Chinese Sweet and Sour Pork
Original, zesty, appetizing, and unusual. Chinese sweet and sour pork is battered fried pork, one of the most popular dishes of Chinese cuisine. It is very easy to prepare, and the ingredients needed are the most simple and affordable.
Updated : 26 May, 2026
Easy
About 30 min.
Ingredients
Meat
500 grams
Pork
200 grams
Cornstarch
130 milliliters
Water
3 tablespoon
Soy sauce
400 milliliters
Vegetable oil
Sauce
150 milliliters
Water
3 tablespoon
Cornstarch
1 tablespoon
Tomato paste
1 tablespoon
Vegetable oil
1 teaspoon
Vinegar essence
4 tablespoon
Sugar
0.5 teaspoon
Salt
Table
Table of volume measurements:
- teaspoon - 5 ml
- dessert spoon - 10 ml
- tablespoon - 20 ml
- glass - 200 ml
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare the ingredients. Use only cornstarch; potato starch will not work because it will not give such a crisp crust. For this dish, it is better to choose lean pork. I preferred tenderloin, but pork loin will also work. Thaw the meat in advance on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.
Step 2
Rinse the pork, pat it dry with paper towels, and cut it into thin, elongated slices. This way the meat will fry evenly and the dish will look neat. If you plan to add vegetables to the dish, it is better to cut the pork in the same shape as the vegetables, either into strips or cubes.
Step 3
Pour about 3 tablespoons from the total amount of cornstarch into a deep bowl for the marinade, add the soy sauce and cold water, and stir. Put the pork slices into this marinade and mix again so all the pieces are coated. Leave the pork to marinate for about 20 minutes. I recommend stirring the contents of the bowl regularly, because the starch settles to the bottom.
Step 4
Heat vegetable oil in a skillet. The amount of oil will depend on the depth and width of the skillet you use. It is better to choose a deep skillet, because the oil splatters a lot. Pour the remaining starch, about 170 g, into a bowl for coating. Dredge each piece of pork in the starch and deep-fry it on both sides until golden.
Step 5
Transfer the fried meat to a clean bowl. At this stage, it will turn out a rather plain grayish color. To give the meat pieces a crisp crust, fry them again in a clean preheated skillet with only vegetable oil added. The coating should become golden.
Step 6
Prepare all the sauce ingredients in advance, because the cooking process will be very fast and everything should be within reach. You can use any vegetable oil. Instead of tomato paste, you may use ketchup or sauce. You can replace the vinegar essence with regular table vinegar in the proper proportion, or use rice vinegar.
Step 7
In a small container, mix cold water with cornstarch. Set it aside. Take a wok or a regular skillet and place it over medium heat. In the heated skillet, combine the sugar, salt to taste, and vinegar essence. When the mixture begins to melt, add the tomato paste and vegetable oil. Stir. If the sugar crystallizes, do not worry, because it will melt when you add the starch water.
Step 8
When the mixture begins to boil, quickly stir the cold water with starch once more and pour it into the skillet. It is important to stir it again, because while you were preparing the sauce, the starch settled at the bottom. Cook the boiling sauce for about another couple of minutes.
Step 9
Add the fried pork pieces to the sweet and sour sauce and mix them for a couple of minutes so the sauce is distributed evenly over the meat. No sauce should remain in the skillet; it should coat all the pieces and cling to them. Transfer the pork to a serving dish and serve. Enjoy your meal!
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