Crispy Thai Pork Bites with Sweet Chilli Sauce

Ingredients
Crispy pork bites
- 600 g / 1.2 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 2cm/0.8" cubes
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp + 1/2 cup cornflour / cornstarch
- > 1 cup neutral flavoured oil, 0.5cm / 0.2" depth (canola, sunflower, vegetable, peanut oil – not olive oil)
Sweet chilli sauce
- 1/2 cup sweet chilli sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
Garnish and serving
- Coriander/cilantro leaves, roughly torn by hand, optional
- Lime wedges, optional
- Jasmine rice, or other rice of choice
Instructions
- 1
Preparation - Toss the pork with the fish sauce, then the 1 1/2 tbsp cornflour. The coating should be a bit sticky.
- 2
Coating - Sprinkle over the 1/2 cup of cornflour and toss with fingers to coat each piece, separating pieces stuck together. Give each piece a light squeeze in your fist to make the cornflour stick – you can do 2 or 3 pieces at a time in each hand. Drop into a colander, then give it a shake to remove excess cornflour – important step.
- 3
Cooking - Heat 0.5 cm / 0.2" oil in a non-stick pan or large pot over high heat – dip a piece of pork in, it should sizzle straight away.
- 4
Cooking - Spread half the pork in the oil. Cook for 1 minute undisturbed until golden. Flip then cook for another 2 minutes (3 minutes in total, including time it takes to flip) or until golden and crisp. Don't overcook – tenderloin is lean!
- 5
Cooking - Remove with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel-lined tray to drain. Cook remaining pork. Taste-test one "just to check" crispiness!
- 6
Sauce - Pour out all the oil (strain and re-use, it's very clean). Return the pan to medium heat. Add the Sauce ingredients, stir and let it simmer for 2 minutes until it thickens into a syrupy consistency.
- 7
Sauce - Add pork, toss quickly to coat.
- 8
Serving - Serve immediately over rice, sprinkled with a little coriander and a lime wedge. I like to serve it classic Thai street-food style with plain tomato and cucumber wedges (no dressing) – the freshness is great with this dish!
