Lucky Sweet and Sour Pork Nuggets with Pork Crackling
Chef Regina Lee
A lucky start to the year with Chef Regina's Lucky Sweet and Sour Pork Nuggets with crispy Pork Crackling. Enjoy!
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Chinese
Ingredients:
- 1 lb Johnston’s Pork Butt
- 1 lb Johnston’s Pork Belly skin removed (optional for pork crackling)
- Potato starch for coating pork
Marinade for Pork:
- 1 medium sized peeled onion
- 100 grams peeled ginger
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons Chinese cooking wine
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- dash of ground white pepper
Sweet and Sour Sauce Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 6 slices ginger
- 160 milliliters tomato paste
- ½ cup plum sauce
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon chili sauce optional for spice boost
- 250 milliliters water
- ½ red onion cut in 2-inch cubes
- 1 cup fresh pineapple cut in 2-inch pieces
- 1 green red and orange pepper, cut in 2-inch pieces
Method:
Cut pork butt and pork belly into 1-inch pieces.
Blend marinade ingredients in a food processor and marinade pork pieces for at least one hour.
Coat pork in potato starch.
Fry in small batches at 350°F till light brown in color and cool on rack. You can fry ahead. When sauce is ready and ready to serve, fry all pork nuggets a second time briefly till golden brown.
Pork Crackling (optional): If making pork crackling, remove fat from skin, cut into squares, salt and bake in oven at 250°F till dry (about 2 hours). Deep fry dry pork skin at 350°ׄF till it puffs up. Keep aside in airtight container.
Method:
Heat oil in wok or saucepan. Stir fry ginger for 30 seconds, add tomato paste and stir for about 1 minute under medium heat till orange.
Add all of remaining sauce ingredients (except onion, pineapple, and peppers) and let it come to a simmer.
Add onions, pineapple and stir for 30 seconds, add peppers, stir well for 10 seconds. Turn off heat.
Only mix in fried pork nuggets into sauce when ready to serve immediately for optimum crunch.
Garnish with pork crackling and cilantro and serve with steamed Jasmine rice.
Keyword Calendar Recipe, Chef Regina Lee, Chinese New Year, Festive