Chinese · Dongbei · main

Guo Bao Rou (Harbin Sweet and Sour Pork Slices)

Guo Bao Rou (Harbin Sweet and Sour Pork Slices) reads umami 5.6, sweetness 5.4 and richness 5.1 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Chinese · Dongbei main, about 34 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 6.3 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 5.7 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 3.9 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 1.5 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 6.3 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 3.8 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 5.6 · Sweetness 5.4 · Richness 5.1 · Salinity 4.7 · Nutty 4.0 · Sourness 3.7 · Herbaceous 3.2 · Allium 3.1 · Funk & Ferment 2.8 · Warm Spice 2.1 · Floral 1.6 · Earthy 1.4 · Bitterness 1.1 · Fruity 0.9 · Citrus 0.8 · Heat 0.6

What's in it (15)

• pork loin — 400 g
• salt — 3 g
• shaoxing wine — 15 g
• ground white pepper — 1 g
• potato starch — 160 g
• peanut oil — 27 g
• peanut oil — 1104 g
• caster sugar — 80 g
• rice wine vinegar — 60 g
• soy sauce — 15 g
• water — 44 g
• fresh ginger — 20 g
• carrot — 60 g
• spring onions — 330 g
• coriander leaves — 12 g

Time & effort: about 34 min (9 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 125.2 kcal, 7.3 g protein, 3.8 g fat, 14.9 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (6 steps)

1. Season the pork with the salt, Shaoxing wine and white pepper and leave 20 minutes.
2. Pour the water off the settled potato starch and scrape the thick paste from the bottom into a bowl. This wet starch, not a flour batter, is what gives guo bao rou its glassy shell. Loosen it with the 2 tbsp oil to the texture of thick cream, adding a splash of water if it needs it, and turn the pork through until each slice is thickly coated.
3. Heat the frying oil to 170 C. Lower the slices in one at a time, separating any that stick, and fry 2 to 3 minutes until pale gold and set. Lift out and rest 5 minutes.
4. Raise the oil to 200 C and fry them again 60 to 90 seconds, until deeply golden and audibly crisp; they should rattle in the spider.
5. Mix the sugar, vinegar, soy sauce and water. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a clean wok, add the ginger, carrot and spring onion and stir 20 seconds, then pour in the sauce and boil hard 60 to 90 seconds until syrupy and thick enough to leave a trail. There is no starch thickener and no tomato ketchup: the Harbin original is a clear, sharp sweet-sour, and the orange tomato version is a later southern habit.
6. Add the pork, toss no more than 15 seconds so the shell stays crisp, scatter the coriander and serve immediately.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Crispy Sesame Tofu Stir-Fry — Chinese-American
• Vegetable Lo Mein — Chinese-American
• Teriyaki Beef Skewers — Japanese
• Teriyaki Tofu and Vegetable Rice Bowls — Japanese
• Sesame Chicken — Chinese-American

Keep reading: what umami, sweetness, richness mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.