Onion pork chops

Name: Onion pork chops
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Cantonese
Ingredients: Pork chop 4; Onion 2; Light soy sauce 2 tbsp; Sugar 2 tsp; Cornflour 1 tbsp; Rice wine (cooking wine) 1 tsp; Oyster sauce 1 tbsp; Ketchup 1 tbsp; Worcestershire 1 tsp; Cooking oil 3 tbsp

洋蔥豬扒

Pan-friedPorkWeeknightKids like itOne pot, one mealEasyhands-on 25 min · start to finish 1 hr

“Fried golden. The children’s favourite.”

Ingredientsserves 4

街市Pork chop· about 600 g, bone-in loin chops cut about 1 cm4

街市Onion· sliced2

雜貨舖Light soy sauce· one for the marinade, one for the sauce2 tbsp

雜貨舖Sugar· one for the marinade, one for the sauce2 tsp

雜貨舖Cornflour· cornflour, for the marinade, plus half a teaspoon for the sauce1 tbsp

雜貨舖Rice wine (cooking wine)· Shaoxing, for the marinade1 tsp

雜貨舖Oyster sauce· for the sauce1 tbsp

雜貨舖Ketchup· for the sauce1 tbsp

雜貨舖Worcestershire· for the sauce1 tsp

雜貨舖Cooking oil· one to seal the marinade, two for the pan3 tbsp

Method

Cut the white sinew at the edge of each chop in two or three places so it does not curl, then pound both sides with the back of the knife or a mallet.
Work a tablespoon of soy, a teaspoon of sugar, the tablespoon of cornflour, a pinch of white pepper, the wine and two tablespoons of water into the meat with your hands, water first so the meat drinks it in, then a tablespoon of oil last to seal; rest thirty minutes.
Stir a tablespoon of soy, the oyster sauce, a teaspoon of sugar, the ketchup, the Worcestershire, four tablespoons of water and half a teaspoon of cornflour together for the sauce.
Heat two tablespoons of oil in a flat pan over medium-high. Fry the chops two to three minutes a side until golden, lower the heat to finish them through, and lift out.
Turn the pan to medium-low and fry the onion slowly in the same pan until soft and browning at the edges.
Return the chops, add two tablespoons of water and turn everything together.
Pour in the sauce and cover for two minutes; a thick chop cooks through in this step, and it is done when the centre shows no pink and the juices run clear. Uncover, let the sauce thicken to a glaze on the meat, and serve over rice.

Take care

The pork must be cooked through; a 2 cm chop needs the lid step, and it is done when the centre shows no pink and the juices run clear. Worcestershire sauce contains fish (anchovy) and soy, and in most brands wheat or barley; oyster sauce is mollusc; the soy sauce contains soy and wheat.

The story

Onion pork chops moved from the cha chaan teng and fast-food lunch plate to the family table, and Hong Kong food writers describe it as one of the most seen dishes in both places. Its sauce is the signature of soy-sauce Western food: Cantonese seasoning plus a spoon of ketchup and a spoon of Worcestershire, the two bottled British sauces Hong Kong kitchens adopted in the colonial era.

Same technique

Pan-fried dace fish cakes

Egg dumplings

Stuffed peppers, eggplant and tofu

Lo Fo Tong is cultural food-heritage reference, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, unwell or on medication, talk to your doctor or registered practitioner before changing what is in the pot.