Chinese Salt & Pepper Pork (椒鹽豬肉) | Sift & Simmer (2024)

This recipe for Chinese Salt & Pepper Pork is a restaurant favorite, featuring crunchy fried pork chunks seasoned with salt, pepper and aromatics.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox.Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!

What is Chinese salt and pepper pork?

Like the name suggests, it's a dish commonly found in Chinese restaurants where pork chops are deep-fried until golden brown and crunchy, seasoned with salt and white pepper.

Variations of this dish include salt and pepper chicken wings, shrimp, squid, or fish.

The methodology of frying the pork is similar to making .

Why you'll love this recipe

This recipe for salt and pepper pork is:

Worth the effort: to make this restaurant-worthy dish at home, and is much more economical.

Uses pork butt: or pork shoulder for more flavor, and is cut into smaller chunks for ease of frying and eating!

Super flavorful: the sauteed salt, pepper and aromatics along with the crunchy pork make this a delectable dish to serve for dinner, or any time.

Ingredients you'll need

Pork:

• pork butt or shoulder (豬肉): cut into bite sized pieces; but you can also use pork chops
• soy sauce (醬油): or salt, for flavor
• egg (蛋): acts as a binder
• all-purpose flour (麵粉): for coating the pork pieces

For frying:

• peanut oil (花生油): or any high smoke-point neutral oil

Aromatics & seasonings:

• red bell pepper (紅甜椒): diced
• green bell pepper (青椒):diced
• white onion (洋蔥): diced
• garlic (蒜): minced
• Thai chili (泰國辣椒): optional, minced; for extra spice
• sea salt (鹽)
• white pepper (胡椒粉)

How to make it

Prepare the pork:

In a bowl, combine pork chunks with soy sauce and white pepper.

Stir to combine and place into the fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour.

Add 1 beaten egg to the pork and mix ½ C to ¾ C of all-purpose flour to coat the pork pieces.

Fry the pork:

Heat up a wok or large pot with peanut oil over medium high heat.

Once the oil temperature reaches 350F, add in the pork pieces and fry in batches, until crispy and golden brown, about 6-7 minutes.

Remove the fried pork and place onto a baking sheet lined with paper towel.

Repeat with the remaining pork.

Fry the aromatics:

Drain and remove excess oil from the wok, leaving approximately 1 tablespoon of oil.

Heat the wok over medium heat and add in the onion.

Sauté, stirring the mixture constantly, for about 1-2 minutes.

Transfer the fried pork into the wok and add in the garlic, red and green bell peppers, chili (if using), salt and pepper and continue to toss to combine.

Remove from heat and transfer to a serving dish.

Serve immediately with steamed rice.

How to serve

Serve the Chinese Salt & Pepper Pork with steamed rice, along with other side dishes such as yu choy, steamed egg, pan-fried tofu, sweet and sour pork, or steamed fish.

How to store

Store any leftover salt and pepper pork in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

How to reheat

Reheat salt and pepper pork in a 350F oven for 15-20 minutes, until the pork is crisp and warmed through.

You can microwave the pork to reheat, but do note that it will lose its crispness this way.

Expert tips

This dish is executed in a quick manner -- be sure to have all your ingredients ready before cooking.

Note: it's crucial to sauté the aromatics quickly, especially when working with a very hot wok. Otherwise, the garlic and onions will scorch, imparting a bitter flavor to the dish.

Other Chinese pork recipes you may like

Be sure to check out these recipes:

Chinese Pork Trotter in Black Vinegar (Instant Pot)

How to Make Pork Lard

Chinese Steamed Pork Patty (Yuk Beng 蒸肉餅)

Let me know if you try out this recipe -- tag me on Instagram @siftandsimmer or leave me a comment/rating below!

More Main Dishes