Some mistakes, still good--Hot and Sour Pork with Cabbage

Hot and Sour Pork with Cabbage
Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 Copyright 2006

1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into strips
1 tablespoon cornstarch, divided
½ teaspoon white pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon water
½ cup ketchup
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon Siracha (hot chile sauce, such as Huy Fong) I had the one with garlic
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon peanut oil I used canola oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
12 cups coarsely chopped cabbage (about 2 pounds)
1/3 cup chopped green onions

1. Combine pork, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, white pepper and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
2. Combine 2 teaspoons cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl, set aside.
3. Combine ketchup and next 3 ingredients in a small bowl; set aside.
4. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork mixture and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Remove pork from pan; set aside. Add cabbage to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add ketchup mixture; sauté 2 minutes. Stir in pork; sauté 1 minute. Stir in cornstarch mixture; cook 30 seconds or until thick. Remove from heat. Stir in onions.

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Well actually I think I just made one mistake with this recipe. I cut the cabbage too big. It said 'coarsely chopped' so as you can see, my slices were kind of thick. Afterwards I noticed a note at the top that you can use bagged shredded cabbage which would be cut much thinner. I had to cook this much longer than the 2 minutes here and there that the recipe called for. I didn't like the cabbage I had either. Not enough green leaves, too much white stuff.

In the end, I was happy. It wasn't outrageously awesome but it was spicy and flavorful and rather healthy with all of that cabbage. It was a satisfying dinner.

My grocery bill continues to rise. I did stock up on butter since it was on sale for a good price and I'll need it for baking but that wasn't the only reason my bill was higher. Menu planning and shopping while tired is bad news! Even worse than shopping while hungry.

Blast From The Past: Stir-Fried Pork with Sweet Onions from June 1006. I almost forgot about that simple and delicious stir-fry.

Question of the Day: Have you ever cooked with Siracha (hot chile sauce)?