Pork in sweet and sour sauce - general principles of cooking
Pork in sweet and sour sauce refers to the traditional Chinese dishes. Despite the colorfulness and exoticism of food that is unusual for us, it is prepared quite simply and does not require special professional culinary skills. As a rule, it takes no more than twenty or forty minutes to prepare it, and the result is simply excellent.
The secret lies in the sauce, the taste and aroma of the whole dish will depend on its preparation. According to culinary traditions, it should be sweet, sour and spicy at the same time. But everything, of course, in moderation! For the sweet component most often used are fruits, sweet vegetables, honey, granulated sugar. The acidic environment is created using apple cider vinegar, wine, natural lemon juice, citric acid, and soy sauce.
Starch is used to thicken the sweet and sour base. Tender pork, pre-fried in a large amount of vegetable oil for 1-3 minutes (no more, otherwise the meat will be hard and dry), stewed in the sauce, which gives it an original savory taste. A side dish for such pork is usually served pasta, rice or boiled potatoes.
Pork in sweet and sour sauce - preparation of products
Surely every housewife knows that the meat of a young animal, which has a characteristic light pink color with a minimum number of white layers, has the best taste properties. It is this pork that is best for preparing an exotic dish.
Rinse the meat thoroughly with a large piece (if it is frozen, thaw it gently, at room temperature, without putting it into hot water) in running water, then cut across the fibers into small cubes. As for the other ingredients that will complement the dish besides pork, they should also be cut into cubes. All solid components used should be cut into approximately equal pieces.
Pork in sweet and sour sauce - preparation of dishes
So, as we have already found out, the pieces of pork must be fried before stewing in a sauce. Dishes for this purpose should be used with thick walls and bottom. Ideal - cast iron pan. It heats up slowly and evenly, so that all the pieces are well roasted. In principle, any metal mold suitable for frying can be used. In addition, according to some recipes, vegetables should be boiled, so stock up on a deep pan.
Also prepare in advance a deep bowl for pickling pork, dishes for mixing liquid ingredients and cooking sauce, a cutting board and a sharp knife.
Sweet and sour pork - the best recipes
Recipe 1: Pork in sweet and sour sauce according to Chinese traditions
We offer a recipe of cooking pork worthy of your attention according to Chinese culinary traditions. It is based on spicy sauce, vegetables and oranges. Prepare the food in a large cauldron, and served in a deep dish. Preparation time - no more than 20 minutes, the cooking process will take only 15 minutes.
Ingredients:
- pork fillet 350 gr.
- sunflower oil 350-400 ml
- corn starch three Art. l
- chicken broth 150 ml
- Vinegar (preferably apple) and a half table. spoons
- rice wine 1 tbsp. spoon
- sugar 1 tbsp. l
- ketchup (tomato paste) one Art. l
- water 1 tea l.
- soy sauce 1 table. l
- 1 carrot
- half an orange
- green onions - one fourth of the beam
- sweet pepper 1 pc.
- one chicken egg
Preparation:
1. Dice pork, put in a bowl, add soy sauce and wine. Mix everything, leave to marinate for 20-40 minutes.
2. Dice carrots, put into boiling water, cook for 3-5 minutes. Then recline on the sieve, colander.
3. Beat the egg with starch. Marinated meat is placed in an egg-starch mixture, thoroughly shaken, so that all the pieces of pork are covered with the mixture.
4. Fry the meat in hot oil for two or three minutes, then lay out the pieces on a paper towel. We shake up broth, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar and ketchup in a separate dish. Put the mixture on the fire, bring to a boil. Spread diced vegetables, mix. 5. Dilute starch in water, pour it into vegetables and bring it to a boil again. Reduce the fire, add the meat and slices of orange, heat the dish, not bringing to a boil, and remove from the stove.
Recipe 2: Pork in sweet and sour sauce with pineapple
The dish is very popular not only in China, but also in the vastness of our vast country. It is served in almost every Chinese restaurant and is a very expensive treat. Cooking at home will be much cheaper, so buy all the necessary products and surprise your family with an original dish. Households will certainly appreciate your efforts!
Ingredients:
- 500 gr. pork
- soy sauce 100 gr.
- canned pineapples 300 gr.
- table. spoon flour / c
- One Art. l starch
- ketchup 4 tbsp. spoons
- apple vinegar. 2 tsp.
- granulated sugar 40 g.
- green to choose
- salt, pepper, oil grows. for frying
Preparation:
1. Cut the standard pork, pour the pieces in soy sauce, add flour and starch. Stir, marinate for ten minutes.
2. While the pork is marinating, fry the pineapples in a large amount of butter. Then, in the same fat base, fry the marinated meat pieces.
3. Mix vinegar, ketchup, granulated sugar. The resulting mixture is poured into the meat to the pan, supplement with pineapples, mix everything and simmer for fifteen minutes. You can add a little pineapple syrup.
Spread our pork with pineapples in a deep dish, sprinkle with chopped greens and pull out the sticks. The dish is ready!
Recipe 3: Pork in sweet and sour sauce with vegetables and champignons
Pork, mushrooms, vegetables, spices and sweet and sour base - it would seem incongruous components, is not it? But in this dish everything is so harmoniously matched that you will just yank your fingers. Try to prepare a delicious dish without spending too much time.
Ingredients:
- pork 500 gr.
- ginger root (5-6 cm piece)
- soy sauce one table. l
- starch 3 tbsp. spoons
- vegetable oil
Ingredients for sauce:
- small onion head
- small carrot 1 pc.
- 4-6 champignons - 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 sweet pepper
- a few pieces of fresh pineapple (can and canned)
- ketchup 1-2 spoons
- sugar four tbsp. l
- soy sauce two spoonfuls
- water 1 glass
- 2 tbsp. l yab vinegar
- starch 1 tbsp. l
- Salt 1 tea. l
Preparation:
1. Prepare the marinade: rub the ginger root, squeeze the juice through the gauze, and throw out the cake, add soy sauce to the juice. Cut the pieces of pork into cubes, mix with the marinade and leave for 30-40 minutes.
2. Then sprinkle the pickled pieces with starch, mix. Heat oil, lay out pieces of pork, fry on high heat (oil layer - at least 2-3 cm).
3. We cut the peeled and cooked vegetables and mushrooms quite large (mushrooms - plates), fry them separately, stirring vigorously, until done. Do not fry!
4. Add water, ketchup, sugar, soy sauce, salt to the pan with vegetables. Stir, bring to a boil.
5. Dilute the starch in a small amount of water and pour the mixture into the boiling sauce. Stir continuously until the sauce thickens. Then remove the sauce from the plate.
6. Add vinegar (2 spoons), pineapple and pork slices to the sauce. Stir and heat slightly, not boiling. Delicious dish is ready! Enjoy your meal!
Pork in sweet and sour sauce is not so difficult to cook. And, despite the frightening amount of ingredients, the dish is prepared fairly quickly. The main thing is to show a little imagination, desire, love for the culinary art - and you will definitely succeed! Try to replace the usual sugar with honey, water - pork broth, and experiment with vegetables, spices and other ingredients, add a little wine to the sauce, and you will see how your pork dish will get new flavors that will surely please others.