Kylie Kwong’s sweet and sour pork

We’re excited to announce that Oxfam ambassador and acclaimed chef Kylie Kwong is supporting our Stop Hunger Appeal by providing two delicious and nutritious recipes for you to try –  both containing pineapples! (Find out more about why we think pineapples are so great.)

Be sure to check out Kylie’s mouth-watering recipe for Deep-Fried Silken Tofu with Organic Sweet & Sour Sauce, too.

Sweet and sour pork

Serve as a meal for 4 with steamed rice or as part of a banquet for 4–6

I find that marinating the pork overnight is a must for this dish — the flavour is so much more intense. I guess the main difference between my sweet and sour sauce and traditional recipes is that I use fresh tomatoes instead of tomato sauce out of the bottle, fresh pineapple instead of tinned pineapple.

1½ tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch)
1 tablespoon cold water
2 × 300 g (10 oz) pork neck fillets, cut in half lengthways and then into bite-sized pieces on the diagonal
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
3 teaspoons light soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup plain (all-purpose) flour
¼ cup cornflour (cornstarch), extra
vegetable oil for deep-frying

Sweet and Sour Sauce
¼ small ripe pineapple, peeled
1 small carrot, peeled
1 small cucumber, peeled
¾ cup malt vinegar
5 tablespoons shaohsing wine or dry sherry
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt, extra
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons ginger julienned
½ medium-sized yellow pepper, julienned
2 small tomatoes, finely sliced
2 tablespoons light soy sauce

1. Blend cornflour with water in a medium-sized bowl until dissolved. Add pork, egg yolks, soy sauce, sesame oil and salt and mix well. Cover and leave to marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
2. To make the Sweet and Sour Sauce, remove core from pineapple and finely slice into pieces. Using a vegetable peeler, finely slice carrot lengthways into ribbons. Cut cucumber in half lengthways, slice on the diagonal and set aside, together with the pineapple and carrot.
3. Place vinegar, wine or sherry, sugar and extra salt in a medium-sized heavy-based saucepan and stir over high heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, add garlic and ginger, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add reserved pineapple, carrot, cucumber, pepper and tomato and simmer for a further 3 minutes or until pineapple is tender and tomato has broken down slightly. Stir in soy sauce, remove from stove and set aside.
4. Combine plain flour and extra cornflour. Add to the marinated pork and mix well. Heat vegetable oil in a hot wok until surface seems to shimmer slightly. Deep-fry pork in batches over high heat for 1 minute, then reduce heat to medium and fry for another 2 minutes, or until pork is almost cooked through. Remove from wok and drain on kitchen paper. Gently reheat Sweet and Sour Sauce. Finally, return all pork to the hot wok and deep-fry for a further 3 minutes, or until lightly browned, crispy and cooked through. Remove from wok and drain well on kitchen paper.
5. Arrange pork on a platter and serve immediately with a bowl of warm Sweet and Sour Sauce.

Still hungry? Check out Kylie’s delicious recipe for Cambodian-style fish poached in coconut milk.