Pork + Pineapple Stir Fry

August 8, 2018
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This recipe is classified as a “greatest hit” in our house! It’s quick, easy, and a dinner that everyone looks forward to.

pork and pineapple stir fry with red, green, and yellow bell peppers atop a bed of white rice, on a white platter

Team Skillet

Stir-Fry is one of those easy weeknight meals that generally makes everyone in my family happy. It makes me happy because it’s so darn easy to prepare, it makes my kids happy because this recipe contains bell peppers and sweet pineapple (favorites around here), and it makes Robby happy because it all happens in one skillet – making cleanup a breeze, he’s the designated dishwasher around here after all.

Call me crazy, but I actually prefer working with a large nonstick skillet instead of a wok when I’m cooking at home. I find that the flat surface area of the skillet browns the food better rather than the sloped surface of a wok, meaning you need one less pan to own and store.

Prep It Up + Heat It Up

It will be even more important than usual to have all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go because a stir-fry goes fast. Make sure your vegetables and meats or seafood are all cut into small, equal-sized pieces for even cooking. The secret to a great stir-fry is high heat. Too many home cooks are afraid to work with such intense heat, but it’s essential for this cooking method. Make sure your pan is preheated and smoking hot before beginning.

Pace Yourself

Cook in stages. Rather than trying to cook everything perfectly at once, add small groups of ingredients at a time (hard veggies separately from soft veggies), stir-fry until tender, and remove from the pan and reserve. In fact, stir-fry your meat or seafood a minute or two shy of being cooked through. After everything has been cooked, toss it all in the pan together with your sauce ingredients to finish cooking and to bring the whole dish together. This avoids overcooking and helps maintain tenderness. Stir-frying is a great technique to use up leftovers or odds and ends in the fridge. Also, if you are short on protein, tossing in an egg and scrambling it quickly adds great flavor and texture.

How about you? Are you Team Wok or Team Skillet? What do you reach for in your freezer? Please tell me I’m not the only one who also reaches for chicken nuggets and sweet potato fries from my freezer often! 

pork and pineapple stir fry with red, green, and yellow bell peppers atop a bed of white rice, on a white platter

 

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Pork + Pineapple Stir Fry

  • Author: Kelsey Nixon
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
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Description

This sweet and sour stir-fry recipe is one of my family’s favorite weeknight recipes! The hearty pork with crunchy bell peppers and sweet pineapple is always a hit with everyone around our dinner table.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1  lbs. pork tenderloin, trimmed and sliced thin
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • Kosher salt and cracked black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 bell peppers (any color), sliced
  • 1 cup diced fresh pineapple
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
  • ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • Cooked rice or noodles, for serving

Garnishes:

  • 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
  • Fresh lime wedges

Instructions

  1. Place the pork in a mixing bowl; sprinkle with cornstarch and season with salt and pepper – toss to coat.
  2. In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil over high heat until very hot. Add the pork and stir-fry until the pork is almost cooked through and begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and bell peppers and stir-fry until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add the pineapple and scallions and continue to stir-fry until the pork is cooked through and the vegetables are tender, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
  4. In a large liquid measuring cup, whisk together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sugar and add it to skillet. Cook until the sauce thickens, about 2 to 3 minutes.
  5. Serve over cooked rice or noodles and garnish with peanuts, cilantro, and lime.
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes

Keywords: stir fry, pork, pineapple

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