Oh here is a treat that you will absolutely adore… My Thai style fried garlic pork tenderloin: a crunchy fried pork recipe straight from the streets of Phuket, Thailand! Pork and garlic are a great match.
Are you looking for a honey garlic pork tenderloin recipe?
Or a classic lemon garlic pork tenderloin?
Thai Flavors
My recipe for garlic pork tenderloin below is a Thai recipe I am afraid…
Yes, this one is yet another surprisingly tasty dish that we tasted in a Thai restaurant called Fon Fon in Chalong, Phuket. Our hotel that we were staying at for a little over 2 weeks was just 2 doors down.
So not surprisingly we ended up there for dinner quite a few times.
On the menu were classic Thai dishes.
Chalong, Phuket
If you have been to Thailand, you will certainly have come across these.
From pad thai noodles, chicken curries, larb gai salads, morning glory stir fries to spicy beef salads, grilled fish and seafood. All tremendously yummy dishes that you wash down with a couple of cold Tiger beers on a sweltering hot Thai evening.
Sitting on plastic chairs at plastic tables.
An empty tin of some unidentifiable Thai condiment filled with wonky metal spoons, forks and knives. Sticky bottles of chili sauce, chili oil and vinegar next to it.
A roll of kitchen paper or toilet paper right next to it.
And if you are lucky, a fresh stack of paper napkins.
Perfect!
Moo Tod Gratiem
Sipping ice cold beers.
Going over the grubby menu while you seriously consider ordering just a little bit of everything.
Just because the smells coming from the kitchen are so heavenly they make your stomach rumble and growl like you have not eaten anything in days.
So the very first time that we ordered this garlic pork tenderloin, we didn’t really know what to expect.
Moo tod gratiem and between brackets หมูกระเทียม was all it said on the menu.
But boy, little did we know that we were in for a real treat.
Fried Garlic
What a flavor explosion!
That crunchy crisp and golden garlic, those crispy fried pork tenderloin bits.
Lip smacking good. Needless to say that we went back a bunch of times to eat this garlic pork tenderloin again, again and again.
What surprised me is that the fried garlic was not bitter. So I asked the daughter of the owners who was waiting our table most nights what her mother’s secret was.
Tapioca flour she said!
Tapioca Flour
Really?
She even showed me in her improvised outdoor kitchen how she cooked her garlic pork tenderloin.
I can hear you say: where am I supposed to find tapioca flour?
No worries, you can replace it by corn starch!
Look at the amount of ingredients you need below, could it really get any easier than that? Pan fried garlic pork tenderloin, so simple and so delicious.
We love it!
Easy Thai Garlic Pork Tenderloin (Moo Tod Gratiem)
Don’t get all upset about the mountain of garlic you need here, it is so worth it.
Besides, the fried garlic gives this dish the necessary savory crunch it truly needs. Use an oil that is fit for frying such as canola, corn, sesame or peanut oil.
I prefer sunflower oil for this type of cooking because it is more or less tasteless.
It also gives your food an evenly golden color when the oil has reached the perfect temperature.
So what to serve this garlicky pork with? I love boiled or steamed rice. But I have to say that I have also served this pork dish with stir fried noodles before.
And a bunch of stir fried bok choy.
Fresh Thai Green Papaya Salad
If I want to keep it light, then I would go for boiled rice.
And a fresh and tasty salad like a Thai green papaya salad (som tum in Thai).
Are you not able to find fresh green papaya around where you live? Then you can always replace it and use finely shaved cabbage instead.
Do you love cooking Thai dinners at home?
Then you should also check out another gorgeous Thai dinner idea: my creamy chicken panang curry!
Enjoy!
Easy Thai Style Garlic Pork Tenderloin Recipe
My Thai fried garlic pork tenderloin: a crunchy fried pork recipe straight from the streets of Phuket! Pork and garlic are a great match!
- 10,5 oz pork tenderloin (300 g)
- 6 medium garlic cloves
- 1 cup frying oil (240 ml)
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp tapioca flour or corn starch
- pepper
- salt
1) Slice the pork tenderloin into bite-size pieces. Season the pork with some freshly ground pepper, the fish sauce and a pinch of salt.
2) Stir the pork well and cover it with some cling film. Place it in the fridge for half an hour to marinate.
3) Peel the garlic cloves and chop them up finely. Add it to a bowl and sprinkle with the tapioca flour or corn starch. Shake or stir it well. Then pour the garlic in a sieve and shake off any excess flour.
4) Pour the frying oil in a shallow heavy pan or wok and place this over medium heat until warm. Then add a tiny bit of the garlic to check whether it is warm enough. The garlic should start to sizzle right away. If the oil is too hot, the garlic will burn and become bitter.
5) Fry the garlic until it is lightly golden brown and crunchy. Then remove the fried garlic with a slotted spoon and leave it to drain on some kitchen paper.
6) Turn the heat up so the oil is very hot to fry the pork. Carefully add it to the hot oil using a slotted spoon. Quickly fry the sliced pork until brown and cooked through. This will only take about 2 to 3 minutes depending on the thickness of the slices.
7) Remove the fried pork and let it drain on some kitchen paper as well. Then transfer the pork onto plates. Crumble the fried garlic and sprinkle it generously on top of the pork. Serve with a light chili dipping sauce.
