Sweet and sour pork and chilli pepper sosaties

A South African pork sosatie with a sweet sauce that includes apricot jam and some spice is a great braai tradition. This recipe is a variation of that idea, including the use of bell peppers to intersperse with the chunks of lean pork. 

Chinese (or Chinese-American) sweet and sour pork includes pineapple juice and ketchup, and there are neither of those in this, but I did include red wine vinegar and Mrs HS Ball’s chutney, with a hint of good old Worcestershire sauce for a bit of depth. There’s no cornflour in this either, which is essential for Chinese sweet and sour pork.

You can marinate it for a few hours or overnight if you like, or simply whip up the ingredients and use it as a baste.

(Makes 4 sosaties)

Ingredients

1 pork fillet, about 700-800 g, trimmed of sinew

1 green bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

3 Tbsp Mrs HS Ball’s chutney (any strength)

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp Tabasco sriracha (less if you prefer less heat)

½ tsp garlic salt

Black pepper to taste

Salt to taste

4 wooden or metal skewers

Method

Carefully remove any sinew from the exterior of the pork fillet. Cut it into cubes and put them in a bowl. Salt lightly and toss.

In a small bowl, mix together the chutney, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, sriracha sauce, garlic salt and black pepper.

Add this to the meat and mix well with a wooden spoon so that the meat is well coated all over. Cover and marinate in a fridge, if not using immediately.

If using wooden skewers, soak them for half an hour in cold water so they do not blacken on the fire.

Remove the seeds from the bell peppers and slice into pieces.

Skewer the cubes of pork, interspersed with the peppers.

Keep any remaining sauce to use as a baste on the fire.

Prepare plenty of hot coals, then spread them out and place the grid fairly high above them, so that the meat does not cook too quickly.

Start by showing them some flame close to the coals, giving them a nice bit of char, then raise the grid to finish.

Slowish cooking will help you achieve tender, soft meat. Pork toughens easily, even the fillet, so be careful not to overcook them. DM

Tony Jackman is twice winner of the Galliova Food Writer of the Year award, in 2021 and 2023.

Follow Tony Jackman on Instagram @tony_jackman_cooks.

This dish is photographed on a plate by Mervyn Gers Ceramics.