Crispy Pork with Sweet-and-Sour Sauce (Tangsuyuk)

This dish is very popular in Chinese restaurants in Korea, but it’s been so adapted over the years that it would be unrecognizable to diners in China. My family used to feast on it for special occasions when I was little, and I loved the combination of mushrooms and carrots, vinegar and sugar, and apple and pineapple in the sauce. I learned how to make a light, super crispy coating for the pork from a friend. She mixed potato starch with water in a bowl and then let the starch settle to the bottom. After draining away the water on top, she mixed the clay-like starch with an egg white to loosen it and then coated the pork with this mixture. But the best coating in the world will not get you crispy pork if you fry it only once. As with crispy fried chicken, double-frying is essential. This isn’t a difficult recipe, but timing is everything. Make the sauce first, so it’s ready when the pork is. Then reheat it just as the pork comes out of the oil for the second time. And make sure to serve this dish as soon you have combined the pork and sauce so the pork is still crisp when you sit down to eat.

Serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound boneless pork shoulder, cut into small strips (1½ x ½ x ¼ inch)
• ½ teaspoon minced peeled ginger
• Kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 dried wood ear or shiitake mushrooms
• 1¼ cups potato starch
• 6 cups plus 2 tablespoons water
• 1 large egg white
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• ⅓ cup sliced onion
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into ½-inch rounds
• ¼ cup packed light brown sugar or turbinado sugar
• 2 tablespoons plus ½ teaspoon soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons distilled white or apple cider vinegar
• 1 red apple, cored and cut lengthwise into ¼-inch slices
• 3 canned pineapple rings, halved
• Corn oil for deep-frying
• ¾ cup sliced English cucumber
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Combine the pork, ginger, ½ teaspoon salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate while you prepare the other ingredients.
2. Cover the mushrooms with cold water in a bowl. Soak wood ears for 1½ hours, shiitakes for 3 to 4 hours, until softened.
3. Meanwhile, combine 1 cup of the potato starch and 3 cups of the water in a bowl. Stir well, then let sit until the starch settles at the bottom of the bowl, about 1½ hours.
4. Drain the mushrooms and trim off and discard the tough stems. Cut the mushrooms into bite-size pieces and pat dry.
5. Combine 2 tablespoons of the potato starch with 2 tablespoons of the water in a small bowl.
6. Pour off the water from the larger bowl of potato starch, so you are left with the thick layer of starch at the bottom of the bowl. Add the egg white and stir until smooth.
7. Heat the vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and mushrooms and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the carrot and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the remaining 3 cups water, the sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon of the soy sauce, and 2 tablespoons of the vinegar and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium and add the apple and pineapple. Stir the small bowl of potato starch and water and then stir into the sauce. Cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens and becomes shiny, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.
8. Remove the pork from the refrigerator and toss with the remaining 2 tablespoons potato starch.
9. Combine the soy sauce and vinegar in small bowl, for the dipping sauce.
10. Heat about 4 inches of corn oil in a deep pot to 330°F. Turn the heat down to medium-high. Toss the pork with the batter, mixing well to coat each piece. Working in batches, carefully drop the pork pieces into the oil. They will puff up and float to the surface. Stir them occasionally until they begin to turn light golden brown and look crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer them to a colander set over a bowl to drain.
11. Fry the pork again, in batches, until very crisp and golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain, then arrange on a large platter.
12. Reheat the pineapple sauce. When it’s hot, stir in the cucumber and sesame oil and stir for 10 seconds.
13. Pour the sauce over the pork and serve immediately, with the soyvinegar dipping sauce on the side.