Asian Pulled Pork
I am a huge fan of Asian food. Attempting to recreate it at home use to heavily intimidate me; but when you live in an area that doesn’t provide decent take-out you suck it up.
Almost another lifetime ago, we lived in Mississippi. Backwoods, podunk, BBQ, and fried filled lifestyle. No Asian restaurants to be seen for 60+ miles. A girl can’t live without some of her favorite foods.
This particular recipe was born after I tasted the yummy goodness that is Pei Wei’s Lettuce Wraps. I could eat those every day, all day! While this recipe is definitely not a dupe for Pei Wei’s, it gives a gentle nod to it.
Asian pulled pork can be eaten like a lettuce wrap, over rice, or noodles. If you are looking to make lettuce wraps out of the pulled pork, I recommend using bibb lettuce, or endive. Bibb lettuce is hearty while at the same time easily moldable to fold into lettuce wraps.
Endive is perfect if you’d like to serve this recipe as a finger appetizer.
I personally love Asian pulled pork over rice noodles and a side of sauteed edamame or snap peas. Simple, yet elegant. Plus rice noodles are SO tasty. AND rice noodles are gluten-free.
One of the most convenient parts of Asian pulled pork is you do not need any fancy wok. It is made in the Instapot or pressure cooker.
Asian Pulled Pork
Equipment
- instapot
Ingredients
- 3 lb pork tenderloin
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- ⅔ cup soy sauce low sodium
- 1 cup chicken broth low sodium
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 large garlic cloves minced
- 1 Tbsp fresh ginger minced
- ½ tsp Sirracha sauce more if you like it spicy
- 2 Tbsp corn starch
- 2 Tbsp cold water
Sauteed Edammame/Snap Peas
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 cups fresh edamame or snap peas
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Trim all of the fat from the pork tenderloin and cut into thirds, set aside. In the instapot, add the sesame oil, soy sauce, Sirracha sauce, chicken stock, balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic and ginger and stir to combine. Place the pork in the instapot and stir slightly to coat the pork. Place the lid on the instapot.
- Set the instapot to either the meat setting or manual setting on high for 35 minutes. Once done, let stand for 5 minutes and then rapid release the rest of the pressure inside.
- Take the pork out and set on a cutting board. Begin shredding the pork into pieces.
- With the leftover liquid in the instapot, turn the setting to saute and begin stirring. In a shaker bottle or mixing bowl and whisk; combine the cornstarch and cold water. Shake or whisk until no clumps are visible. Pour into the liquid in the instapot while stirring. Stir while simmering until the sauce becomes thicker. This only takes about 2 minutes.
- Add the pork back in and stir until evenly coated. Serve over rice, noodles, or inside lettuce leaves for a lettuce wrap. Top with green onions and sesame seeds if desired.
Sauteed Edemame/Snap Peas
- If you want a tasty yet quick vegetable on the side, sauteed edamame is perfect. In a frying pan, drizzle avocado oil and sesame oil and then add in the desired vegetable. Saute on high for 5 minutes while stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition
What are some of your favorite Asian food recipes? Do you prefer cooking your own Asian takeout foods or would you rather leave it up to the experts? Hope y’all are having an amazing week!
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