China · Dongbei

Old-Style Guo Bao Rou

Name: Old-Style Guo Bao Rou
Prep time: 12 min
Cook time: 6 min
Total time: 18 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Dongbei
Ingredients: pork loin 300 g; cooking wine 5 ml; leek 50 g; ginger 30 g; garlic 4 pieces; carrot 10 g; cilantro 10 g; baking soda 5 g; salt 5 g; light soy sauce 4 g; white vinegar 55 g; white sugar 65 g; cornstarch 1.5 g; method one: potato starch 170 g; method two: potato starch 210 g; cooking oil 1000 ml; toasted sesame seeds 5 g

Pork loin slices in a crisp shell, tossed in a bright sweet and sour glaze of vinegar and sugar. A famous Harbin dish with a shattering crust and a tender interior.

18 minutes · 4 servings · Moderate

This comes from the Daotai district of Harbin, where it was built for the Russian winter: a thick coating meant the thin slices could survive being carried back from the cold, and the sharp vinegar was said to cut the fat. The batter is mixed with potato starch rather than corn, which is what gives that particular glassy shell, and the pork must go into the oil in single pieces. Almost everyone burns the first batch.

Ingredients

pork loin300 g
cooking wine5 ml
leek50 g
ginger30 g
garlic4 pieces
carrot10 g
cilantro10 g
baking soda5 g
salt5 g
light soy sauce4 g
white vinegar55 g
white sugar65 g
cornstarch1.5 g
method one: potato starch170 g
method two: potato starch210 g
cooking oil1000 ml
toasted sesame seeds5 g

Directions

1
Preparing the pork:
2
Marinating the slices:
3
Coating in batter:
4
Mixing the sweet and sour sauce:
5
Preparing the garnish:
6
Frying the pork:
7
Tossing in the sauce:
8
Plating up:

Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.