This moo shu pork is thinly sliced pork tenderloin stir fried with vegetables and egg, all in a savory sauce. A homemade version of the classic take out dish that tastes even better than what you’d get at a restaurant!
My family loves when I make their favorite Asian dishes at home including fried wontons, honey chicken and this simple but satisfying moo shu pork.
Whenever we order take out, I have to get a carton of moo shu pork. I love all the different flavors and textures wrapped up inside a warm pancake! My homemade version uses ingredients that are easy to find, yet still has that great restaurant taste.
Moo shu pork ingredients
This recipe consists of thinly sliced pork, vegetable oil, eggs, mushrooms, cabbage, fresh ginger and garlic, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, honey, salt, pepper, cornstarch and green onions.
How do you make moo shu pork?
Cook the eggs into a flat omelette, then cut the egg into strips and set aside. Sear thinly sliced pork tenderloin until golden brown, then set it aside with the eggs. Place cabbage, ginger and mushrooms in the pan and cook until tender. Return the pork and eggs to the pan, then pour sauce over everything. Simmer until the sauce is thickened, then spoon the moo shu into pancakes and serve.
Tips for the perfect stir fry
- I like to use pork tenderloin for this dish, but boneless pork chops, thinly sliced pork shoulder or pork loin will also work. I recommend placing your meat in the freezer for 20-30 minutes so it can firm up, this helps to make the meat easier to slice into thin pieces.
- You can use a bag of pre-shredded cabbage to save on prep time.
- Shiitake mushrooms are a type of Asian mushroom that can be found in the produce area of most grocery stores. If you can’t find this variety, feel free to use button or oyster mushrooms instead.
- I typically use flour tortillas as a shortcut instead of making my own pancakes. It’s not as authentic, but saves a ton of time!
Recipe FAQs
Moo shu is thought to have originated in the northern part of China, and has been popular in America since the 1960’s. This dish consists of meat or seafood cooked with cabbage and eggs in a light sauce.
You can reheat this dish in a skillet on the stove over medium heat. Another option is to microwave leftovers in 30 second increments until warmed through.
Moo shu is typically served with a side of warm Mandarin style pancakes, sliced green onions and hoisin or plum sauce. Many Chinese restaurants offer table side service where they roll up the meat mixture in the pancakes to order.
Flavor variations
This dish is great as-is, but you can add other ingredients to customize the flavors to your tastes.
- Protein: Instead of pork, try chicken breast, flank steak or shrimp.
- Veggies: Feel free to add more vegetables to the mix such as shredded carrots, bamboo shoots, sliced white onion or green bell peppers.
- Seasonings: Add some sriracha or red chili flakes for a kick of spicy flavor.
Skip the take out and make this moo shu pork at home instead; you’ll be glad you did!
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Moo Shu Pork
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork tenderloin cut into thin matchsticks
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil divided use
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1 cup shiitake mushrooms stems removed, thinly sliced
- 3 cups shredded cabbage can be green, purple or both
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup green onions cut into 1 inch pieces
- For serving: flour tortillas or mandarin pancakes, sliced green onions, hoisin sauce
Instructions
- Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the eggs and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook, undisturbed, until a flat omelet forms, about 3-4 minutes. Carefully flip the eggs and cook on the other side until done, 1-2 minutes more.
- Remove the eggs from the pan and cut into strips. Cover to keep warm.
- Wipe out the pan with a paper towel.
- Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in the pan.
- Add the pork and cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is browned and cooked through, 4-5 minutes. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Remove the pork from the pan and place on a plate; cover to keep warm.
- Add the cabbage, ginger, garlic and mushrooms to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and cabbage is wilted.
- Return the pork and eggs to the pan. Stir in the green onions.
- In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, honey and 1 tablespoon of water. Whisk in the cornstarch until smooth.
- Add the sauce to the pan and turn the heat to high; bring to a boil. Boil for 30 seconds or just until sauce starts to thicken.
- Serve immediately with tortillas or pancakes, extra hoisin sauce and sliced green onions.
Notes
- I like to use pork tenderloin for this dish, but boneless pork chops, thinly sliced pork shoulder or pork loin will also work. I recommend placing your meat in the freezer for 20-30 minutes so it can firm up, this helps to make the meat easier to slice into thin pieces.
- You can use a bag of pre-shredded cabbage to save on prep time.
- I typically use flour tortillas as a shortcut instead of making my own pancakes. It’s not as authentic, but saves a ton of time!
Made this with thinly sliced pork shoulder and served with large butterhead lettuce leaves in the place of the pancakes/wraps. Absolutely loved it! Added some beansprouts and doubled the sauce. Really good light summery meal
Wouldn’t change a thing! We love it!
I also love this dish as take out. Now, I’ll have a recipe to make it at home whenever I need a quick moo shu pork fix. I also love sriracha as a little extra kick of heat.
I love the idea of serving the pork bites with pancakes. So much flavor in the sauce, perfect to cover the pork, and the addition of cabbage make it crunchy and fresh. Delicious!
So rich and flavorful – the family loved it!
This Moo shu pork looks better than take out to me. Great flavors and easier to make than I thought. Can’t wait to make this for my family.
I love recipes for pork tenderloin. It’s such a tender and juicy cut of meat – this recipe cooks it to perfection and the sauce makes it truly delicious.
I find it hard to hit the mark on asian sauces. This was perfect. I loved the crunch of the cabbage. I will add this to my dinner recipes.
I used chicken and it came out marvelous! Perfect combination of seasonings.
There’s only myself to cook for at times and it’s a great time to learn these delicious recipes on my grandkids. I might add this is the first well third dish I’ve tried from here and I loved them
Delicious! I love this! I’ve been looking for some good recipes to use oyster mushrooms! So glad to have found this one!
Wow – this is so easy to make! Why bother with takeout, especially when you can control exactly what’s in it when you make it at home! Thanks!
I was craving Moo Shu Pork and looking for a recipe, so we didn’t have to order out. Thank you. Looks amazing!
This is so good!! Everyone at my house really loved it!
LOVE these flavors! I’ll definitely be making this again!
I love trying new pork recipes! This one was spot on!
So glad to have this recipe! I love moo shu pork but have never tried it at home. Yum!
This looks so delicious and tasty! My family is going to love this recipe! I can’t wait to give this a try!
A must try recipe for sure! My family will love it for sure!
This moo shu pork is looks absolutely delicious! Yummy!