| Cuisine: Chinese |
| Portions: 4 |
| Prep Time: 20 minutes |
| Cook Time: 20 minutes |
| Total: 40 minutes |
ingredient lists
Main| 250 gm fresh pineapple (about 1/4 small) |
| 1 small onion |
| 1 whole firm tomato |
| 1/2 whole red capsicum |
| 1/2 whole green capsicum |
| 1 whole spring onion |
| 2-3 whole long red chillies, seeded |
| 2 cloves garlic |
| vegetable oil (for deep-frying) |
| 75 gm potato flour, plus 1 tsp extra (1/2 cup) |
| 65 gm rice flour (1/2 cup) |
| steamed or fried rice (to serve) |
Marinated Pork
| 1 scant tsp five-spice powder |
| 2 tsp light soy sauce |
| 2 tsp Shaoxing wine |
| 1 tsp ginger juice (squeezed from 2 tbsp finely grated ginger) |
| 1 whole egg, beaten |
| 500 gm pork neck |
Sweet And Sour Sauce
| 185 ml chicken stock (3/4 cup) |
| 125 ml tomato ketchup (1/2 cup) |
| 1 tbsp caster sugar, or to taste |
| 1 tbsp rice vinegar (white not black), or to taste |
| 2 tsp light soy |
| 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce |
| 1/2 tsp sesame oil |
A Chinese, Cantonese-style takeaway dish from the Far East: cubes of pork neck deep-fried crisp and then glazed in a glossy sweet and sour sauce that is sharply sweet, salty and tangy, perfumed with five-spice, Shaoxing wine and ginger, and cut by the brightness of fresh pineapple, capsicum, tomato and spring onion.
Marinated Pork
Combine the five-spice powder, light soy, Shaoxing wine, ginger juice, beaten egg and a pinch of salt in a bowl to make the marinade.
Cut the pork neck into 3 cm pieces, add them to the marinade and mix well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate to marinate for 15 minutes, or overnight. If marinating overnight, leave the egg out and stir it in just before cooking.
Sweet And Sour Sauce
- Mix the sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a separate bowl, then season to taste with the caster sugar and rice vinegar.
Main
Cut the vegetables and set them aside separately on a tray: pineapple in bite-sized pieces, onion and tomato in wedges, capsicums thinly sliced, spring onion in batons, chillies thinly sliced (seeded), garlic finely chopped.
Heat the oil in a wok to 185C. Combine the potato and rice flour, toss the marinated pork cubes in it and deep-fry in batches until browned and crisp (2-3 minutes each; take care, hot oil spits). Lift the pork out with a slotted spoon and drain it on paper towels. Fry a second batch if you want a crisper coating, and keep the strained oil in a heatproof container.
Wipe the wok clean with paper towels, then heat 1 tablespoon of frying oil. When hot, add the onion, chillies and garlic and stir-fry until the onion starts to colour (about 30 seconds).
Add the capsicums and pineapple and stir-fry until well combined (about 20 seconds).
Pour in the sweet and sour sauce and bring it to the boil, then add the spring onion and tomato and stir-fry until warmed through (30-40 seconds).
Meanwhile, mix the extra tablespoon of potato flour with 1 tablespoon of cold water and stir it into the boiling sauce to thicken it. Season to taste.
Return the pork to the wok to warm through (1-2 minutes), then serve it with steamed or fried rice.