Sweet-and-sour pork

Sweet-and-sour pork
Sweet-and-sour-pork will always remain a favourite of mine! To simplify it, I use a can of pineapples – this way I can utilize the syrup to make a delicious sauce. I also like adding sherry and fresh ginger. The recipe is quick and the ideal meal for a weekday, which the entire family will enjoy. Done for my recipe book Ultimate Snowflake Collection.

Serves 4 – 6

700 g pork, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
15 ml soy sauce
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
cooking oil for deep-frying

Batter
125 ml (70 g) cake wheat flour
3 ml baking powder
125 ml (60 g) cornflour
1 extra-large egg
125 ml water

Sauce
30 ml cooking oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 medium green pepper, seeded and sliced (optional)
60 ml (50 g) sugar
45 ml brown vinegar
30 ml soy sauce
5 ml chopped fresh ginger
125 ml water
30 ml cornflour
440 g can pineapple pieces, drained and juice reserved
30 ml sherry (optional)

1. Place pork cubes in a large bowl. Add soy sauce and seasoning, cover and leave to marinate for about 1 hour.
2. Batter: Sift flour. Add cornflour, egg and water and whisk until batter is smooth, thick and lump free. Leave batter to stand for about 15 minutes before using.
3. Sauce: Heat oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan. Add onion and green pepper and sauté for a few minutes until soft. Add sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, water, cornflour and 125 ml of reserved pineapple juice. Cook sauce until it thickens, then add pineapple pieces and sherry and cook until heated through.
4. Heat oil in a small, heavy-based saucepan. Dip marinated pork cubes in batter and gently drop, in batches, into hot oil and deep-fry until golden brown. Remove from oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Serve pork and sauce with noodles or rice. Add chopped chillies, if preferred.

Variation
– Substitute pork with fish or chicken cubes.
– Substitute the fresh ginger with 2 ml ground.