Oriental Pork

Feeds two. My mum has been cooking this for almost as long as I can remember. There has never been any left over.

Don't go overboard getting rid of the fat - the acidic marinade likes to have something to work on. And yes, the marinade should smell as though it could dissolve the mixing bowl, teaspoon, your nostril hairs and anything else it comes into contact with. It's worth experimenting with different mustards, vinegars, sugars and quantities of chili powder and pepper to get the pungency and heat level you like.

Ingredients
500g shoulder or spare rib pork chops, excess fat removed and cut into 1” chunks ('Value' diced pork is ideal for this recipe)
2 level tsp mustard powder
1 level tsp soft brown sugar
1 tbsp white vinegar (or balsamic etc.)
1 level tsp salt
half a level tsp ground black pepper
half a level tsp ground ginger
quarter level tsp chili powder
3 tablespoons Worcester or soy sauce

Preparation
Put pork into shallow ovenproof dish in one layer. In a small bowl, blend mustard and ginger with the water then stir in the sugar, vinegar, salt, pepper, ground ginger, cayenne pepper and soy or Worcester sauce. Pour the sauce over the pork, making sure the meat is well coated, cover and leave in a cool place overnight.

Next day remove cover and bake in the centre of a fairly hot oven, 400ºF or gas mark 6, for twenty minutes, then lower the heat to 350ºF or gas mark 4 for about one hour.

If you increase the quantity of meat, double the amount of marinade. You might want to do this anyway to give a little more sauce.

Pete Wright
Portsmouth