Sichuan home cooking
Fish-Fragrant Shredded Pork
Velveting, even knife work, a pre-mixed fish-fragrant sauce, and fast high-heat cooking keep the pork tender and vegetables crisp.
Difficulty: Moderate · Total time: 33 minutes · Serves: 3 · Published: 2026-10-06
Ingredients
- pork tenderloin — 300 g
- rehydrated wood ear mushrooms — 80 g
- carrot — 80 g
- green pepper — 80 g
- minced ginger and garlic — 10 g each
- Pixian chili bean paste — 20 g
- light soy sauce — 15 ml
- rice vinegar — 20 ml
- sugar — 15 g
- cornstarch — 10 g
- Shaoxing wine — 10 ml
- neutral oil — 25 ml
Preparation
- Cut pork into 5 cm sections, then slice 3 mm strips across the grain. Mix with wine, 5 ml soy, and 5 g cornstarch; marinate 15 minutes.
- Julienne the vegetables evenly. Mix remaining soy, vinegar, sugar, cornstarch, and 30 ml water.
Method
1. Flash-cook the pork
Heat the wok until faintly smoking, add oil, and separate the pork quickly. Remove as soon as the color changes.
- Heat
- High
- Time
- 60–90 seconds
- Ready when
- Strips are separate and no longer pink outside but still flexible.
2. Cook paste and vegetables
Leave a little oil, cook bean paste, ginger, and garlic over medium heat until red oil appears, then raise heat and add vegetables.
- Heat
- Medium, then high
- Time
- 2 minutes
- Ready when
- Carrot begins to soften while pepper and wood ear remain crisp.
3. Sauce and finish
Return the pork, stir the sauce again, pour it around the wok, and toss rapidly.
- Heat
- High
- Time
- 30–45 seconds
- Ready when
- The glossy sauce evenly coats the pork and vegetables.
Tips for success
- Cutting across the grain and applying a thin starch coating keeps pork tender.
- Prepare everything before heating the wok so the pork never waits in the pan.
Common mistakes
- Wet pork clumps and releases water instead of searing.
- Uneven vegetable cuts cook at different rates.
Storage
- Refrigerate for up to 2 days.
- Reheat quickly in a hot pan until piping hot; prolonged heating toughens the pork.