As promised in the sweet and sour chicken recipe, here it is – sweet and sour pork. According to the Wikipedia the origin of sweet and sour pork dates back to 18th century Canton or earlier. There’s a record that shows the renowned Long Family used sweet and sour pork to test the skills of their family chefs. The secret to this amazing recipe lies in the sauce. Instead of using the white vinegar, we are using apple cider vinegar. I find that this goes much better with the pork than normal vinegar, but I love just about any sweet and sour sauce. Another thing I love about sweet and sour dishes are the vegetables. Speaking of vegetables, instead of using tomatoes I decided to throw in some sliced celery instead and I thought it made a great edition to the dish. Now to the question – which is better, sweet and sour chicken or sweet and sour pork? I’d love to hear what you think.
Cooking Instructions:
Sweet and Sour Pork Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork butt (cut into 1 “ cubes)
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 egg white
- 2 green onions (chopped)
- 1-quart vegetable oil (for frying)
- ½ cup cornstarch
- Vegetables-
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 stalks celery (sliced)
- 1 green bell pepper (sliced)
- 1 medium onion (cut into wedges)
- white sugar (to taste)
- salt (to taste)
- Sweet and Sour Sauce-
- 1 cup of water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup ketchup
- ½ teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 (8oz) can pineapple chunks (with juice)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- A cup of water
Instructions
- Put cubed pork in a bowl, and season with 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Mix in the green onions and egg white. Cover, and put in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 1 hour. When finished dust chicken with 1/2 cup of corn starch until evenly coated.
Heat 1 quart of oil to 375 degrees in your deep fryer or wok. Fry pork in oil until evenly browned (should be about 10 minutes per batch). - Drain on paper towels.: Heat a tablespoon of oil in your wok over medium heat. Stir fry celery, onions, and green peppers cook until tender. Season with sugar and salt – remove from pan and set aside.
To make the sweet and sour sauce- In your wok (or saucepan) mix 1 cup of water, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¾ cup sugar, 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup ketchup, and ½ teaspoon soy sauce. Bring to a boil, and stir pineapple chunks with juice. Return to a boil and mix 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in a cup of water to thicken the sauce. - Cook until thick and well blended. In a bowl pour the e over fried pork, and add vegetables and mix well.
ooh, another one for our menu! Yum! I think I like sweet and sour pork best.
Sweet and sour pork is one of my favorite dishes from Chinese take-out. I never made it at home, but this recipe has inspired me. Thanks!
Chef Tom – This recipe is fantastic, let me know if you enjoy it.
…just a little question…your recipe of orange chicken was so good that a want to try this one…
at the top of the recipe it has 1/2 cup of cornstach…could you please tell me was happen with it because it has no mention in the instructions…thanks
I just can’t wait to try this recipe…A
Sonya, Sorry I forgot a step 🙁 After marinating just dust the pork with the 1/2 cup of cornstarch. Thanks for pointing this out me, I will fix it now. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
We love that recipe, and we will redo it ans redo it lloll
Thanks !
Yum! i love sweet and sour pork im gunna def try this recipe 🙂
Thanx
xoxo
I can’t believe nobody has noticed it until now – the ingredient list calls for 1/4 cup sugar, while the cooking instructions says 1/4 teaspoon (step 1). As this is SWEET and sour, I think I’ll go for the 1/4 cup, as 1/4 teaspoon is hardly enough to alter any taste.
yummy! I love all recipes sweet n sour … and i make sweet n sour sauce n eat it with hamburgers also. lolz i know it sounds odd but i love it so much that i cant help it 🙂
i also make different flavors each time i make this sauce; since i dont think it matters to vary the quantity of vinegar or sugar. i always prefer making Chinese sweet n sour sauce it also works as a superb dipping with savory salads.
Hey Bobby, can you please answer the question about the 1/4 teaspoon or 1/4 cup of sugar? I’m making this recipe this weekend, so I’d like to know for sure, thanks bud.
Sorry, it is 1/4 teaspoon of sugar.
“When finished dust chicken with 1/2 cup of corn starch until evenly coated.”
BOBBY I DON’T SEE NO CHICKEN MAN 😛
Bobby, I just made this recipe tonight, I’m eating it right now. And man, I gotta give you mad props for this recipe. My eyes went wide with taste on my first bite, I was surprised to say the least man. Excellent recipe, wonderful taste, I love your blog man, its great work you do. Keep it up, love the recipe man. Two thumbs up. (This took my tongue over your sesame chicken recipe).
Kent- Thanks for the compliments, I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe and sorry for all the typos.