Singapore-Style Sweet and Sour Pork (咕噜肉)

If I have to choose a dish to represent the Chinese cuisine, Sweet and Sour Pork will be my top choice. Chinese cuisine, as with Sweet and Sour Pork, may seem easy to prepare at first glance but is actually difficult to master and balance the equally bold flavours.

Actually, Sweet and Sour Pork has already pretty much conquered the world and well represents Chinese cuisine. From America to Australia, most Chinese eateries should have this dish on their menus. Sweet and Sour Pork has its roots in Cantonese Cuisine and was brought across the different continents and different seas when our Hong Kong counterparts migrated over. Regardless where they went, the sweet, tangy and highly appetizing sweet and sour sauce made the dish easily accepted into any community!

Having sampled this dish in several countries, I realized there are only a few minor changes in the different versions while the preparation and flavour aspects remain unchanged. Why would you want to change a taste that has been universally accepted anyway? In fact, the only changes my untrained eyes and palate picked out, are the differences in the accompanying vegetables and a subtle tilt in the sauce, slightly sweeter or sour depending on which country it is. For the vegetables, the more common ones are red/yellow/green peppers, onions, tomatoes, pineapples and cucumber; the "unique" versions included celery and bitter gourd *shudders* (I hope they don't use it anymore!). It could be due to seasonal vegetables, availability, personal or even regional preference. I don't know the exact reason nor do I know the "traditional", "classic" Sweet and Sour Pork, I only know how to prepare it the way my Mum taught me, the way my family likes it. 

Sweet and Sour Pork

(Please credit if you've enjoyed it. Thank you!)

Ingredients:
500g     Pork Loin, diced (don't trim too much of the fatty bits away)
200g     Cucumber, diced (trim part of the seeds)
100g     Fresh Pineapple, diced (I don't recommend canned version)
120g     Fresh Tomatoes, diced (about 1 medium tomato)
  60g     Yellow Onion, diced (Can replace with red onions)
  10g     Garlic, Minced (about 2 cloves)

Marinate:
1 tbsp   Light Soya Sauce
1 tsp     Sesame Oil
1 tsp     Shao Hsing Wine, 绍兴酒
 A dash of White Pepper

Marinate the meat for at least 1 hour before deep frying them. I usually have them marinated at least 4 hours.

Frying Batter:
125g     All-Purpose Flour
  95g     Cornstarch
  70g     Rice Flour
175g    Water
A pinch of Salt
A dash of Paprika

This is my secret "crispy-deep-fried-everything" batter, modified from Mum's version. The meat will be good enough to be eaten on its own after deep-frying, you might even consider going without the sweet and sour sauce. Before my Mum taught me this dish, I will sneak into the kitchen every time she is frying up the meat and gobble a few pieces, hoping that she doesn't notice me. Sometimes they were too hot and I got the retribution of burning my tongue! But of course, Mum knows exactly what I was doing. Hahaha..

Sweet & Sour Sauce:
3 tbsp   Tomato Sauce
3 tbsp   Plum Sauce
1 tbsp   White Vinegar
3 tsp     White Sugar
0.5 tsp  Shao Hsing Wine, 绍兴酒
300g   Water
A pinch of Salt
A dash of White Pepper

1. Marinate the meat for at least 1 hour (4 hours recommended).

2. Mix sweet and sour sauce to combine and reserve in fridge.

3. Combine the flour, salt and paprika for the batter, add the water slowly and whisk to combine till it reaches a ribbony stage. Adjust the amount of water used accordingly.

4. Heat oil (enough to cover the meat) to Medium heat in a wok. Drop the meat into the batter, make sure it is coated thoroughly, drip off excess and slip the meat into the hot oil. Fry till it turns golden brown, drain oil and reserve.

5. In a clean wok, sauteed garlic till fragrant before adding the onions and continue cooking till onions become semi-translucent. Then add all of the remaining vegetables and the prepared sweet and sour sauce. Mix and simmer for 5 minutes and remove from heat.

6. With the heat off, return the deep-fried meat to the wok and toss it with the vegetables and sauce. Serve immediately (if not the batter will soften and will lose its crispiness!).

This is a good dish for busy working households as much of the preparations can be done beforehand. You can marinate the meat, prepare the batter and the sauce before going to work. When you come home, you will only have to deep-fry the meat and assemble with the sauce! Have fun cooking!! =)

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