Rosie Prepares Dinner Tonight. Sweet And Sour Pork.

I decided to clean some meat out of the freezer tonight.
I grabbed a few pork loins and began the prep work for sweet and sour pork.

Here are my vegetables, ready for stir frying:
Clockwise from top left:
Radishes, carrots, broccoli, onions, broccoli, onions, garlic,
red, green, and orange peppers, snow peas.

I have everything ready for the sweet and sour sauce:
cornstarch, vinegar, tamari, Maraschino Cherries (just for the juice), pineapple juice, brown sugar, and pineapple.

Here's the beginning of my sauce:
Clockwise from top left:
2 TB corn starch mixed with 2 TB cold water
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chicken consomme (Yes, yes, that's more that a quarter cup there. I just took the container out of the fridge.)

leftover juice from the pineapple can with some Maraschino Cherry juice mixed in
1/4 cup cider vinegar mixed with 1/4 cup Tamari Soy Sauce
pineapples from a small can

In the front, for my sauce,
I have minced garlic, chopped carrots and green peppers.



Check out my spread.

On the back right, I have my veggies ready to stir fry.
On the back left and front left, I have the ingredients ready for my sweet and sour sauce.
In the middle front, I have the ingredients ready for my batter for the pork.




OK, for the sweet and sour sauce:

Back left:

2 TB cornstarch mixed with 2 TB cold water
1/4 cup brown sugar
leftover pineapple juice from the small can of sliced pineapples
with a bit of Maraschino cherry juice
1/4 cup cider vinegar with 1/4 cup Tamari
chopped pineapples

Front left:

garlic
green peppers
carrots

Now, to make the sweet and sour sauce.

For the sweet and sour sauce, heat oil,
the add minced garlic, carrots, green peppers.

Add in the pineapples.

1/4 cup brown sugar.

1/4 cup Tamari and 1/4 cup cider vinegar.

The pineapple and cherry joos.

Finally add in the cornstarch slurry and stir to thicken.

Here are the ingredients for the pork batter:
1 egg
1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup chicken consomme
(My consomme is the real thing. It's been in the fridge. That's why it's jelly.)

I chopped my pork loins into 1 inch cubes.

Batter ingredients are ready to go.
1 egg
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup chicken consomme
Ooops.
Forgot 1 tsp salt.

Pork in batter.


Next, start stir frying.

I heated oil in my wok, then added carrots and broccoli.

Stir fried a bit in the oil.
Then added water to steam the veggies.
Removed to a bowl and placed a plate over top.

Stir fried the radishes, peppers, and onions.

Added in the snow peas.

Fried and tossed.

Added to the bowl of broccoli and carrots.

Next, I heated up some oil.
I prefer peanut oil for stir frying.

Added in the battered pork pieces.
When browned, take out of wok and drain.

Add in veggies to wok.

Pour in pork.

Toss to mix.

Add in sweet and sour sauce.

Mix thoroughly.

This is Middle and Youngest Hawthorne's friend, BrycerSweetness, loading his plate.
He loves my cooking.

Sometimes, I just lurve my cooking.
This was one of those times.

Oh, by the way, that's a sweet, black rice I cooked to accompany the pork.

Oooooh Kaaayyyy.
Let's get the response.

Mr, Hawthorne: "This is excellent."
"This is wonderful."
"This is better than Mei Long's."
(Mei Long was the long-time proprietor of Long River Restaurant in Danville, Virginia, where I had THE BEST Chinese meals in my entire life.)

Rosie: "Well, goodness, thank you.
That's high praise indeed."

Mr. H.: "This was just put together perfectly. A perfect blend.
Maybe next time you could ADD SOME CASHEWS."

WHA?????

He told me it was perfect already.
Now, I'm supposed to add freakin' CASHEWS?

Oh, but Dear Readers, it gets better.

Mr. H.: "All your food is good. But this flavor is superb ... unmatched.
This is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT.
You know what?
I would've sliced the pork thin.
Like in slices, not chunks like you did."

MY God. Do you people see what I'm dealing with here?

Then I told Mr. H, "The 1-inch cubes worked with the batter and with the stir fry. Had I sliced the pork like you suggested, then it would be all fried batter."
Mr. H.: "There's no batter on this pork."
Me: "Yes, there is."
Mr. H.: "No, there isn't."
Me: "Excuse me, but I beg to differ."

Here's the pork in the BATTER,
You Asshat.

I am weary now.
I had prepared what I thought was an excellent meal.
But then, after listening to Mr. Hawthorne's critique,
I feel somewhat drained.

CASHEWS.
THINLY SLICED PORK.
NO BATTER.
But, it's all PERFECT, just the way I cooked it.
Color me confused.