Sweet and sour pork chops, or Peking pork chops, are a bit of an Americanized “Chinese” dish. But that doesn’t mean people don’t enjoy it! We’ve had lots of requests for a sweet and sour pork recipe, and we’re answering the call.
Our sweet and sour pork chops recipe uses maple syrup as the sweetening agent, giving our version of “Peking Pork Chops” a hint of maple flavor to compliment the tangy sauce.
The first time I tasted a dish with maple and pork, the first thing that came into my mind was, “pancake syrup and pork?”; the very next thought, after my taste buds sent signals to my brain, was “wow, that is brilliant!”
Nowadays and for some time already, cooking pork and maple syrup is pretty common (maple-flavored bacon, anyone?), but it is very rare in Chinese cooking. However, this “up the ante” combination is out-of-sight delicious.
After you make these sweet and sour pork chops for the first time, you can experiment with the sauce ingredients to customize it to your own liking–more sweet, more sour–the world is your oyster!
In fact, if you like it without the sauce, then check out you can try our Cantonese favorite, Salt and Pepper Pork Chops or our Asian take on Southern Fried Pork Chops!
You can usually find thinly sliced pork chops at your grocery store, and there is no special preparation needed. If your grocery store doesn’t have them, just ask the butcher to slice you a few chops that are about 1/2 an inch thick.
Peking Pork Chops: Recipe Instructions
Marinate the pork chops in a mixture of Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and five spice powder (if using).
Set aside for at least an hour or overnight. Make the sauce by combining ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Chinese black vinegar, hoisin sauce, maple syrup, sesame oil, and 1/2 cup water. Set aside.
When you’re ready to cook, fill a medium deep pot about halfway with oil. Heat the oil to 375 degrees. In a separate bowl, combine 3 tablespoons ice water, 2 tablespoons flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Pour over the marinated pork chops and mix until coated.
Carefully drop a few pork chops at a time into the heated oil and fry in batches for about 3 minutes each batch. Drain on paper towels.
Refry the pork chops again for another 1 to 2 minutes just before making the sauce if you like your pork chops crispy. Double frying keeps the pork chops crispy longer after adding them to the sauce.
Add a tablespoon of oil to your wok (you can take some from the frying oil), placed over medium heat. Swirl the oil around so it coats the wok. Pour in your sauce mixture and bring it to a simmer.
Mix your last tablespoon of cornstarch with a tablespoon of water to form a slurry. Pour the slurry into the simmering sauce and stir until thickened. Add the cooked pork chops and toss them in the sauce.
Plate, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallions.
Serve your Sweet and Sour Pork Chops, or if you prefer, call them Peking Pork chops!
Sweet and Sour Pork Chops, Peking Style
Ingredients
For marinating the pork chops:
- 1 1/2 lb. thinly sliced pork chops (680g, cut in half)
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/8 teaspoon five spice powder (optional)
For the sauce:
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar (can substitute balsamic vinegar)
- 2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 cup water (120 ml)
To finish the dish:
- Oil (for frying, plus 1 tablespoon)
- 3 tablespoons ice water (45 ml)
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (divided)
- toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallion
Instructions
- Marinate the pork chops in a mixture of shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and five spice powder (if using). Set aside for at least an hour or overnight. Make the sauce by combining ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, hoisin, maple syrup, sesame oil, and 1/2 cup water. Set aside.
- When you're ready to cook, fill a medium deep pot about halfway with oil. Heat the oil to 375 degrees. In a separate bowl, combine 3 tablespoons ice water, 2 tablespoons flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Pour over the marinated pork chops and mix until coated.
- Carefully drop a few pork chops at a time into the heated oil and fry in batches for about 3 minutes each batch. Drain on paper towels. Refry the pork chops again for another 1 to 2 minutes just before making the sauce if you like your pork chops crispy. Double frying keeps the pork chops crispy longer after adding them to the sauce.
- Add a tablespoon of oil to your wok (you can take some from the frying oil), placed over medium heat. Swirl the oil around so it coats the wok. Pour in your sauce mixture and bring it to a simmer.
- Mix your last tablespoon of cornstarch with a tablespoon of water to form a slurry. Pour the slurry into the simmering sauce and stir until thickened. Add the cooked pork chops and toss them in the sauce. Plate, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and chopped scallions. Serve!
Best sweet and sour ever! I added onions and pea pods to mine. Would increase the sauce amount next time to accommodate the veggies.
So glad you enjoyed it :-)
Fantastic recipe! I am a huge fan of this blog. I’ve made sooo many recipes and they have all been amazing. I had never heard of Peking Pork Chops until an Google search led me to a recipe that wasn’t this blog. But my first thought was “I wonder if Woks of Life has a recipe for it” so I went to your website and sure enough! I knew if I was going to make this recipe, it better be yours. This was easy and delicious. I added a little more black vinegar than was called for but maybe my healing teaspoons of hoisin were a little too heaping… regardless, the sauce was delicious. My husband kept saying “this is GOOD” over and over. So this is a recipe I will be making again! I feel like all of my best cooking is just because of this blog. Thank you so much!
Hi Adriane, so happy to hear you enjoyed these Peking pork chops and our other recipes!
I think this sauce would be very good on pork cops tat have been marinated, breaded in panko and then “oven-fried’ instead of oil-fried. Has anyone tried making them tis way?
Hi Tabby, we haven’t tried it, but your instincts may be correct. Let us know how it turns out if you try it ;-)
Thank you so much for this recipe! It was just as I remember eating it at a Chinese restaurant growing up in Toronto. My mom ordered this dish and every time my dad complained since he didn’t eat pork, but my sisters and I devoured it completely.
It’s great! So glad you enjoyed it :-)
I followed the recipe exactly, but my pork chops weren’t crispy. Any tips?
Hi Marilyn, re-fry the pork chops again for another 1 to 2 minutes just before making the sauce, if you like your pork chops crispy. Double frying keeps the pork chops crispy longer after adding them to the sauce. I just added that extra step/note to the recipe. Happy cooking!
Another recipe I tried while son home for visit. It was delicious, he couldn’t stop talking about how good they taste and ate the leftovers. He went home this evening and I plan to make the pork chops for my husband and myself tomorrow night. ????
hehehe…love to hear that!
Hi there! I’m a big fan of your site here in Brasil. Ive recent been to Peru and found many of the sauces that you guys use in your dishes. I really want to make this dish for my mother in law this weekend, but maple syrup is kind of hard (and expensive!) here in Brasil. What can I use instead to get a similar flavor?
Thanks and congratulations on the wonderful website!!
Hi Frederick, you can use any syrup you like, and its flavor will come out in the dish. Happy cooking!