Rachael Ray Recipe: Sweet and Sour Pork Rice Bowl
March 29th, 2008
I found this recipe in the March 2008 issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray (www.rachaelraymag.com). In Japan this is called tonkatsu. Tonkatsu is one of TSO’s favorite meals so I thought I would put Rachael Ray’s recipe to the test.
The pork met TSO’s approval and was enjoyed by the entire family. The pickled onions were a surprisingly nice addition especially since I almost didn’t make them. TSO and I don’t really care for raw onions and the kids eating onions, that’s a joke! At first TSO made a face at the onions and reminded me that he doesn’t like them (hello, I knew that). He then had second thoughts and told me I should try them as he was going back for more! I have to admit they were not bad but next time I would let them marinate a little longer or maybe try a sweet onion instead of red onion.
The recipe calls for soy sauce in the egg mixture (something I usually would not do). You need to be careful with this part since if your eggs are not large enough, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce might be too much causing the egg mixture to be runny and the bread crumbs will not stick to the meat. If you are not sure you can omit the soy sauce and it will be just fine.
This dinner was easy to make but uses a lot of dishes. To save time with clean up I used paper plates for the flour and the Japanese bread crumbs. Being that I work full time outside of the home I also prefer this dinner for a weekend since I can’t be bothered with all the coating and frying after a long day at the office.
The entire family liked this dinner so I will definitely make it again.
Sweet and Sour Pork Rice Bowl
Every Day with Rachael Ray March 2008 (www.rachaelraymag.com)
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 2 large eggs
- 3 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1 1/4 cups Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
- Four 1/2-inch-think slices boneless pork loin (6 ounces each), patted dry
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- Cooked white rice, for serving
Directions:
1. In a small bowl, pour 1/4 cup mirin over the onion and let marinate. In a shallow bowl, lightly beat the eggs with 1 teaspoon soy sauce. Place the flour in another shallow bowl; place the panko in another separate bowl.
2. Coat the pork with the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip the pork slices in the egg mixture, letting the excess drip off, then coat with the panko.
3. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until rippling. Add the pork and fry, turning once, until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the ketchup, remaining 1 tablespoon mirin and 2 teaspoons soy sauce. Add 1 teaspoon water to thin if desired.
5. Slice the pork. Divide the rice among 4 bowls and top with the pork, sauce and pickled onion.
