Tender pork chops on a bed of fried rice topped with a savory, tangy tomato sauce with onions and melted cheese. This easy Hong Kong Style Baked Pork Chop Rice is delicious and so comforting! It beats takeout and a great main dish for the family!
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Hong Kong Style Baked Pork Chop Rice is a baked casserole rice dish featuring pork cutlets on fried rice with a delicious tomato onion sauce and melting cheese broiled over top.
You'll find this popular Chinese dish served at many Hong Kong style cafés (aka 'cha-chang-teng' in Cantonese). Hong Kong-style cafés are known to serve many Western-style dishes with an Asian twist. This is because Hong Kong used to be a colony of Britain.
These cafés often serve dishes like Hong Kong french toast, macaroni soup, pasta dishes and more! They are one of my favourite kind of restaurant to dine at with my husband.
I’ve always been a huge fan of this baked rice dish! There is something so comforting about it. The taste of the melted cheese with the tangy sweet tomato sauce over that juicy pork and the fried rice is divine!
If I had to only choose one Hong Kong style dish to enjoy for the rest of my life, it would be this! Unlike the restaurant, the pork is pan-fried in this recipe and not deep-fried to reduce less oil waste and to make it slightly healthier.
Ingredients & Substitutes
Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.
- Boneless pork shoulder (aka pork butt): for a good meat to fat ratio. Or substitute with pork chops and debone them. For a leaner cut, substitute with pork loin.
- Shredded cheese: ideally a mix of cheddar and mozzarella but you can substitute for shredded cheddar or shredded mozzarella.
- 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.
Fried rice
- Day-old cooked jasmine rice: cold leftover rice works best for fluffy fried rice. Avoid using same-day hot cooked rice or it'll cause soggy fried rice.
- Eggs
- Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce.
- Sesame oil: for that nutty flavor but please omit if you're allergic.
- Frozen Mixed Vegetables: such as frozen peas, carrots, green beans and/or corn niblets
- Neutral oil
Tomato Onion Sauce
- Onions
- Canned Crushed Tomatoes: or substitute with puréed tomatoes if you like more texture. I recommend using san marzano tomatoes as they are so flavorful!
- Ketchup: for that tangy flavor.
- Oyster sauce: or substitute with vegetarian stir fry sauce if you don't like oysters. If you're gluten-free: substitute with a gluten-free version.
- White granulated sugar: to balance out the tartness in the tomato and ketchup sauce. Do not skip this!
Cornstarch slurry
- Cornstarch: or potato starch to thicken the sauce
- Cold water
Pork Marinade
- Regular soy sauce
- Cornstarch: to tenderize and velvet the meat to make it juicy and tender. The starch helps to lock in the moisture from the oil and is commonly used in Chinese cooking. Or substitute with potato starch.
- Neutral oil: this adds moisture to the pork which is locked in by the cornstarch.
- Shaoxing wine: a Chinese rice cooking wine. Or substitute with Dry Sherry. For a non-alcoholic or gluten-free version, substitute with any broth.
- Baking soda: the key ingredient in Chinese cuisine to tenderize meat by raising the pH to prevent protein bonding! Do not skip!
- Black pepper: or white pepper as a substitute
Note: Most Asian grocers will carry these ingredients. You may find some at your select grocery store or online, like on Amazon.
Expert Tips
- Use boneless pork shoulder as this has a great fat to meat ratio. We want some fat in the meat so it doesn't dry out when you pan fry and broil it.
- Use canned san marzano tomatoes for best flavor!
- Break up the cold leftover rice with a rice paddle or clean hands prior to cooking, so they toast evenly in the pan.
- Don't skip the oil, cornstarch and baking soda in the pork marinade. These are the secret ingredients to making the extra pork tender.
- Pre-heat the oven first as it'll take awhile for it to get to 500 degrees F.
- Don't overcook the pork or fried rice because we are also broiling it later.
- Brown the onions for extra flavor in the tomato sauce!
- Broil the cheese until it bubbles and browns on the edges. But don't over broil it.
Instructions
Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make Hong Kong Style Baked Pork Chop Rice:
- Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees F.
- First slice boneless pork shoulder into 2x3-inch long pieces that are about 1-cm thick. Then marinate sliced pork pieces with the pork marinade ingredients as listed. Set aside as you prepare the other ingredients.
- In a small bowl, combine cornstarch slurry ingredients as listed. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large non-stick pan on medium-high heat. Scramble the beaten eggs and push them to the side. Add another 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into the empty space of the pan. Toss in cooked rice and break it up if needed and then mix with the scrambled eggs. Toss in frozen mixed vegetables. Season the fried rice with regular soy sauce and sesame oil and mix everything together. Remove and transfer the fried rice into a 9x9 baking dish and spread it out evenly. Set aside.
- On medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into the pan. Fry marinated pork on both sides until they’re no longer pink, about 3 minutes in total. Evenly place cooked pork on top of fried rice in the baking dish.
- On medium-high heat, fry onions until they are browned on the edges. Mix in the crushed tomatoes and break up any larger tomatoes with a spatula. Season with ketchup, oyster sauce, white granulated sugar and mix well. Reduce to medium heat and stir in the cornstarch slurry. Bring sauce to a boil to thicken and reduce.
- Pour the thickened tomato sauce over the pork. Evenly sprinkle shredded cheese over top. Broil in the oven at 500 degrees F for 10 minutes until cheese has melted and is slightly browned. Serve and enjoy!
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 the oven at 350 degrees F until it's hot through out.
- Freezer friendly? I don't recommend freezing Hong Kong style baked pork chops on rice because the rice will become soggy from the tomato sauce.
Pairing Suggestions
Hong Kong baked pork chop rice serves well with:
- chow mein, lo mein, or soup noodles
- cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
- protein dishes like Soy Sauce Chicken, Oven-Roasted Char Siu or Air Fryer Char Siu, or Chinese Roasted Pork Belly.
FAQ
This can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. I recommend storing the fried rice separate from the pork and tomato sauce so it doesn't go soggy. To enjoy, reheat it in the microwave or in the oven at 350 degrees F until it's hot through out.
I don't recommend skipping the sugar as the tomato sauce will become very tart and sour. You may substitute the sugar with another sweetener (like stevia) of your choice though.
Yes, you can substitute the pork with chicken, beef or extra-firm tofu if you wish.
📖 Recipe
Hong Kong Style Baked Pork Chop Rice
Ingredients
- ½ lb boneless pork shoulder or deboned pork chops
- 1 cup shredded cheese cheddar and mozzarella mix
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil to fry pork
Pork Marinade
- 1 teaspoon regular soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch or potato starch
- ½ teaspoon Shaoxing Cooking Wine or dry sherry wine
- ½ tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For the Fried rice
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil or any neutral oil
- 4 large eggs beaten
- 4 cups cooked jasmine rice cold day-old rice recommended
- 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables like peas, carrots, corn and/or green beans (rinsed under cold water and strained)
- 2.5 tablespoon regular soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Tomato Onion Sauce
- 1 cup onion thinly sliced
- 29 fl oz crushed tomatoes canned
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce or vegetarian stir fry sauce
- 2 tablespoon white granulated sugar
Cornstarch slurry
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch or potato starch
- ¼ cup water cold
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees F.
- First slice boneless pork shoulder into 2x3-inch long pieces that are about 1-cm thick. Then marinate sliced pork pieces with the pork marinade ingredients as listed. Set aside as you prepare the other ingredients.
- In a small bowl, combine cornstarch slurry ingredients as listed. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large non-stick pan on medium-high heat. Scramble the beaten eggs and push them to the side. Add another 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into the empty space of the pan. Toss in cooked rice and break it up if needed and then mix with the scrambled eggs. Toss in frozen mixed vegetables. Season the fried rice with regular soy sauce and sesame oil and mix everything together. Remove and transfer the fried rice into a 9x9 baking dish and spread it out evenly. Set aside.
- On medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into the pan. Fry marinated pork on both sides until they’re no longer pink, about 3 minutes in total. Evenly place cooked pork on top of fried rice in the baking dish.
- On medium-high heat, fry onions until they are browned on the edges. Mix in the crushed tomatoes and break up any larger tomatoes with a spatula. Season with ketchup, oyster sauce, white granulated sugar and mix well. Reduce to medium heat and stir in the cornstarch slurry. Bring sauce to a boil to thicken and reduce.
- Pour the thickened tomato sauce over the pork. Evenly sprinkle shredded cheese over top. Broil in the oven at 500 degrees F for 10 minutes until cheese has melted and is slightly browned. Serve and enjoy!
Rosemary
I love how you made these pork chops healthier pan fried!! It's always a trip to Asia when I read about your recipe inspiration
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
That was a smart idea for using day old rice... and the oyster sauce really gives these chops such a fun flavor twist!