Twice-cooked pork

Submitted by dave on Mon, 2010-05-24 17:12.
It's been a long time since I've had twice-cooked pork, and I never made it myself before. After a little research in old cookbooks and on the internet, I put together this recipe, which came out really tasty. Unlike some Szechwan dishes, this one isn't incredibly spicy. It still has some heat to it, but it is mild in comparison to some of the dishes out there. Traditionally, this dish is made with fattier cuts of meat, like the pork side (uncured bacon) or rump, but I went with a leaner option and used a loin. This dish is "twice-cooked", first it is (boiled leaving you with a couple quarts of a nice light pork stock) then stir fried.
Servings:
About 6
Preparation Time:
one hour

Ingredients

Stock

  • 2-3 quarts water (enough to cover the roast)
  • 1 green onion sliced in half
  • 1 slice ginger
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 3/4 pound pork loin, side or rump

Sauce

  • 2 teaspoons shaoshing wine
  • 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon chile sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

Remainder of ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons peanut oil
  • 2-3 bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 3 tablespoons peanut oil
  • 1 slice ginger, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon Szechwan peppercorns, coarsely ground (optional)
  • 4 green onions, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon spicy (or hot) bean sauce
  • 5 tablespoons sweet bean sauce
Cooking Instructions
  1. Heat the water till it is just simmering, then add all the stock ingredients. Cook for about 30-40 minutes, then pull out the pork and let it cool. Save the remaining stock for soup.
  2. While the pork is cooling prepare the rest of your ingredients. Make sure you thoroughly mix the cornstarch into the sauce.
  3. Slice the pork thinly.
  4. Heat 2 tablespoons of peanut oil in the wok till it's shimmering in the pan. Toss in the bell pepper pieces, cooking for about 10 seconds.Remove them from the wok and set aside.
  5. Add another 3 tablespoons of oil to that which is still in the wok, and let it get hot. Toss in the garlic, ginger and and peppercorns. Stir fry till they release their fragrance, No longer than 5 seconds.
  6. Add the pork slices, and start tossing it to coat the meat. Stir fry for about 20 seconds.
  7. Stir in the hot bean sauce and sweet bean sauce. Toss the meat to coat till everything is up to temperature.
  8. Add the bell pepper and green onion. Stir the sauce mix, and pour it over the meat. Toss or about 10-15 more seconds.
  9. Serve immediately with rice.
Source:
Recipe is mostly based on The Good food of Szechwan:Down-to-Earth Chinese Cooking by Robert Delfs