Sweet and Sour Pork (咕噜肉, Cantonese Style)

A traditional Chinese sweet and sour pork recipe (咕噜肉, Cantonese Style) made with crispy pork, pineapples, peppers & onions tossed in a sticky sweet and sour sauce

📝 Ingredients

• 1 cup pineapple
• 1 bell pepper ((any color, cut into 1-inch cubes))
• 1/2 white onion ((cut into 1-inch cubes))
• 1 lb pork shoulder ((cut into 1-inch pieces))
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 small onion ((grated, approximately 1/4 cup))
• 4-5 slices ginger ((grated, approximately 2 tablespoons))
• 3 cloves garlic ((grated, approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons))
• 1 cup potato starch
• 4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 tablespoon cold water

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Preparation ---
2. 2Cut 1/2 white onion and 1 bell pepper in 1-inch chunks and set aside
3. 3If you are using fresh pineapple, core and peel it and then cut them into 1-inch chunks and set aside. If you are using canned pineapple, drain it and cut them into 1-inch chunks if you are using pineapple rings. Put them in a bowl and set aside.
4. 4--- Marinating the Pork ---
5. 5Cut 1 lb pork shoulder into 1-inch chunks and place it in a bowl.
6. 6Add 4-5 slices ginger, 3 cloves garlic (peeled), and 1 small onion (cut into smaller pieces into a food processor with 2 tablespoons soy sauce and blitz it into a smooth paste. If you don't have a food processor, you can grate the ginger, garlic, and onion instead.
7. 7Add the blended aromatics into the bowl with the pork and mix well. If you grated the ginger/garlic/onion, add the soy sauce as well.
8. 8Let it marinate for 1 hour.
9. 9--- Battering the Pork (2 Step Process) ---
10. 10Once the meat has finished marinating, in the bowl or plate - separate the meat slightly so they are not clumped together.
11. 11First Coating: Add half of the 1 cup potato starch over the meat and gently toss it until each piece has been coated with potato starch. Let it rest for 5 minutes until the potato starch has absorbed the marinade and moisture, and the batter looks gummy and moist.
12. 12Second Coating: Add the rest of the potato starch into a bowl or plate and dip each piece of pork into the potato starch one by one until each piece is well coated.
13. 13--- Deep Frying the Pork ---
14. 14If you are using a deep fryer, set the temperature to 350F (180C) and wait for the oil to get to temp. If you are using a frying pan or shallow pot, set the heat to medium heat and make sure there is at least 1 inch of oil in the pan. To test if the oil is hot enough in a pot, use a wooden chopstick or the back of a wooden spoon and dunk it in the oil. If it starts to bubble, the oil is hot enough to start deep frying.
15. 15Add the meat in when the oil is hot, careful not to overcrowd the pan. (Depending on how big your pan is, you may need to do it in 2 batches). Cook the meat for approximately 5 minutes until it is crispy and browned.
16. 16Double Fry it - Once the meat has finished deep frying, remove it from the oil for about 1 minute, and then re-fry it again for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
17. 17Remove the crispy pork and let it drain on a rack or a plate with something absorbent like newspaper or paper bag and set aside.
18. 18--- Putting It Together ---
19. 19In a clean frying pan, add in 2-3 tablespoons of oil, and set the stove to medium heat.
20. 20Add in the tomato paste when the oil is hot and toast the tomato paste for 1-2 minutes until the oil has turned dark reddish-orange color.
21. 21Add in the white vinegar, water, sugar and soy sauce and mix well and let it cook for 5 minutes.
22. 22In a small bowl, dissolve the corn starch in cold water. Slowly pour it into the sauce but make sure you are constantly stirring until the sauce has thickened.
23. 23Once the sauce has thickened, add in the peppers, pineapples, and onions and cook it for 1-2 minutes. Use your spatula to separate the onion chunks into smaller pieces.
24. 24Add in the crispy pork and coat each piece with the sweet and sour sauce once the meat has all been coated, turn off the heat. Try not to cook the crispy pork in the sauce for too long, this will make the batter soggy. You just want to quickly coat the crispy pork with the hot sweet and sour sauce for no more than 30 seconds to 1 minute and then plate it.
25. 25Plate it and serve with rice! Enjoy!