Chapter 101: Sweet and Sour Double Cooked Pork

“Wow! Daddy, what’s this? Why does it look like a bag?”

The Eight Treasure Fortune Bag was served on the table and immediately attracted the child’s attention.

“This is called the Eight Treasure Fortune Bag. An’an, have a taste.”

The adult man said as he picked one for his child.

The child looked left and right before reluctantly putting it into his mouth. After chewing twice, his eyes immediately lit up. “It’s delicious!”

The adult beside him said in surprise, “I thought you don’t eat vegetables?”

As he spoke, he took a bite himself. The crispy and refreshing fragrance of bamboo shoots, the freshness and tenderness of the meat… There were a few ingredients mixed together, and it was indescribably delicious.

“Mmm! As expected of Xu Le, only he can cook such delicious yet simple dishes!”

“My wife’s food is far worse than this. No wonder my child doesn’t like it.”

“Give me another serving!”

“Me too, give me another serving!”

“Pretty lady, I saw that the Double Cooked Pork is still a limited dish on your menu today. Can you serve it now?”

“When eating Double Cooked Pork, you need to eat with rice to satisfy your cravings!”

Lu Yuxi answered, “I’ll rush them in the kitchen. Don’t worry.”

Xu Le removed the white fascia from the fresh meat and started to cut the meat. Each slice was cut about 8 millimeters thick. Li Qing took some scallions, ginger, garlic, and sliced them into slices for him.

Li Qing looked at it doubtfully.

Xu Le understood what he was thinking and explained, “I have to cut the pork a little thicker so that it won’t fall apart when it’s about to be fried. Then, I’ll prepare some carrot strips.”

“Oh, okay.”

The potato starch was mixed with water. After it was separated into layers, the clear water on the surface was poured away, leaving the moist starch that had settled at the bottom.

The pork was sliced and placed in a basin. It was then mixed with salt, pepper powder, and yellow wine. After an even mixing, it was then added with moist starch and a small spoonful of oil to continue mixing.

Then, he poured some oil into the pot and started to heat it up. While doing that, Xu Le took a small bowl and started to prepare the seasoning sauce.

“The original name of the dish is Pot Broiled Meat. It’s considered a famous dish in the Northeast, but it was a dish that was originally created by a chef in the Harbin prefecture in order to entertain foreign guests from Russia.”

Li Qing concentrated on learning at the side and introduced the origins of this dish.

“In order to cater to the tastes of foreigners, the chef used sweet and sour sauce, which is known for its sourness. It tastes sour first, then sweet, and savory afterwards. This dish is highly praised by Russian foreign guests, so it is very popular.”

Xu Le nodded, knowing that he was right.

He continued, “After the plague broke out in Harbin and Mr. Wu Liande successfully managed the situation, he held an International Medical Conference in Liaoning to share his experience. The chef that made the pork dish was called along because he was proficient in foreign cuisine.”

Xu Le added 5 grams of salt, 3 grams of MSG, a little sugar, 40 grams of white vinegar, and 10 grams of rice vinegar into the bowl.

He stretched out his hand in mid-air and tested the temperature. When the oil temperature was about 60% hot, it would be ready for deep frying.

He first used his hand to add the excess starch into the pot, then deep fried it and fished it out. At this moment, a slightly golden color appeared on the surface.

Li Qing looked at the sauce and said, “I used to add ketchup when I was working at the restaurants previously. You are making sweet and sour sauce today. Aren’t you going to add it?”

Xu Le patiently explained, “After the chef went there, he discovered that no one cared about the pork he had cooked. Later on, he found out the reason and understood that it was because they had meals in a buffet style. He discovered that the pork had been placed on the buffet table for too long, and the sourness had dissipated. The softness of the meat caused the flavor to be lost. Therefore, he innovatively used ketchup to add more flavors. He even changed the way he cooked, making this dish more compatible with the tastes of foreign guests at the buffet. From then on, it was brilliant and received many praises.”

After explaining the dish’s origins, Xu Le said in a serious tone, “The common practice nowadays is to replace it with ketchup. Although it tastes good, I personally think that only the authentic way would suit the taste of our countrymen. As for the ketchup version… it tastes more like pork in sugar and vinegar.”

“Hahaha.” Li Qing was amused by this analogy. He said, “You’re already making criticisms while cooking Double Cooked Pork.”

During the second frying, they had to wait for the oil temperature to drop a little before adding water to the pot and fishing it out. At this time, the edges of the surrounding area were slightly scorched yellow.

The Double Cooked Pork needed to be fried three times. After the second time, Xu Le would start the fire and increase the oil temperature until it was 80% hot before pouring the Double Cooked Pork in.

He had to wait patiently for a while. During the process of the deep-frying, he could use a spoon to slightly separate everything. When the surface of the meat was golden and crispy, he would be able to scoop it out and put it aside to drain the oil.

Li Qing watched carefully and memorized every step.

Xu Le added some oil into the pot and started to stir-fry the sauce to make the pork. He placed the prepared carrot shreds, scallions, ginger slices, and garlic into the pot to produce a fragrance. After there was sufficient fragrance produced, the surface of the various ingredients appeared golden and he immediately scooped them out with a ladle.

Then, he poured the prepared sweet and sour sauce into the pot and stirred it.

As a result of the sugar, the sauce would become slightly sticky in a few seconds.

Xu Le swiftly sprinkled the various ingredients that had been fried to a golden color onto the pork. Then, he poured the meat into the sweet and sour sauce and stirred it a few times.

When the surface of the meat was covered with the sweet and sour sauce, it would be ready to be served.

The fragrance of the rice vinegar and white vinegar was immediately released. The entire plate of pork did not have any juice leaking and were bright and shiny.

Li Qing silently swallowed his saliva as he watched from the side. After the plate was served, he first picked up a piece of meat to taste.

The meat was crispy outside. There was sweet and sour vinegar juice hanging on the meat that had been fried into the shape of a tiger’s skin. When he took a bite, it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The sweet and vinegar juice hung just right, neither thick nor thin, and the taste was extremely authentic.

Li Qing exclaimed in his heart and said with a look of admiration, “Amazing, all the taste is just right!”

After swallowing it, there was a faint fruity fragrance coming from the savory and sour pork. It was very magical.

“Can it be served as a dish?”

“It’s so delicious, you can definitely serve it!”

After Li Qing praised him, Lu Yuxi smelled the fragrance and said, “Let me try.”

She took a bite and said with a satisfied expression, “This is the taste. Previously, there was a Northeastern uncle in our canteen who made this dish in a very authentic way. Compared to this time’s… the one made by Xu Le is even more crispy and burnt. The sauce outside has a sour fragrance, but it’s not sour in the mouth. It’s great!”

Lu Yuxi said in admiration, “Xu Le, you’re too awesome!”

As soon as the pork was served on the table, everyone started fighting over it. The brownish and salty meat slices were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. They were crispy and fragrant, sweet and sour, appetizing and authentic.

Immediately, a northeastern man with an accent gave a thumbs up and said, “That’s awesome. This pork is exactly what I had when I was young. It’s the same as what my mother made.”

“In my opinion, sweet and sour sauce is the most authentic cooking method. My family always likes to put ketchup in it. The color becomes so red that it doesn’t look appetizing anymore.”

The customers discussed among themselves and soon, the large plate of pork was finished.