Sweet and Sour Pork - photo essay and recipe

I love Chinese food of all kinds, and this recipe is a favorite of mine! I modified it somewhat from a Better Homes and Gardens recipe I found several years ago.

First, make the sauce: Drain one can (20-oz) pineapple chunks or tidbits, saving the juice. Add water to reserved juice to equal 1 1/2 cups. Stir in 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/3 cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. cornstarch, 2 Tbsp. soy sauce, and 1 tsp. chicken bouillon granules. (I was out of bouillon, so I made it without this time, and it tasted fine). Set sauce aside.

Cut 1 pound boneless pork into bite-size pieces and fry in small amount of oil. Drain on paper towels or paper plate. (The original recipe had a batter to dip them in first, but I cut that out to save calories).

In oil from pork, add 2-3 cloves minced garlic and as many sliced carrots as you would like. I had a 1-pound bag of pre-sliced carrots and used half the bag. Stir-fry for 2 minutes (more if you like your carrots softer rather than crisp.)

Add 1 large green pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces. I've used red pepper before too, which was good. This time I also added a little chopped onion, as I had it on hand and needed to use it up soon. Stir-fry an additional 2 minutes, or more as desired.

Push vegetables to side of pan. Stir the reserved sauce and pour it into the middle of the pan. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly, then cook and stir 1 minute more. Add pork and pineapple. Stir together all ingredients to coat with sauce. Heat through. Serve with rice.

Yummy!!! Believe it or not, my kids LOVE this recipe! When they are home, I usually use more pineapple, and less green peppers. They always give their peppers to me, LOL.