A quick, delicious, and full-of-flavor Stir-fried Bean Sprouts with pork requires only 10 minutes of preparation.
I love all kinds of quick and easy stir-frying dishes, especially with protein. Those stir-fry dishes are the most popular ones in Chinese cuisine. When protein is stir-fried with vegetables, this dish can combine the tender texture of meat, full of flavors from seasonings, and the freshness and crunchiness of the vegetables. This recipe will use bean sprouts to replace the common green pepper or broccoli. And it is so good.
Those tiny sprouts from beans, either from mung bean or soybeans, are extremely popular in Asian cuisines. They can be white or pale yellow, crunchy, and crispy. Many spring rolls may use bean sprouts because they add crunchiness.
Bean sprouts are highly recommended for weight control. In addition to stir-frying dishes, we love to use them in soups, as a base for Sichuan Shuizhu dishes, or even as a salad.
Difference between soybean sprouts and mung bean sprouts
Soybean and mung bean sprouts are both popular types of bean sprouts, but they come from different beans and have some differences. Yellowish Soybean sprouts are larger and thicker than mung bean sprouts, while the latter is more delicate. You can choose your type as both work fine for stir-frying dishes.
Step-by-Step Instructions:
Marinate the Pork:
Combine the shredded pork with soy sauce, dark soy sauce, water cornstarch, cooking wine, oyster sauce, and white pepper powder in a bowl. Let it marinate for 20 minutes to absorb all the flavors. Then, pour vegetable cooking oil and mix well before stir-frying.
Fry the pork
First, heat your wok or pan until very hot. Add cooking oil to form a 2-3 cm high layer (do not be scared by the amount of oil; we do not eat it all. Spread the pork slices when the oil is warm but not hot. Let them stay for 3-5 seconds, then quickly fry them until they turn pale. Transfer out immediately.
It is 100% okay to find some faint pink color inside the slices for the following two reasons: the heat of the pork slices will continue cooking them (后热效应), and they will be recooked in a wok later. So do not overcook your pork slices. Transfer out as long as they turn pale. That’s our super tender pork slices.
Fry aromatics and bean sprouts.
Remove the extra oil and save it for vegetable stir-fries. Leaving around two tablespoons of oil, turn up the fire, add garlic, scallion section, dried chili pepper, and bean sprouts simultaneously, keep the fire high, and fry those ingredients for around half a minute. Sprinkle a small amount of salt and light soy sauce.
Return pork and scallion sections and mix well quickly. Drizzle some sesame oil optionally, transfer it out, and serve it hot.
Tips: High heat when frying the bean sprouts can help sear the surface quickly and lock in the water content. Don't overmix after adding the pork because the bean spourts may scratch the starch layer.
- 200 g pork butt or tenderloin , thinly sliced
Marinating
- 1/4 tsp. salt , optional (you can skip this for a less salted dish)
- 1/2 tbsp. cooking wine
- 1/2 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp. water or chicken stock
- 1/4 tsp. white pepper
- 3 tsp. cornstarch
- 1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil
Stir fry
- cooking oil as needed
- 3 garlic cloves ,sliced
- 2 scallions , chopped
- 1/2 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 2 dried chili pepper or peper flakes
- small pinch of salt for bean sprouts
- 1 tsp. sesame oil , optional
Marinate the Pork
-
Combine the shredded pork with soy sauce, dark soy sauce, water cornstarch, cooking wine, oyster sauce, and white pepper powder in a bowl. Let it marinate for 20 minutes to absorb all the flavors. Then, pour vegetable cooking oil and mix well before stir-frying.
Fry the pork
-
First, heat your wok or pan until very hot. Add cooking oil to form a 2-3 cm high layer (do not be scared by the amount of oil; we do not eat it all). Spread the pork slices in when the oil is warm but not very hot. Let them stay for around 3-5 seconds, and then quickly fry them until they turn pale. Transfer out immediately.
-
It is 100% okay to find some faint pink color inside the slices for the following two reasons: the heat of the pork slices will continue cooking them (后热效应), and they will be recooked in a wok later. So do not overcook your pork slices. Transfer out as long as they turn pale.
Fry aromatics and bean sprouts
-
Remove the extra oil and save it for vegetable stir-fries. Leaving around two tablespoons of oil, now turn up the fire, add garlic, chili peper, scallion section, and bean sprouts at the same time, keep the fire high, and fry those ingredients for around half a minute. Sprinkle a small amount of salt and light soy sauce.
You can use either pork tenderloin or pork butt for this recipe. For a better texture, I recommend pork butt which is the best part for stir-frying in my mind. If you prefer a better shape of the dish, pork tenderloin is a better choice.
Calories: 238kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 474mg | Potassium: 448mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 160IU | Vitamin C: 3.3mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1.1mg
Serving Suggestions
This dish pairs wonderfully with steamed rice or noodles. For a complete meal, you can also serve it alongside other Chinese dishes like mapo tofu and smashed cucumber salad.
I hope you love this healthy and quick Chinese stir fry! Happy cooking.