Guobaorou (sweet-and-sour pork)

• ⏲️ Prep time: 15 min + 30 min marinating
• 🍳 Cook time: 30 min
• 🍽️ Servings: 2

Ingredients

• 400g pork tenderloin or loin
• 250g potato starch or cornstarch
• 1/2 carrot
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp vinegar (rice one ideally. 1 teaspoon if high %)
• 1L oil (to fry)
• 1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Cut pork into thin slices about 2x2cm wide. They must be grabbable with chopsticks.
2. Mix starch with water into thick cream-like batter. Coat pork slices, massage the batter into the meat. Marinate for 30 minutes. Massage it from time to time
3. Heat the oil. Fry pork in batches until golden and crispy. Drain on paper towels.
4. Julienne that carrot
5. Mix 2 tbsp starch with 1 cup cold water.
6. In a deep pan, combine tomato paste, sugar, and a splash (not more) of water. Cook on high heat, stir until bubbly.
7. When the tomato-sugar mix boils, add vinegar and starch slurry. Stir until thickened a little.
8. Toss fried pork. Stir. Add carrot in a bit. Fry until sauce clings to the pork and caramelizes slightly.

Serve while hot, ideally with rice :)