½teaspoonof black pepperfreshly-cracked, or ground
2 ½teaspoonsof salt(or more, to taste), divided
4tablespoonsof vegetable oil
1large white onioncubed
2green bell pepperschopped
3clovesgarliccrushed
1cupdiced green tomatoes(optional, see notes)
2cupsfresh pineapplepeeled and cubed
½teaspoonof chili flakes(optional)
3tablespoonsof cornstarch
2tablespoonsof light soy sauce
¼cupof rice vinegaror 3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
2cupsof pineapple juice
1cupof chopped garlic chive(see notes)
1cupof chopped green onions
Instructions
Step 1: Season the meat
Pat the pork pieces dry with a paper towel. Season with pepper and 2 teaspoons of salt.
Step 2: Cook
Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the pork (careful with oil splatters!) and cook and stir until it turns golden brown. It may release a little bit of liquid at the beginning, but it will soon evaporate.
Step 3: Add ingredients
Stir in the onion, green pepper, and garlic to the fried pork, and cook and stir for 30 seconds, don't overdo it, we want crisp bell peppers in the end.Stir in, the green tomatoes, and pineapple chunks. Cook and stir for 30 seconds or until they are heated through. Stir in the chili flakes.
Step 4: Make the sauce
In the meantime, make a cornstarch slurry by mixing corn starch, soy sauce, vinegar, and pineapple juice. Lower stove to medium heat and add the slurry to the pot and stir.Once it breaks the boil, add garlic chive and green onions. Cook until these two wilts.
Step 5: Serving
Taste and season with more salt if you find it necessary. Remove from the heat and serve.
Cook's notes
If you don't have chili flakes, use spicy sauce to taste. If you can't find garlic chives, substitute for equal amount of chives, the taste is different, but the dish will still be very good.I only had green cherry tomatoes (from my potted garden), they turned out really good, but use whatever green tomatoes you find, or none. It's fine without them.