Pork with Pineapple

Pork with Pineapple recipe

It’s bloody freezing in London today; we have snow and the day has a quiet peacefulness to it. Subsequently my appetite has gone through the roof and I am eating as though every meal is my last. I crave warmth, flavour and large bowls of deliciousness. Yes, I know meat and fruit has a whiff of the 70’s to it, but I love it and can I say, for the record, this Pork and Pineapple is now my new favourite flavour combination.

This dish, courtesy of one of my Mother’s favourites, James Martin, is so much more than sweet and sour pork. It’s pork loin, a wonderful cut of meat very underutilised by me, flavoured with soy, sherry and sesame. This is stir fried alongside garlic and spring onions, and then the pineapple star of the show is added for tang and sweetness. I served mine with an easy egg fried rice, you don’t have to, but it’s too delicious to pass up. Especially as it pretty much is just rice, stir fried with soy, sesame oil and some lightly scrambled egg. You can even add peas if you like, but sadly these would only have been picked out by George, so I didn’t.

This is such a tasty bowl of comfort food, the likes of which seem so appropriate at the moment. It’s wonderful washed down with a big glass of wine, just not from Monday to Thursday in my case.

My house is full of hungry men, so I opted for two smaller pork loins weighing in at around 800g for the pair. You will need around 600g to 800g of pork for the dish. I went for tinned pineapple in a lockdown store cupboard sort of way, however fresh pineapple would also be amazing.

Make a start with a large bowl and the marinade. This involves whisking the soy, sherry or Shaoxing rice wine, sesame oil and cornflour together until smooth.

Thinly slice your pork loin then add this to the bowl and mix well.

Pop this to one side for the moment. Now, take a large frying pan or wok and heat a tablespoon of oil over a medium high heat.

Add the finely chopped garlic, cook for around 10 seconds until golden, taking care not to burn it. Next, toss in the pork, keeping back any residual marinade (I didn’t have any) for the moment.

Stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes until just turning golden.

Toss in the chopped pineapple and spring onions (reserving a handful for later garnish) along with the caster sugar, dark soy, any of the pork marinade you have left and stir, cooking for another couple of minutes.

Stir through the handful of fresh coriander for colour and because I love it.

Give it a final burst of heat, turn off the hob then pop a lid on while you make the quick egg fried rice.

In another large frying pan or wok, heat a tablespoon of oil over a medium high heat. Add your cooled rice, and stir fry for a couple of minutes until hot. Season with soy sauce and sesame oil, stir well then push the rice over to one side of the pan. Tip the beaten eggs into the space by the side pan.

Scramble the eggs with a fork and cook until barely firm then combine with the rice.

Have a big mouthful to see if the rice needs any further soy then serve, piping hot with your Pork and Pineapple, garnished with the reserved spring onions and a little extra coriander; or in my case, a lot of coriander.

This is such a flavourful, fresh supper. Something new for the endless list of meals we are all preparing at the moment. Well, new in a it’s-a-bit-70’s-but-in-a-good way. Am I making any sense anymore?

Lucy x

Pork with Pineapple recipe

Serves 4, generously

You will just need a large frying pan or wok for this

800g pork loin, I had two smaller loins

2 tablespoons soy sauce, light is best

2 tablespoons sherry, or Shaoxing rice wine

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon cornflour

1 tablespoon oil, I used flavoured wok oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped, or a heaped teaspoon of lazy garlic

225g pineapple, tinned or fresh, cut into pieces

2 teaspoons caster sugar

5 spring onions, finely chopped

1 tablespoon dark or sweet soy sauce

A handful chopped fresh coriander, plus more to garnish

Egg fried Rice – optional but delicious

250g rice, cooked and cooled

1 tablespoon oil, I used flavoured Wok oil

3 to 4 tablespoons soy sauce, to taste

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 eggs

More soy sauce to serve

In a large bowl whisk the soy, sherry or Shaoxing rice wine, sesame oil and cornflour until smooth. Thinly slice your pork loin then add to the marinade and stir. Pop to one side for the moment.

In a wok or large frying pan heat the tablespoon of oil over a medium high heat. Add the garlic and cook for around 10 seconds or until just golden, take care not to burn it. Add the pork to the hot pan, leaving behind any marinade if there is any, and stir fry the meat for 2 to 3 minutes until just turning golden.

Add the pineapple, the caster sugar, most of the spring onions, reserving a sprinkling for garnish, the tablespoon of dark soy and any marinade left from the pork and stir well. Cook for a further 2 to 3 minutes then stir through the chopped coriander. Ensure everything is piping hot then scatter with the served spring onions. Pop a lid on while you make the egg fried rice.

For the egg fried rice, heat a tablespoon of oil to a hot frying pan or wok. Stir the rice to coat with oil and heat it up. Stir through the soy sauce and sesame oil to coat. Push the rice to one side of the pan.

Beat the two eggs then pour into the pan where you have made space. Stir well to scramble the eggs and once just cooked, bring the rest of the rice back into the pan, mixing with the eggs. Taste and add more soy sauce as needed.

Serve the pork, piping hot, over the egg fried rice with a scattering of freshly chopped coriander.