Salt and Pepper Pork Chops with Spicy Scallions

The salt-and-pepper treatment is a Cantonese technique applied to meat, seafood and tofu. The protein typically is deep-fried, but here we opt to pan-fry pork that we first dust in cornstarch seasoned generously with Sichuan pepper, black pepper and cayenne. In a classic salt-and-pepper dish, chilies and garlic are quickly fried and tossed with the cooked protein for big, bold, in-your-face flavors. We, however, finish the pork with a fresh, punchy uncooked mix of sliced scallions, chopped cilantro, minced chilies, rice vinegar and grated ginger. The easiest way to grind the tongue-tingling Sichuan peppercorns for this recipe is in an electric spice grinder. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.