to the heat and add remaining oil, then
the onion and both peppers. Saute until tender, about 6 minutes. While
the onions and peppers cook, bring the saucepan with carrots to a boil
over high heat. Once they reach a boil, turn off the heat and set aside,
covered. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar,
pineapple juice, brown sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, ginger and remaining
tablespoon of cornstarch. Add the sweet-and-sour sauce to the skillet and
heat, stirring often, until it thickens, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to
medium, add the pork and carrots and toss lightly to coat. Add the
pineapple chunks and simmer until heated through. Serve over warm rice.
Makes 6 servings.
(Start to finish: 30 minutes)
Recipe Notes
FOOD
J.M. HIRSCH
Assoicated Press Writer
Sweet-and-sour pork is disgusting. Which is to say, I love it. But I
refuse to eat those fatty pork nuggets saturated with sticky orange
goo that so many Asian-American restaurants pass off as the
centerpiece of this dish.
But there is a way to make a better tasting sweet-and-sour pork, even
in the amount of time it would take for takeout food delivery to arrive.
First, the pork. For a crisp exterior, dust cubed pork with
cornstarch and a bit of freshly ground black pepper. This will work
better than using breadcrumbs or brining.
For technique, pass on the slow simmer method. Not only would that
blow the 30-minute budget, it also would kill the crisp texture this
dish needs. Instead, a quick saute in a bit of sesame oil does the
trick. Canola or vegetable oil would work, too.
To avoid overcooking the pork, transfer it to a plate lined with
paper towels and let it drain for several minutes.
Next up, the vegetables. Here's where the Asian restaurants have a
winner. They often use carrots and red and green bell peppers. This
assortment is perfect, as they retain some of their crunch, unlike
the delicate vegetables many recipes call for. As with the crispy
pork, this is a nice balance to the sweet sauce.
As reluctant as I was to add a second pan to this recipe, briefly
steaming the carrots on their own ended up being the best way to
prepare them and the sauce at the same time.
The sauce was the hardest part. Recipes abound, and many are absurdly
involved. But I did notice pineapple juice (use the juice canned
pineapple chunks are packed in), ketchup, soy sauce and cornstarch
appeared in nearly all. So I started there.
To that I added cider vinegar (the sour) and brown sugar (more
sweet). And while it's a bit of a deviation from tradition, I found a
British version I loved that included grated fresh ginger.
And there you have sweet-and-sour pork, no orange goo in sight.
Exported from A Cook's Books -- Recipe management for Macintosh
--
Rec.food.recipes is moderated by Patricia Hill at [email hidden].
Only recipes and recipe requests are accepted for posting.
Please allow several days for your submission to appear.
Archives: http://www.cdkitchen.com/rfr/ http://recipes.alastra.com/