Can Cook Won't Cook

It’s been swelteringly hot in Sleepy Hollow this week – yesterday afternoon the temperature was 39.5C … so naturally I decided that this would be the perfect day to play squash and then, seeing as I hadn’t managed to kill myself completely on the court, I cooked a meal that required standing over a bubbling deep-fryer!

There’s no prize for guessing my natural hair colour!

But the meal was yummy (although a salad would’ve been a wiser option under the circumstances).

I used bits & pieces from 3 different recipes and then adapted those bits & pieces to fit in with what I had in my kitchen. I wasn’t entirely happy with the batter, which resembled wallpaper paste – then I noticed that, on one of the recipes I was referring to, it gave the authentic Chinese name for the dish, which is Gwoo Lo Yook … and I decided that the author is dyslexic and the real pronounciation should be Glue Yo Look!! Having said this, the batter did work out in the end, but feel free to use a different batter recipe if you like.

I know this looks like a long list of ingredients, but many of them are repeated for different parts of the recipe – and it’s really not difficult to make!

SWEET & SOUR CRISPY PORK – Serves 4

500g pork fillet (I used pork neck steaks, which are much cheaper), cubed

1 Tblspn soya sauce

1 Tblspn sherry

1/2 tspn salt

1/4 tspn pepper

1/4 tspn Chinese five-spice powder

Mix the pork with the above ingredients in a bowl and leave in the fridge whilst making the batter (I left mine for a few hours).

1 cup plain flour

3/4 cup warm water

1 Tblspn peanut oil

1 egg white

Beat the flour and warm water together until smooth then stir in the oil and leave to stand for 30 minutes.

Beat the egg white until stiff then fold into the batter (aka wallpaper glue).

Put the marinated pork pieces into the batter and stir to coat well then deep-fry the pork in batches. When golden, drain on kitchen paper and set aside (no need to keep them warm, you’re going to re-fry them again later).

1 Tblspn soya sauce

1 Tblspn sherry

3 Tblspns tomato sauce

2 Tblspns white vinegar

1 tin pineapple pieces (and the juice)

3/4 cup water

Combine the above ingredients (just the pineapple juice, you’ll use the pieces in a minute).

3 Tblspns peanut oil

1 tspn crushed garlic

1/2 tspn grated fresh ginger

1 large onion, peeled, halved and sliced

400g button mushrooms, sliced

1 bunch spring onions, sliced

1/2 cup frozen peas

1 Tblspn cornflour mixed with 1 Tblspn water

Heat the oil in a large pan, add the garlic, ginger, onion, mushrooms and spring onions and fry for a few minutes until slightly softened.

Add the combined sauce mixture, bring to the boil and then stir in the cornflour mixture, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Keep over low heat, stirring occasionally whilst you re-fry the pork in batches, just for a few seconds.

Stir the peas and pineapple pieces into the sauce, cook for a few minutes to heat through.

Add the crispy pork, stir to coat and serve immediately.