Orange and onion pork chop on rice
Tenderised pork chops pan-fried until golden, then glazed in a fresh orange and onion sauce — sweet, tangy and appetising, with a citrus aroma that lifts the mood.
- 45 min
- Serves 2
- Pan-fry
- Easy
Why it suits you: Qi-stagnant types are prone to low moods and sighing, and Minor Heat's close, muggy air makes them more irritable and off their food. Fragrant, sweet-sour orange regulates qi, whets the appetite and eases the chest, and the zest moves qi further; onion regulates qi and settles the stomach while pork tonifies. The tangy sauce wakes up the palate, and the citrus aroma alone lightens the mood.
Method
Prep 30 min · Cook 15 min- 1Bash the pork chops with the back of a knife, nick the sinew and marinate with the soy sauce, garlic, black pepper and 1 tsp cornflour for 20 minutes.
- 2Pare a few strips of zest from one orange, then cut it into segments. Juice the other and mix the juice with the honey, remaining cornflour and a pinch of salt for the sauce.
- 3Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the chops over a medium heat for 3–4 minutes a side until golden and cooked through. Remove and slice.
- 4Soften the onion in the same pan, pour in the orange sauce and simmer until slightly thickened, then return the pork and turn to coat.
- 5Lay the pork and onion over the rice, spoon over the sauce and top with the orange segments and zest.
Cautions
- If you have excess stomach acid or stomach pain, halve the orange juice.
Chef's tips
- Zest only the orange layer — the white pith is bitter. Nicking the sinew before frying stops the chops curling up.
The TCM view
Sweet orange is sweet, sour and cool, generating fluids, whetting the appetite and regulating qi. The peel is pungent, bitter and warm, regulating qi and easing the middle, much like dried tangerine peel. Onion is pungent and warm, regulating qi and harmonising the stomach; pork nourishes yin and tonifies, and honey moistens and harmonises. Aromatic, qi-moving ingredients with sweet-sour flavours ease stagnation and protect the summer appetite.
