Kakuni or Japanese Braised Pork Belly is tender chunks of succulent meat coated in a savory soy sauce glaze. There‘s something about this dish that I cannot resist! The slow cooking method turns the pork belly into a delicious creation that simply melts in your mouth.

Kakuni (角煮) is a Japanese braised pork belly, and it literary means “square simmered” referring to the shape of this dish. I’m not usually into fatty meat but there is something about this dish that I cannot resist. The slow cooking method turns the meat into a delicious creation.

For my day-to-day cooking, I enjoy experimenting with existing recipes to see if I can improve them. I had been cooking a simpler version of kakuni until one day my husband asked if the meat can be softer after I made it. I kept experimenting with different methods and changing the ingredients’ portions, and I think I finally got the kakuni that will melt in your mouth.
Tips to Make Delicious Kakuni
The key to a good kakuni recipe is the initial simmering. For this recipe, I spent 2-3 hours simmering the meat, but you could spend additional hours doing so if you have the time. This important process renders out the majority of fat from the pork belly and makes the meat and the fat have that melt-in-your-mouth texture.
Although it takes hours of preparation (unless you have a pressure cooker), the result is really worth it. If you plan to cook this for your family, I would recommend you to make a double portion. Since you have to spend hours in the kitchen anyway, you might want to make extra for a second meal. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does.

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Braised Pork Belly (Kakuni)
Ingredients
- 1 lb pork belly
- 9–10 slices ginger (unpeeled; slice a 2-inch, 5-cm knob)
- 1 Tokyo negi (naga negi; long green onion) (or several green onions/scallions)
- 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell)
For the Seasonings
- 2½ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) (use standard Awase Dashi, dashi packet or powder, or Vegan Dashi)
- ¼ cup sake
- 3 Tbsp mirin
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 dried red chili pepper (optional)
For Serving
- shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice) (optional, to taste)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Pound 1 lb pork belly on both sides with a meat pounder (or the back of the knife) to tenderize it.
- Press and mold the meat back into its original shape with your hands. Then, cut the pork belly into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces. My pieces are roughly 1½ x 1½ x 2 inches (4 x 4 x 5 cm).
- Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When it‘s hot, add the meat fat side down on the ungreased skillet. Cook the meat until all sides are nicely browned. To prevent oil splatter, you can use a splatter screen. Tip: Searing the surface of the meat before boiling helps draw out excess fat and lock in the flavor.
- When the meat is nicely browned, transfer the pieces to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess fat.
- Cut the unpeeled ginger thinly into 9–10 slices ginger; set aside half of the slices for later. Next, cut the green part of 1 Tokyo negi (naga negi; long green onion) into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces. Set aside the white part to make Shiraga Negi later for garnish (see below).
To Cook the Pork Belly
- In a large pot, put the seared pork belly, green part of the negi, and half of the sliced ginger (saving the other half for the braising liquid). Next, add enough water to the pot to cover the meat. Tip: Boiling the seared meat removes the excess fat and scum. These two steps (searing and boiling) remove excess fat while keeping the meat juicy.
- Bring it to a boil over high heat, and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, uncovered (so the unwanted odor goes away), for 2–3 hours. Turn the pork occasionally during this time. When the liquid is running low, add more water or hot water to the pot so the meat remains covered at all times. Tip: If you want really tender meat, cook for at least 3 hours.
To Prepare the Eggs and Shiraga Negi
- Meanwhile, hard-boil 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) and peel them. Set aside. For more details, see my post on How To Make Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs.
- Next, use the white part of 1 Tokyo negi (naga negi; long green onion) to make shiraga negi. First, cut the white part into pieces that are 3 inches (7.6 cm) long. Then, make a lengthwise incision to remove the soft green core (save for another use). Stack the outer layers, holding them flat against the cutting board, and slice lengthwise into very thin julienned strips. Soak in a bowl of iced water for 10 minutes to remove the bitterness, and drain well. Set it aside to use later as a garnish. Tip: For step-by-step photos, see my tutorial on How To Make Shiraga Negi.
To Braise the Pork Belly
- After cooking for 2 hours, drain the water and remove the pork to a paper towel to wipe off the excess oil.
- To a large, heavy-bottomed pot (I use a Dutch oven), add the cooked pork belly, 2½ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock), ¼ cup sake, and 3 Tbsp mirin. Start cooking on medium heat.
- Next, add ¼ cup sugar, ¼ cup soy sauce, the rest of the ginger slices, and 1 dried red chili pepper. Tip: I remove the chili seeds so it won‘t be too spicy for my kids.
- When it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to low or medium low to maintain a simmer. Place an otoshibuta (drop lid) on top of the meat; do not cover the pot with the regular pot lid. Cook for 1 hour. Tip: If you don‘t have an otoshibuta, make one! See my post on How To Make Otoshibuta.
- After the halfway point (cooking for 30 minutes), add the peeled hard-boiled eggs to the pot. You can now remove the otoshibuta.
- Continue simmering, uncovered, for another 30 minutes. If the cooking liquid is pretty low, reduce the heat to low or lowest. Occasionally, baste the meat with the braising liquid and gently turn the meat and eggs. Make sure there‘s enough liquid in the pot so the pork and eggs don‘t burn. When the sauce is reduced and the meat has a nice glaze, it’s ready to serve.
To Serve
- Serve the Kakuni and eggs and garnish with shiraga negi on top. Season with shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice) (optional) to taste.
To Develop Flavor (optional)
- If you prefer a more flavorful and less oily Kakuni, wait one day before serving. Let it cool completely, then refrigerate the pork belly in its braising liquid overnight. The next day, remove and discard the solidified fat (optional) before gently reheating the Kakuni. Heat thoroughly and serve.
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days and in the freezer for a month.
This dish was a real hit with my culturally blended family! The only adjustment I would personally make is to reduce the quantity of sugar slightly, but that’s just my own taste buds opinion! This was a fantastic dish and I will be making for years to come. Thank you so much!
Hi Rach! Thank you so much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your experience with us.
We are glad to hear you enjoyed Kakuni! Happy Cooking!😊
Hi! Thank you for this amazing recipe!
I was just wondering what the spice is that is used as garnish in the presentation photo.
The orange-looking powder on the shiraga negi.
I want to recreate the look for a party.
Hi Bavo, Thank you so much for your kind words!
Nami used this spice called shichimi togarashi.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/shichimi-togarashi/
We hope this helps!
This recipe is amazing! It’s one of the few recipes I feel confident enough to serve when guests come over. I followed most of the directions completely. I know I’m supposed to dump the stock with with ginger and green onion but after making the recipe a few times I couldn’t get myself to do it. Thank you for this great recipe.
Hi Justine! Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us!
Thank You, JOC!
Hi Jeric! Thank you so much for using Nami’s recipe and for your kind feedback! 😊
Thank you for this recipe! I severely miscalculated the time it would take to make this dish and ended up finishing it up at 1 in the morning. Totally worth it! I cut my leftovers into small cubes and sautéed it with shishito peppers to eat over rice, delicious!
Hi Lina! Wow! Cook till 1 am!? We are glad to hear it was worth it.😮💨🥰
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and for your kind feedback!
Which dashi recipe is used to make this dish?
Hi Lisa, Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe!
If Nami did not describe it in the recipe card, she usually uses Awase dashi. However, you can use another type of dashi if you prefer.
We hope this helps!
Thank you for the recipe. It turned out great, although I’ve used pork cheeks instead of pork belly.
Hi Lavinia! Awesome!🤩 We had never tried this with pork cheeks.
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us!
Made this, tastes great. However, after testing, if you want to cook double the pork belly don’t double the sauce ingredients. There is plenty of sauce unless you have a very wide pot with a lot of surface area during the reducing phase.
Hi Ashley! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us.
Yes! If you double the recipe, please adjust the sauce amount for your pot size.😉
Absolutely love this recipe, I’ve made it so many times that I ended up wanting to see if I could tweak it a little and still have it come out tasty. The one adjustment that worked out the best was to add a little extra liquid when getting to step 12 to fit them and then I added several quartered lotus root medallions (about a quarter inch in thickness).
Hi Jesse! We are so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe!
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us!
Hi Nami, why do you have to drain the pork after cooking them for 3 hours? Do you save the water or just discard it? Thank you!
Hi Lucienne! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
If you prefer, you can keep the cooking water and let it cool, remove floating fat, and use the water/broth for other dishes or soup.
However, The process in this recipe is to take out the majority of fat from the pork belly and makes the meat and the fat have that melt-in-your-mouth texture. Moreover, used Dashi instead of the broth for the best flavor.
We hope this helps!
Can anyone tell me how long the pork cooks until the sauce gets reduced? I’ve used the x2 metric intruction, started cooking this after lunch and added the pork in the sake and sauces almost 4 hours ago, it was at a constant low-medium boil and there is still so much of it left that it fully covers the meat.
Hi Ana! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
For doubled amount, you will probably need 4.5 to 5 hours of cooking time until the meat is very soft. The sauce will remain more than you see in the recipe pictures here.
We hope this helps!
Can this recipe also be used with beef?
Hi Mell! Thank you very much for reading Nami’s post!
Typically, this recipe is for pork belly. The meat fat makes this dish very flavorful. If you decide to use beef, please use fatty meat.
We hope this helps!
I made this today. The only ingredient I dis not have was Sake. Substituted that with a blend of medium sherryband rice vinegar. For the rest I followed the recipe to the letter. My only regret is that I did not add more eggs. I am not a big fan of eggs made like this, but woe. They were absolutely delicious.
I highly recommend this recipe. It is absolutely delicious.
Hi Martin, Thank you very much for trying this recipe and for your feedback!
Thank you Namiko
Have anyone tried this using the sous vide method? Thanks
Hi Yvonne, We haven’t heard anyone tried the sous vide method. Please let us know how it goes!