Zha Pai Gu (台式炸排骨), or Taiwanese Fried Pork Loin (also known as pork chop), is one of the most iconic mains you’ll find in any Taiwanese bento shop. The dish is said to trace back to Japanese-style tonkatsu from the Japanese colonial era, which was gradually localised and combined with Taiwanese-style marinating and coating techniques to become the national comfort food it is today. It’s widely believed to have first appeared in Taipei’s Ximen district, and from there, it spread through Taiwan Railway bento boxes and old-school Ximen diners until it became one of Taiwan’s most recognisable everyday dishes.

What sets Zha Pai Gu apart is its crisp, golden crust and tender, juicy centre, seasoned with a savoury marinade. There are a few regional styles too: a dry-coated version with a distinctly crumbly, old-school crust, a wet-battered version with a softer, thinner coating, and a fried-then-braised version. Marinades vary as well, from the classic five spice blend to versions built on Chinese herbs, black pepper, or a heavy hand of garlic. The recipe I’m sharing today is the traditional dry-coated style, where the marinated pork is coated directly in coarse sweet potato starch and left to rest before frying, giving it that distinctive, craggy, crunchy texture.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Crispy coating: coated in coarse sweet potato starch and fried until golden, giving an irregular, satisfyingly crunchy crust.
A proper marinade: the pork is marinated in soy sauce, garlic, sugar, white pepper, and a touch of five spice, giving it that unmistakable old-school Taiwanese flavour.
Juicy, tender meat: pounding the pork loin tenderises it, so it stays juicy and locks in the savoury.

What to Serve With Fried Pork Chop

Zha Pai Gu is traditionally served with pickled cucumber and steamed rice. Since the pork has already marinated overnight, it’s already full of flavour, so you don’t really need an extra sauce. A light sprinkle of white pepper on top is usually all it needs. Another classic pairing, popularised by Din Tai Fung, is serving it alongside pork chop fried rice (排骨蛋炒飯), with the crispy pork sitting on top of a bowl of savoury egg fried rice.

What Cut of Pork to Use

Traditionally, Zha Pai Gu is made with bone-in pork loin, the classic choice in Taiwan. Bone-in cuts like this can be harder to find in the UK, so boneless pork loin, the cut used in this recipe, works just as well and is much easier to source.

Tips for Making This Recipe

Cut Through the Connective: Tissue Before marinating, snip through the connective tissue on the pork and pound both sides gently. This stops the meat curling up as it fries and keeps it tender, without pounding it so thin that it loses its texture.
Marinate Overnight: Let the pork marinate for a full 24 hours in the fridge, and only coat it in starch right before you’re ready to fry. This gives the marinade time to properly work into the meat.
Use Coarse Sweet Potato Starch: Coarse-grain sweet potato starch is what gives Zha Pai Gu its signature craggy, crunchy crust. Finer starches won’t give you the same texture.
Let the Starch Rest: Before Frying After coating the pork, leave it to sit for a few minutes so the starch absorbs a little moisture from the surface. This helps it stick properly and stops it flaking off in the oil.

Where to Buy Coarse Taiwanese Sweet Potato Starch

For that distinctive crumbly, crunchy crust, look for coarse-grain Taiwanese sweet potato starch rather than the fine variety. In the UK, it’s worth checking Asian supermarkets, or specialist Taiwanese shops like Linger Mart, which are more likely to stock the coarser grade.

Final Thoughts

When people think of Taiwan’s most iconic foods, braised pork rice, beef noodle soup, or popcorn chicken usually come to mind first. Zha Pai Gu is arguably even more widespread, especially as a bento staple you’ll find on almost every street corner. Once you’ve got a handle on a few key steps, it’s far easier to make at home than you might expect. If you give this recipe a try, I’d love to hear how it turns out, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Zha Pai Gu 台式炸排骨 Taiwanese Fried Pork Loin

Wanting

A Taiwanese bento classic made at home: tender pork loin marinated overnight, coated in crispy sweet potato starch, and fried until golden. Serve it sliced over rice with pickled cucumber for the ultimate comfort meal.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Lunch, dinner, Main Course

Cuisine Taiwanese

Ingredients

4 pieces pork loin (480g)
Sweet potato starch coarse-grain Taiwanese sweet potato starch recommended
Vegetable oil, for frying

FOR THE MARINADE

2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cooking wine
1 egg
½ tsp white pepper
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp five spice powder
A pinch of salt optional
1 tsp sesame oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp grated ginger

Instructions

Prepare the pork: Cut through the connective tissue on the pork loin to stop it curling up during frying. Using a meat tenderiser/hammer or the back of a knife, gently pound both sides of the meat to tenderise it. Don't pound it too thin, you still want some thickness to the meat.
Marinate: In a mixing bowl, combine all the marinade ingredients. Add the pork and coat well. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Coat the pork: Coat both sides of the marinated pork evenly with the coarse sweet potato starch. Leave to sit for 5 minutes so the starch absorbs moisture from the surface. This helps it stick properly and stops it falling off during frying.
Fry the pork: Pour enough oil into the pan to come about a half of the way up the pork. Heat the oil to 160°C. Gently lower the pork into the oil and fry over medium heat until both sides are golden brown (about 3-4 minutes). Remove and drain, then leave to rest for a few minutes. This allows the residual heat to finish cooking the meat through and lets the juices settle before you slice it into pieces.
Serve: Once rested, cut the pork into pieces of your preferred size. Serve with pickled cucumber (optional) and steamed rice.

Notes

Keyword Pork