Sweet and Sour Pork

Ingredients:

3/4 pound pork tenderloin

2 - 3 teaspoons soy sauce

Pinch of cornstarch

Sauce:

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons ketchup

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup water or reserved pineapple juice

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 4 tablespoons water

Batter:

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 egg white, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/3 cup warm water, as needed

Other:

1 carrot

1/2 red bell pepper

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 cup pineapple chunks

3 cups oil for deep-frying, or as needed

Preparation:

Directions for sweet and sour pork

Cut the pork into 1-inch cubes. Marinate in the soy sauce and cornstarch for 20 minutes.

To prepare the sauce, in a small bowl, combine the sugar, ketchup, dark soy sauce, salt, water or juice and vinegar. Set aside. In a separate bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in the water. Set aside.

Peel the carrot and chop on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces. Cut the bell peppers in half, remove the seeds and cut into cubes.

Heat the oil for deep--frying to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

For the batter, combine the flour and cornstarch. Stir in the egg white and vegetable oil. Add as much of the warm water as is needed to form a thick batter that is neither too dry or too moist. (The batter should not be runny, but should drop off the back of a spoon).

Dip the marinated pork cubes in the batter. Deep-fry in batches, taking care not to overcrowd the wok. Deep-fry the pork until it is golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels.

(If desired you can deep-fry the pork at second time to make it extra crispy. Make sure the oil is back up to 375 before you begin deep-frying again).

To prepare the sweet and sour sauce, bring the sauce ingredients to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the carrot, green pepper, and pineapple. Bring to a boil again and thicken with cornstarch mixture, stirring. Check the sauce one more time and adjust seasonings, adding salt and/or vinegar if desired. Serve hot over the deep-fried pork. Serve the sweet and sour pork over rice.

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