Crispy salt and pepper pork from Dinner: Changing the Game (page 85) by Melissa Clark

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Accompaniments: How to cook white rice for 4; Coconut rice

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • pattyatbryce on March 03, 2026

    We've made this a few times. We cut back on the pepper a bit, but still use a lot. Herbs and fresh lettuce are important to include. Add some rice and lightly-vinegared cucumbers and you won't be disappointed.

  • halfchefc on August 12, 2025

    I'm not a huge pork fan but this recipe intrigued me enough to buy pork for the first time to cook at home. It was tasty, I cut the cubes smaller thanks to the notes here and air-fried them to avoid getting the kitchen dirty. We found ourselves missing a sauce! I'd like to try this again with chicken or steak.

  • mamacrumbcake on May 21, 2024

    Highly addictive! I cut the pork into 1/2” cubes and it came out crispy and delicious.

  • ellwell on March 07, 2024

    I was anxious to try this due to the rave reviews, but we were underwhelmed. My pork (I used shoulder as recommended) was not very tender—in fact it was terrible. There was not much flavor from the peppers for some reason. We found it bland and threw it out. Since everyone else liked it so much, I may give it another try using pork loin or tenderloin.

  • rmardel on August 18, 2023

    This is delicious, enough that one wishes to beg for more! It was fast and easy enough to go in regular rotation. My cubes were larger than some reviewer's, 3/4" to not quite 1". This allowed me to get the outside of the cube crispy brown while still maintaining tenderness inside the cubes. I loved the contrast of flavor and texture. I upped the proportion of Szechuan pepper, which I adore, and reduced the black pepper. This was, admittedly because I switched the numbers in my head, but I loved the result and would make it this way in future. I was also inspired by those who added 5-spice, and I added China Moon 10-spice powder as well, which I tend to keep in my pantry, whereas I don't always have 5-spice on hand. This will definitely be on repeat.

  • SheilaS on August 11, 2023

    Tons of flavor for such a quick, easy dish and the pork shoulder came out perfectly tender. Based on comments, I went with 1/2" cubes and was happy with that. Cooked plain white rice, quick-pickled some cucumbers and carrots and picked a bunch of herbs while the meat was marinating so everything was ready to plate once the meat was cooked.

  • bernalgirl on August 07, 2023

    I took some liberties based on previous comments and family preferences, and also tripled the recipe for teen eaters and my dad. I cut the pork into 1/2” cubes (more crispy bits!), replaced 1/2 teaspoon of the Szechuan pepper with Five Spice, and dressed the lettuce, herbs, and cucumbers with a lime-fish sauce mixture. I also cooked the pork in batches to assure crisping. Served with coconut rice. My family devoured this meal and my Little asked me to put it on repeat.

  • snoozermoose on December 05, 2021

    There is something highly addictive about this pork! The flavor of all those peppercorns cutting through the heavenly crispy pork fat is just wow. My husband adored it too. We didn't think it worked with the lettuce though. It ended up getting forgotten on the side, and I wouldn't bother with it next time.

  • hbakke on May 01, 2019

    I would use a bigger pan next time, as the meat was a bit crowded. Added a lime vinaigrette to the lettuce and cucumber. Very tasty. I used cilantro, mint, and basil for the added herbs.

  • ellencooks on June 05, 2017

    I agree that the smaller cubes are tastier. I find that's true for me for most cubed meat. I also thought it would need a sauce so I drizzled some some rice vinegar, sherry vinegar and ponzu sauce over chopped iceberg lettuce and sliced cucumbers. I served with coconut rice plus lime juice, jalapeños and cilantro over the meat as suggested. Loved it!

  • clcorbi on May 10, 2017

    This recipe seemed like an intriguing way to use pork shoulder, plus Food52 highlighted it as a genius recipe recently, so I had to give it a try. The result is certainly not bad, but I don't know if I'd call it genius. I loved how simple and fast this was to make, and I also really loved the heavy amount of sichuan peppercorns involved--the pork gets a nice, appealing crust of pepper on the outside which is very tasty. However, I think 1" cubes are a bit too big considering just how chewy the meat is. I think 1/2" cubes would be in order next time--every time I found a smaller piece in my bowl, I enjoyed it much better. I also found myself wishing this recipe had some sort of sauce, because the result is quite dry. I think the recommended sliced cucumbers would have helped, but some sort of sauce to drizzle over would really take this from good to great, IMO.

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