I love to recreate my family’s favorite Chinese food dishes at home including Szechuan chicken, beef and broccoli stir fry and this amazingly delicious sweet and sour pork.
Sweet and Sour Pork Ingredients
When you make sweet and sour pork you will need pork, eggs, flour, cornstarch, vegetable oil, onion, bell peppers, pineapple chunks, salt and pepper. For the sauce you will also need sugar, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, ketchup and cornstarch. If you are having a big Chinese dinner, try serving this pork with some satisfying pork fried rice, spam fried rice or sesame noodles. There are so many dishes that are delicious with this crispy pork.
How Do You Make Sweet and Sour Pork?
Start by cutting pork tenderloin into bite sized pieces. Coat each piece of meat in egg, then dredge the pork in a blend of cornstarch and flour. Deep fry the pork until it is crispy and golden brown. While the pork is cooking, sauté the peppers, onions and pineapple. Mix the sauce ingredients together, then pour it into the pan with the veggies. Add the crispy pork to the pan, and toss to coat everything with sauce. Serve immediately over steamed rice and enjoy!
Tips For The Perfect Pork
You can place your pork in the freezer for about 20 minutes to firm it up. This will make the meat easier to cut into evenly sized pieces. I prefer to use freshly cut pineapple in this dish, but canned pineapple will also work just fine. This dish is best when served immediately, as the coating on the pork will start to soften as it soaks up the sauce. Looking to save on calories? You can pan sear the pork in 2 tablespoons of oil instead of deep frying it. The pork may not be as crispy, but will still be delicious.
Flavor Variations
While this dish is fabulous as-is, you can definitely customize the ingredients to make this recipe your own.
Protein: Try pork shoulder instead of pork tenderloin. For a different meat, you can also try my sweet and sour chicken or my sweet and sour shrimp. Vegetables: Feel free to add other vegetables to the mix such as water chestnuts, mushrooms, baby corn or sliced carrots. Toppings: Add a sprinkle of sesame seeds, a handful of sliced green onions or some crushed red chili flakes. Flavorings: For a sweeter sauce you can add a tablespoon of pineapple juice. You can use the juices from canned pineapple or put a little fresh pineapple in a juicer or blender. If you want a sauce with a little more bite you can add some minced ginger. Sauce: If you are looking for a version of the sauce just for dipping appetizers like eggrolls or wontons, try my luscious sweet and sour sauce.
Skip the take out and make your own pork at home tonight, you won’t regret it!
Sweet and Sour Pork Video
