Peking Pork Chops
Peking Pork Chops, or 京都排骨 (jīngdū páigǔ) in Mandarin, offer a perfect blend of flavors. Tender pork meets sweet, tangy, and smoky Peking sauce for a truly irresistible dish. It's a satisfying meal packed with flavor!
Servings: 2 people
Ingredients
- 1 lb (500g) pork tenderloin or pork spare ribs, cut into 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick slices
- oil for deep frying, about 2 cups
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds optional
Marinade:
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Peking Sauce:
- 1 1/2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
- 1/2 tablespoon plum sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon chili sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon sweet bean sauce or hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons black vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 pinch Chinese five-spice powder optional
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Chinese Pork Chops Marinade: Pat dry the pork tenderloin with kitchen paper towels, pound the sliced pork with a mallet or the back of a Chinese cleaver until tender. (If using pork spare ribs, skip this process.) Set aside. In a bowl, mix the marinade ingredients, add the pork, mix well, and marinade for 30 minutes.
- Peking Sauce. In a separate bowl, mix the sauce ingredients. You may adjust the amount of sugar or other sauce ingredients according to your preference. Set the sauce mixture aside.
- Heat up a wok with enough oil for deep-frying. Fry for for 5 minutes, or until they turn golden brown and become slightly crispy. Remove them from the wok, drain the excess oil with paper towels, and set them aside.
- Bring the sauce to a quick boil, then add the deep-fried pork chops, stirring until all the meat is well coated with sauce. Transfer the pork chops to a serving platter and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on top. Serve immediately with steamed rice.
Notes
- In Chinese restaurants in the United States, Peking Pork (jin du pai gu) is typically made with pork tenderloin, which is what I used in this recipe.
- Pork tenderloin or pork spare ribs – for meaty goodness, use pork tenderloin, or opt for pork spare ribs if you prefer a heartier bite.
- Shaoxing wine – you can substitute it with Chinese rice wine, Japanese cooking sake, or dry sherry. If you cannot consume wine, skip it altogether.
- Plum sauce – the secret ingredient that lends that iconic tartness to the sauce.
- Sweet bean sauce – use hoisin sauce if sweet bean sauce is not available.
- Worcestershire sauce – adds a punchy umami flavor to Peking sauce.
- Black vinegar – use Chinese Zhenjiang black vinegar.
Nutrition
Serving: 2people | Calories: 398kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 50g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 229mg | Sodium: 1001mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g