Day 15: Sweet and Sour Pork

I was planning on margarita pork tonight because Jane was coming for dinner, and she loves a good margarita; but when I read the recipe again and saw the word grill, I said, "I'm out." I do not do the grill. Other than my mother, I do not know of any other woman who has permission or the will to use the grill. Frankly, it freaks me out and even though I have a gas grill I cannot figure out how to turn it on. Yes, I have a Masters degree, and I cannot figure out how to press a few buttons to make fire appear. So what?

So anyway, I needed to find a different pork recipe because the pork tenderloin was already in my fridge. I have made this recipe before and Paul really enjoyed it, so I figured that Jane would too. I actually remember going to Paul's house in high school and eating Sweet and Sour Chicken for the first time. The Abrams were a Mu Shu Pork and BBQ pork fried rice household.

Sweet and Sour Pork(serves 4)
Calories: 287 WW:6 points

1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 green pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 80z can of pineapple chunks in juice, drained

Step 1: Combine pork with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Toss well to coat and set aside

Step 2: Combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch, vinegar, water, sugar, ketchup, soy sauce in small bowl and set aside

Step 3: Heat a large, deep skillet over med-high heat and add oil. Add pork and stir fry until almost cooked through(2-3 minutes)

Step 4: add ginger and garlic. Stir fry until fragrant(30 seconds)

Step 5: Add the pepper and pineapple and stir fry until tender crisp(about 3 minutes)

Step 6: Add the sauce and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture boils and thickens and pork is cooked through(1-2 minutes)

Step 7: Serve with rice if desired(not included in calorie or point total)

Kitchen Play by Play: Besides the touching of the pork, this recipe was pretty easy and uneventful. I read the recipe wrong and bought a red pepper instead of a green pepper. Who cares? I also did not use ginger because Paul and I hate it. It is soooo overpowering. I did only use 2 garlic cloves but one was on steroids. Though, the actually cooking seems complicated, it is actually very easy and takes about 10-12 minutes total. It also smells great, so you do not mind standing over the stove top the whole time. I served the pork with instant brown rice(less points) and store bought frozen egg rolls(add 3 points). We had broccoli too.

The finished product
The Verdict:Nicole- Yummy, just like the last time I made it. I don't love the peppers, but I deal with them. I do love the pineapple mixed with the sauce though. I don't know if I would go quite so healthy next time and use brown rice; it had a not so friendly after taste in my opinion. I give the overall meal a 4.

Paul- gives it a 4.25. "thought it was authentic."

Austin- ate it, but needed to be hand fed. Big day with grandma today and he had a lot to say and some sillies to get out.

Jane- gives it a 4. She thought the pork was tender, and she liked the red peppers. The only thing that could have made it better is if it would have been fried :)