Delicious pork shallow fried and seasoned in a flavourful aromatic salt and pepper seasoning. This quick and easy Chinese salt and pepper pork is ready in 30 minutes with simple ingredients. A great main that beats takeout for the family!
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This easy salt and pepper pork features fried tender pork with red chilies, green onions, ginger, salt, black pepper, and Shoaxing wine! It's best served for dinner or lunch with white rice and vegetables at many Chinese restaurants or takeaway.
It's a popular Chinese dish known for it's aromatic flavors and crispy pork! Whenever we go out for dinner or order in, this dish is a must thanks to its savoury flavour with a hint of spice and crispy textures.
My version is also not deep fried and it's shallow fried so there's less oil being used making it more healthier. The restaurants usually deep fry the pork in a lot of oil, which is wasteful for most home cooks unless you reuse the oil.
If you're not a fan of pork, I also share other salt and pepper recipes such as Salt and Pepper Shrimp, Salt and Pepper Chicken or Salt and Pepper Tofu that are equally enjoyable!
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Boneless pork shoulder: aka pork butt. Try to source one that is well-marbled with fat throughout for that tender juicy cut. You can also use pork loin for a more leaner version or pork chops but remove the bone.
- Large Red Chilies: or for an even spicier version, use Thai red bird's eye chili. Or omit altogether if you don't want it spicy.
- Large Green Chili: or omit if you want this spiceless.
- Green onion
- Fresh ginger
- White granulated sugar
- Shaoxing wine: a Chinese rice cooking wine. Or substitute with Dry Sherry. For a non-alcoholic or gluten-free version, substitute with any broth.
- Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil that has a low smoke point.
- Salt
- Black pepper: or substitute with white pepper
Pork Marinade
- Shaoxing wine: a Chinese rice cooking wine. Or substitute with Dry Sherry. For a non-alcoholic or gluten-free version, substitute with any broth.
- Salt
- Black pepper: or substitute with white pepper
- Cornstarch: or substitute with potato starch
Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients.
Expert Tips
- Use a cut of pork marbled with fat. This is key to a juicy tender pork dish. But if you prefer a leaner version, you can use pork loin.
- Evenly slice the pork into the same size so they cook evenly.
- Tenderize the pork with a meat mallet or the back of your knife. This breaks down the muscle fibres in the pork making it more tender. You can place a sheet of plastic wrap over the pork before tenderizing so the juices don't fly everywhere.
- Make sure the pork is evenly coated in the starch in the marinade so it becomes crispy!
- Prepare your ingredients in advance as the cooking process is quick!
- Make sure the oil is hot enough before frying between 325 - 350 degrees F or if you insert a wooden utensil into oil and look for bubbles.
- Fry in small batches and don't overcrowd the pan as this reduces the oil temperature leading to less crispy pork.
- Drain the fried pork on a wire rack or paper towel lined plate to remove excess oil which leads to soggy pork.
- Do not overcook the aromatics. Only sauté until fragrant or you can easily burn them.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make salt and pepper pork:
- Slice pork into 1-inch wide x 2-inch long strips. Then tenderize the pork strips with a meat tenderizer or with the back of the knife until it’s thin, about 0.25 to 0.5 inches thick. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.
- Season the pork strips with the marinade ingredients starting with shaoxing wine, salt and black pepper. Give it a mix and then coat the pork strips with cornstarch. Make sure every crevice is coated in the starch to ensure maximum crispiness.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, fry marinated pork in small batches and do not overcrowd the pan. Fry pork on both sides until golden crispy and no longer pink inside, between 6-10 minutes or an internal temperature of 145 degrees F with a digital instant read thermometer.
- Remove and transfer fried pork to a wire rack or paper towel lined plate to remove excess oil.
- Reserve 1 teaspoon of oil in the pan and fry red chilli, green chilli, green onion, ginger, and sugar. Deglaze with shaoxing wine. Stir fry for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Quickly toss in cooked pork for 20 seconds. Remove off heat. Season with salt and black pepper to taste and serve.
Storage
- Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat: microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
- Freezer friendly? This can be stored in a freezer friendly bag and frozen up to 3 months or until you see freezer burn. To reheat, defrost it and reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop in a pan.
Pairing Suggestions
Chinese salt and pepper pork serves well with:
- starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, hot and sour soup
- white or brown rice, cauliflower rice, fried rice, chow mein, lo mein, plain noodles, soup noodles
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- other protein dishes like Orange Chicken, Lemon Chicken, Cashew Chicken, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Bang Bang Shrimp, Gochujang Chicken, Soy Garlic Tofu, Chinese Braised Tofu and more!
FAQ
This can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To enjoy, reheat it in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.
Yes, feel free to substitute the pork with chicken, beef steak, shrimp, sturdy white fish or extra-firm tofu. I share recipes for different versions linked above.
You can air fry the coated pork by first lightly spraying the air fryer basket with enough oil. Then lay the coated pork in a single layer giving each piece enough space. Next spray a generous amount of oil over the pork pieces. Then air fry at 300 degrees F for 7-9 minutes. Then flip the pieces over and spray enough oil over each piece. Air fry on the other side at 400 degrees F for 4-6 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
Other recipes you may like
📖 Recipe
Quick & Easy Chinese Salt and Pepper Pork
Ingredients
- 1.65 lb boneless pork shoulder well marbled
- 2 large red chili pepper sliced
- 1 large green chilli sliced
- 2 green onions finely sliced
- 1 teaspoon ginger sliced with skin on
- 1 teaspoon white granulated sugar or sub with cane sugar
- ¼ cup vegetable oil or any neutral oil for frying
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing Cooking Wine or Dry sherry wine or chicken broth for a non-alcoholic version
- ¼ teaspoon salt add more if needed
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper add more if needed
Pork Marinade
- 2 tablespoon Shaoxing Cooking Wine or Dry sherry wine or chicken broth for a non-alcoholic version
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup cornstarch or potato starch
Instructions
- Slice pork into 1-inch wide x 2-inch long strips. Then tenderize the pork strips with a meat tenderizer or with the back of the knife until it’s thin, about 0.25 to 0.5 inches thick. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.
- Season the pork strips with the marinade ingredients starting with shaoxing wine, salt and black pepper. Give it a mix and then coat the pork strips with cornstarch. Make sure every crevice is coated in the starch to ensure maximum crispiness.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large pan on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, fry marinated pork in small batches and do not overcrowd the pan. Fry pork on both sides until golden crispy and no longer pink inside, between 6-10 minutes or an internal temperature of 145 degrees F with a digital instant read thermometer.
- Remove and transfer fried pork to a wire rack or paper towel lined plate to remove excess oil.
- Reserve 1 teaspoon of oil in the pan and fry red chilli, green chilli, green onion, ginger, and sugar. Deglaze with shaoxing wine. Stir fry for 10 seconds or until fragrant.
- Quickly toss in cooked pork for 20 seconds. Remove off heat. Season with salt and black pepper to taste and serve.
Kim
What pork cut do you usually use?
christieathome
I usually use pork shoulder as it contains a good marbling of fat through.
Katherine | Love In My Oven
Looks awesome, Christie!! I'm craving this crispy, salty pork now!! Yum!
christieathome
Thanks so much Katherine!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
What a fun weeknight dinner! I've never tried this, but I definitely need to... it looks absolutely AMAZING!
Tasia ~ two sugar bugs
This salt and pepper pork looks so crispy and flavorful! It will be a hit at my house!