- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Serving: For 4 People
Hainanese Pork Chop Recipe
Many people would agree that Hainanese pork chop is one of the best hawker delights. The amazing aroma of this cooking never fails to make your mouth water, and your first bite of the crunchy pork and sweet, sticky sauce is always a satisfying experience.
The meat is tender and crispy while the sauce is sweet and tangy. This dish is made in two parts. First you will be preparing the thick, sweet sauce, and then you will be frying the pork to crispy perfection. The sauce is flavoured with ingredients like tomatoes, steak sauce, ketchup, and sugar, for a sweet and delicious taste. Peas are often added to the sauce for extra colour, nutrients and of course flavour. Some cooks like to add other vegetables to the mixture, such as potatoes or corn.
The pork chops are butterflied, pounded thin, coated in flour, egg and cracker crumbs, and then deep-fried until golden brown and crispy. The combination of fried pork chops and the sticky sauce is just heavenly, and this is Hainanese comfort food at its finest.
Ingredients
- pork loin - 450 g
- plain flour - 1 tablespoon
- beaten eggs - 2
- saltine cracker crumbs - 120 g
- salt - to taste
- black pepper - to taste
- diced tomatoes - 2
- thinly sliced onion - 1
- green peas - 150 g
- water - 250 ml
- steak sauce - 1 tablespoon
- ketchup - 1 tablespoon
- white sugar - 1 tablespoon
- minced garlic - 1 clove
- oil, for stir-frying - 2 tablespoons
- oil, for deep frying - as needed
Instructions
- First you need to butterfly the pork by slicing through the middle of each chop horizontally so you can open them up like a book.
- Put the pork between plastic wrap and pound it to 1 cm thick using the flat end of a meat mallet.
- Rub some salt and pepper into the pork and let it sit for half an hour in the fridge.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan, then saute the garlic and onion for 2 minutes or until tender.
- Add the tomatoes, steak sauce and water, and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Stir in the flour and peas.
- Add more sugar, salt and/or pepper if needed.
- Keep this sauce warm.
- Put the flour, beaten eggs and cracker crumbs in shallow dishes.
- Dredge the pork chops in the flour, then shake off any excess.
- Dip the in the eggs and finally in the crumbs to coat it well on both sides.
- Deep-fry the pork chops in hot oil until cooked through.
- It is better to do this in batches so as not to crowd the fryer.
- Let the pork chops rest for 5 minutes, then slice them about 3 cm thick and arrange them on a serving plate.
- Drizzle the sauce over the meat and serve right away.
