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Use your instant pot to make this melt-in-your-mouth Pressure Cooker Pork Belly (Kakuni)! Enjoy the dish with a steaming bowl of rice, and it could well be your family’s favorite recipe.
I received many requests for more Instant Pot recipes after I shared my Slow Cooker Chicken Wings recipe. I love my Instant Pot. This electric cooker has both a pressure cooker and s slow cooker function.
Today I’m sharing one of my favorite and super delicious Instant Pot recipes, Pressure Cooker Pork Belly (Kakuni)! I really hope you’ll enjoy this recipe as much as my family does.
Watch How To Make Pressure Cooker Pork Belly プレッシャークッカーで作る角煮の作り方
Make delicious melt-in-your-mouth pressure cooker pork belly. The Japanese name for this dish is Kakuni (角煮) and it simply tastes amazing with rice.
If you’ve never had Japanese pork belly dish called Kakuni (角煮)… oh my gosh, where should I begin? It’s my favorite Japanese pork dish. The tender pork cooking for hours simply melt in your mouth and the sweet and savory sauce…ah, it’s hard not to drool thinking about it. Seriously.
Making Kakuni with a Pressure Cooker
Whether you’re already familiar with how to make Kakuni on the stove top or had never made it before, I highly recommend making Kakuni with a pressure cooker. Why? Because you can cook it FAST. Much, much, faster than on a stove top. This special dish that you used to prepare once in a while will soon become a weeknight repertoire. When you cook pork belly over the stove top, it takes a while (hours) to get the pork super tender and you need to constantly monitor the temperature and amount of liquid remaining in the pot. With a pressure cooker, these worries go away and the process is very simple.
Still hesitant about buying a pressure cooker because of the memories from your mom’s old fashioned pressure cooker? I definitely was. My mom has this stove top pressure cooker that makes everyone nervous when it makes a hissing, whistling, and rattling sound. I was used to hearing the sound, yet for the longest time (and still), I don’t feel safe using it by myself in my own kitchen.
Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
However, having the Instant Pot changed me. This electric pressure cooker is very easy and user-friendly. Even though it is both a slow cooker and pressure cooker, I actually use the pressure cooker function more often than the slow cooker function. Why? It cuts down cooking time significantly, and it’s a perfect cooking gadget for busy cooks!
In case you’re interested, I put the recipe below for my regular Kakuni recipe you can make using the stove top.
I hope you enjoy my Kakuni recipe using a pressure cooker. I had never used other types/brands of pressure cooker so for instructions on how to use your device, please refer to the manual.
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- 3 green onions/scallions (use only the green parts)
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 Tbsp neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, canola, etc)
- 2 lb pork belly block (907 g; you can increase the meat up to 4 lb/2kg. For 3-4 lb meat, please increase the seasonings by 50%; Remove skin/rind if there is any or ask the butcher to remove it for you. Japanese grocery stores sell pork belly without rind)
- Water (for cooking pork belly)
- 4 soft/hard boiled eggs (See Notes)
- shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice) (for taste, optional)
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Gather all the ingredients. My pork belly (from the Korean market) was pre-sliced into ¼ inches. If you buy a block you can freeze the meat for 30-60 minutes and slice with a sharp knife (See this post) or cut into 2" x 2" or 5 cm x 5 cm cubes, which are typical Japanese pork belly (Kakuni) shapes.
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We will only use the green parts of the green onions (use the white parts in miso soup to go with this dish). Cut the green parts in half. Peel the ginger and slice it thinly.
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Press the “Sauté” button on your Instant Pot and heat the oil. Cook the pork belly. You can skip this part to cut down the cooking time, but it will render more fat and make the dish tastier.
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Pour water just to cover the meat, then add the green onions and sliced ginger. Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the steam release handle points at “sealing” and not “venting”. Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button on the Instant Pot to stop cooking. Press the “Manual” button to switch to the pressure cooking mode. Change the cooking time to 35 minutes. If you’re using a stove-top pressure cooker, cook on high heat until high pressure is reached. Then reduce the heat to low to maintain high pressure for about 30 minutes.
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When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to a “Keep Warm” mode. Slide the steam release handle to the "Venting" position to let out steam until the float valve drops down, OR let the pressure release naturally (takes about 15 mins). Unlock the lid and drain the cooking water and discard the green onion and ginger. Rinse the pork belly under warm water.
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Put the pork belly back in the Instant Pot and add ½ cup water, ¼ cup sake, ½ cup mirin, ½ cup soy sauce, and ¼ cup sugar. Mix the seasonings a little bit and add the boiled eggs. Press the “Sauté” button on the Instant Pot and press “Adjust” once to increase the heat. Bring it to simmer to let the alcohol evaporate (no more than a minute). Then press “Keep Warm/Cancel” button to turn off the Sauté mode. Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the steam release handle points at “sealing”. Press "Manual" and set the cooking time to 10 minutes for slices and 20 minutes for 2" x 2" cubes.
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When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to a “Keep Warm” mode. Slide the steam release handle to the "Venting" position to let out steam until the float valve drops down and unlock the lid. If you have time (this is optional), press the “Sauté” button and simmer on low heat until the liquid in the cooker has reduced by half.
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Serve the rice in a (donburi) bowl and pour the sauce on top. Place the pork belly and egg (add blanched green vegetable if you have any). Pour additional sauce over the meat and serve immediately. If you like it a bit spicy, sprinkle shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice). Enjoy!
Equipment you will need:
- Pressure Cooker (6 QT Instant Pot) (or other pressure cooker)
Soft Boiled Egg Recipe: here.
Hard Boiled Egg Recipe: here.
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Looks easy and delicious!
Thanks so much! It is indeed. I like making this when I don’t have much time. 🙂
Hi Nami:
I went ahead and got the Instant Pot because I wanted one device to take the place of my slow cooker and pressure cooker. I made the kakuni and it was really great. Thanks so much for introducing me to the recipe and the device. What I like the best is how easy it is to clean up. There’s no grease splatter or the risk of burnt food since the machine switches to warm after the set time. Are you planning to post any more recipes that use the Instant Pot?
Hi thischris! So happy to hear your feedback and thanks for writing! Isn’t this machine awesome?!?! I always wanted to get both devices but I didn’t have space for them, so I’m super happy with my Instant Pot. I’m glad that your kakuni came out well too!
Yes, I’m planning to share more recipes using this device in the future. Thank you once again!
Now that you have a pressure cooker, do you think you can come with a recipe for a Chinese mochi called Gau
http://www.hawaiianelectric.com/heco/_hidden_Hidden/Recipes/Gau-(Chinese-rice-dessert)
I would think that a pressure cooker would really cut back on the 4 hour steaming time.
I need to try tasting this mochi first! I have no idea how it tastes like. It seems very simple to make with a few ingredients. 🙂
There are other variants of Gau recipe using coconut milk to replace some of the water. Brown sugar can be used to replace the wong tong (Chinese slab sugar, labeled brown sugar candy)
Thanks for sharing this recipe! Please post more recipes using the Instant Pot! Hubby got one for me 2 weeks ago as his anniversary gift to me! It’s been great and cuts down on cooking time significantly for me!
Hi Dora! Happy Anniversary! I’m hoping to post more Instant Pot recipes this winter. I’m waiting for my kitchen remodel is finished and I can start cooking again. 🙂
just bought the instant pot and now I know the first dish I want to try with it…this looks/sounds amazing. Thanks so much again for a wonderful recipe!
Hi Sasha! AWESOME! I hope you enjoy this recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami! I tried your pressure cooker short ribs recipe and it was delicious. I just got the Instant Pot pressure cooker and was so thrilled to not only find your recipe but to also see you using the Instant Pot. This pork belly dish looks tasty, though I don’t have pork belly right now. Do you think it would work if I used pork tenderloins? Thanks!
Hi Amy! I’m so glad to hear you liked the pressure cooker short rib recipe! Yes, I love instant pot and try to share more Japanese instant pot recipes (Did you see my recent Japanese Curry recipe using instant pot?). Pork belly has good fat to make the meat very tender. Never used pork tenderloin for this recipe, but I know for sure that the meat will be tougher and won’t be “melting” texture… If you’re used to lean meat you might be okay, but if you love Kakuni or pork belly texture, I’d say you might be disappointed with the result if you use tenderloin. Sorry! It’s hard to beat the pork belly texture (and fat content is very different…).
Thanks Nami! I ended up making it with both pork tenderloin and a little bit of pork belly I had left and it was still pretty good. I haven’t checked out your curry recipe but I’ll take a look. Would love to see more pressure cooker recipes if you have any! Thanks again!
Hi Amy! I’ll continue to share more pressure cooker recipes (but I can’t share all the time as not everyone has it… :)). Thank you so much for your feedback! I truly appreciate it!
Thanks for the recipe!!! It is great! Can you recommend another cut of meat to substitute for pork belly b/c pork belly are very fat so I can only cook this dish twice a year. Thanks in advance.
Hi Tim! I’m glad to hear you liked the recipe! You can use pork shoulder (this is my next choice) or loin (but it won’t be as ‘melting’ and the meat is not as tender). 🙂
I bought an Instant Pot after reading your blog and I made this dish last night. It was delicious! Looking forward to more of your recipes =)
Yay!!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe! I’ll share more Instant Pot recipes this fall/winter! 🙂
Hi, I made this and it was delicious.
Instead of 2 steps (35 min, 10 min), could those be combined into one step? Eg put green onion, garlic, soy sauce, mirin, etc and cook for 45 min, then remove green onion and garlic? I guess it would be harder to see the green onion and garlic, but it would make the recipe easier…
Hi hmucha! In Japanese cooking, it’s important to have “clean” flavor, and we consider this pre-boiling (before seasoning) is an important step. We need to throw away the water you cook the pork, and after cleaning the pork, finally we can season it. It’s not the green onion and garlic that we don’t need. That helps the smell reduced. We don’t want that unwanted flavor and fat from the pork… Hope this makes sense. 🙂
Just made this!! Fantastic my husband said and great that there is one piece over for tomorrow, thank you for posting!!!!
Hi Penny! Yay! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for your kind feedback! 🙂
Recipe looks great! How and when can I add pickled mustard greens?
Hi Sallye! I think you can just add it as a topping after serving the meat. If you’re talking about pickled one… you don’t need to cook it. 🙂
Thank you for this great recipe！I make it at least 2 times a month and my family loves it! The meat is just melts in your mouth and only take 1/2 hour to make!
Hi Wendy! So happy to hear you like this recipe! Isn’t it great? Thank you for your kind feedback! xo
This was fantastic! I’ve made it a few times already. I prefer it with a poached egg to a hard cooked, but the sauce and the meat are just about perfect.
Thank you.
Hi Alan! I’m so happy to hear you like this recipe! Thank you so much for your kind feedback. 🙂
Hi Nami!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe – I was wondering in addition to adding eggs, could you also add other vegetables like carrots or potatoes into the pressure cooker when cooking the pork belly? Having the veggies cook in the sauce sounds like it’ll be really yummy!
Hi Kyouko! Sure you can do that. BUT vegetables tend to cook really fast in a pressure cooker. So if you don’t like mushy vegetables, you can release the pressure and add the vegetables toward the end, or cut vegetables slightly bigger (so it takes longer to cook). Hope this helps! 🙂
Is there a substitute for the pork belly (can’t find it locally) or does that defeat the recipe?
Hi Tyson! I really believe fatty pork belly is the best fit for this recipe, but you might be able to use pork shoulder…but it’ll be more dry. Pork belly can be found in Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Mexican market as well as butchers (that’s what I know of in my local stores). Hope you can find it. 🙂
I’m making this for a large crowd. Have you ever doubled the recipe and, if so, did you double the sauce mix or change the cooking time? Thanks!
Hi Amy! I have never doubled the recipe, but as long as it doesn’t exceed the limid for the pressure cooker, it should be okay. I’d increase the sauce as well (same portion) so that it has enough sauce when you serve. 🙂
Hi Amy,
I doubled this recipe on my first try and it tasted amazing. My pork belly did not look as pretty as the pictures but still delicious and when it was all eaten up I was kind of sad there wasn’t more for left overs.
Hi Nami,
More instant pot recipes please 🙂 No pressure but I bought the instant pot just for this recipe, it was a great success and I’m excited to try more!
Sincerely,
Sandy
Hi Sandy! Thank you for responding to Amy! I’m glad it came out well! 🙂
Cool you got an IP! I have more recipes coming, the newest one will be Oxtail Soup. Sorry I haven’t edited yet so I’ll probably need some time before sharing… 🙂
Hi Nami!
Thanks for sharing all these Instant Pot recipes, I wouldn’t know how to use my pressure cooker otherwise! In regards to the sake, is there a type of sake that’s specifically used to cook with or is any sake from the store okay?
Eric
Hi Eric! You’re very welcome, thank you for checking out my recipes. 🙂 I use one of three sake I listed here (based on which one is on sale…). 🙂
https://www.justonecookbook.com/pantry_items/sake/
This was delicious. Everyone really enjoyed the melt in your mouth pork fat. Personally, I might try it again with a little less sugar.
Hi Ben! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Yes, you can use less sugar if you like. 🙂
Hi! My instant pot (philips brand) does not have a sauté function. Can I skip the step? Thank you!!
Hi Natalie! I see. Yeah I guess you have no choice. Cooking/Sauteeing meat and vegetables before actual pressure cooking only adds more flavors and complexity from browning the ingredients.
I don’t have any sake. Is there something else I can substitute or leave out the alcohol altogether? Thank you!
If you can take alcohol, best substitute is Chinese rice wine or dry sherry. 🙂 If you can’t take it due to religious reason, then need the same amount of water. Hope this helps!
Oh. My. Made your braused pork belly today. Even better than I anticipated.
Thanjs so much.
Hi Gayle! So happy to hear that! Thanks so much for your very kind feedback! xo 🙂
Just made this tonight and it was awesome! My husband is Japanese and he loved it, so you know it’s legit. The only thing i regret is not taking your advice, Nami, to use slab pork belly (rather than pre-cut). I bought pre-cut and it cooked down to shredded pieces, rather than the fatty, juicy cubes that we’re used to having in izakayas here in L.A. Next time, I will follow the recipe to a tee. Either way, we thoroughly enjoyed this recipe and we both voted it to be a keeper in our household! Thank you for the amazing dish. Loved it!
Hi AC! I do not know why I didn’t get email notification of your comment, but I might accidentally delete it. I just saw it… I’m sorry!
Thank you for trying this recipe! Actually this is pre-cut recipe. My other Kakuni recipe (https://www.justonecookbook.com/braised-pork-belly-kakuni/) uses a block. This sliced pork belly cut is from Korean, so they are thick cut, compared to Japanese pork belly slices.
Hi Nami,
Hope you are doing well! May I know how the pork used for Kakuni called/labelled in Japan (supermarket)? Sorry I’m quite new to Japan, so I’m not used to the Japanese supermarket yet. I can’t seem to find pork with enough fat to make this dish 🙁 All look pretty lean to me…
Have a nice evening!
Hi Selina! Buta Bara 豚バラ肉 is the sliced pork belly BUT Japanese sliced pork belly are thinner cut than the one I used here as I got these from Korean supermarket. They sell 豚バラ in a block too… I forget how it was written. 🙁 I’m going there in 2 days… I’ll check the grocery store. If you still need my help, could you email or respond to this comment so I get a reminder? 🙂
Hi Nami,
Thanks a lot for the advice. I would really appreciate if you could help to check the name of pork belly in the Korean supermarket when you happen to go there 🙂 I bought the Japanese sliced pork belly few days ago to make Yakisoba and I think the cut is too thin for making Kakuni. I’m afraid that the meat and the fat may fall off after being braised.
Thank you in advance, and have a nice day!
Hi Selina! What I meant was to go back to Japan in 2 days. So I can go to supermarket and find the pork belly for kakuni block. That’s what you need, right? Yes, Japanese pork belly slices are like bacon, very thin. So You might want to cook as a block or slice thick yourself or cut after being cooked. 🙂
Hi Nami,
Oh I see! Sorry for the misunderstanding. Yup please help me check out the kakuni block when you are back to Japan, but only at your convenience 🙂 I understand that it’s your family trip so it’s okay if you don’t have time for that.
Thank you in advance!
Hi Nami,
I went to the supermarket again yesterday and I think I found it this time. The name is 豚バラブロック, is it correct?
Hi Selina! I apologize for my late response. I had been traveling and didn’t get a chance to go to grocery store to take a pic yet. Yes, it is!! Yay!!!
Hi Nami,
No worries! And thanks for the confirmation 🙂
By the way, I saw your photos updated on your Facebook. Very nice photos! Hope your family had a great trip 🙂
Tried the recipe last week. Loved it! Question: if I were to double the serving size, should I double the seasonings? What about the time in pressure cooker? Thanks!!
Hi Alice! So glad to hear you liked it! Thank you for your kind feedback. You should double the seasonings as well, and cooking time should be same as long as cooking condition is the same. 🙂
Hi in the step 6 above of pork belly recipe, my instant pot didn’t heat up to simmer. even being on for 30mins. Followed exactly your instruction but couldn’t bring it to simmer. Very frustrated. Have to heat it up in a separate pot on stove top to evaporate. Any idea why this is happening? Thank you.
Hi Yvonne! Trying to think why – it doesn’t take that long to get the liquid boiling (in video, you see boiling stage around 2:11). Did you work on a bigger batch? Maybe some condiments were very cold? Your pork wasn’t cold uncooked meat (skipped previous step), right? I am not sure what is wrong in the situation… It’s not much liquid, so liquid + meat in the pot should’t require over 30 mins to start boiling…
Do I have to include eggs in this recipe?
Hi Kenya! Nope, no need. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe!
ohenji arigato. yoi ichinichio
I asked my good friend Minori how to say this, lol I hope I said the right thing. Thanks
Arigato Kenya!
Yes you got it right! 🙂
I can’t believe how good this is! I made it tonight and It is the best pork belly I’ve ever had by far. I’ve tried all of your pressure cooker recipes, they all turned out so well. Thank you so much!
Hi Bonster! I’m glad you enjoyed this dish! I’m going to post next pressure cooker recipe soon.. I’ve been delaying for 2 months! Hope you will like that too. 🙂
please provide instruction with stove-top pressure cooker, after the first 30 mins, do another 15 mins with eggs? will the eggs over cook?
Hi Cindy! You can follow the same cooking time. Egg should be okay (as you see in my pictures) but if you are worried about green circle around the eggs, you can add in later too. 🙂
Loved this–instant pot makes it so much faster! Followed the recipe exactly and next time I will take down the sugar to 3 Tbsp. It was a tad too sweet for me with 1/4 cup. But definitely a fabulous version of a Japanese classic.
Hi Ilonka! Yes, IP is such a great time saver and I love it too! I’m glad you figured out your level of sweetness. 🙂 Thank you for your kind comment! xo
YUMMERS. I finally made this dish. This was the recipe (when it first came out) that made me want to get an instant pot because I had to have this deliciousness! 3 years later…I got my instant pot and after mulling about it I finally tried this recipe. And it did not disappoint.The only thing I did differently was add in the greens at the very end. I am still very much a novice with the instant pot but we all agree this is definitely as oishii as one of the japanese restaurants in town! Thank you!
Hi Tasha! Haha, I’m so happy you finally tried this recipe! Thank you for your kind words! New Instant Pot recipe coming this weekend too. 😉 Hope you enjoy making delicious recipes using IP! xo
Question … for the boiled eggs, should it be somewhat raw inside? Did you use instant pot to make those eggs and at which setting? Thanks!
Hi Mel! You can use either soft boiled or hard boiled eggs. It’s really up to one’s preference and there is no specific type that is required for Kakuni. 🙂 In Notes section, I link my recipes for hard boiled and soft boiled eggs (using regular stovetop method).
Do I slice the pork belly before cooking? And if so, how thick should I slice them? Thank you and keep on doing the great work!
Hi Monette! I used the pre-sliced pork belly from Korean grocery store – their slices are much thicker than Japanese pork belly slices (Japanese version is bacon thickness, while Korean is about triple thickness).
If you’re going to get a block, you can cook with block, and cut later OR you can slice first. Freeze 2-3 hours or so you can slice thinly. I’d go with the same thickness so you can follow the exact recipe. 8 mm thickness would be good I think.
Wish we were still in San Diego or Japan! We only had blocks here and I sliced them thinly. The blocks were more fatty than meaty, so they looked like they melted. It was delicious, nonetheless. Wish it looked presentable like the ones you had and the ones we had in Japan! Thanks again!
Hi Monette! It’s great that you could find pork belly blocks – I know that some readers said it is hard to find pork belly, except for bacon… You can freeze for a few hours and then slice too. It will be easier to slice that way. 🙂 Thank you so much for trying this recipe!
I just made this. It’s yummy and hubby approves. Thank you, Nami! Love your recipes.
Hi Mydao! I’m so happy to hear you two enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for your kind feedback. xoxo
I am a graduate student living in California, from Taiwan. I love your website so much! I ate so much Japanese food growing up in Taiwan so Japanese food is very important to me. I love your miso soup and pressure cooker kakuni recipes. The instant pot is saving me so much time on cooking, it is amazing. I cook Japanese curry a lot, but I look forward to trying it out in the Instant Pot in a few days. Especially because I have my PhD exams in two months, eating well and cooking quickly is super important for me! Thank you so much!
Hi Amanda! I’m really happy to hear you enjoy my recipes, and thank you for your very sweet and encouraging words. My husband (who also grew up in Taiwan) has great memory of grandma’s food that had a lot of Japanese influence. 🙂
I will try my best to add more instant pot recipes but here are what I have currently on my blog:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/tags/pressure-cooker/
I love pulled pork recipe that I recently posted. You can make a rice bowl, tacos, sandwich… great way to freeze and pop into the oven to reheat to enjoy. Good luck with your exam!
Hi Nami!
The kakuni is bubbling away as I type and I had a burning question: do I REALLY have to throw away all that porky broth? Is there another acceptable use for it? It seems a waste…I know you want a clean flavor for the kakuni but perhaps the broth in another use would be ok? Like a ramen broth perhaps or some other stew…I’d love to hear your thoughts, thank you!
Hi Soleilnyc! I apologize for my late response (due to my travel). Typically we do not use the first boiling liquid in Japanese cooking. But I learned that Okinawan cuisine (similar to Chinese cooking), they keep the first boiling water and make soup stock for Okinawa Soba!
https://www.justonecookbook.com/okinawa-soba/
It’s too weak for ramen. I would use it for this Okinawa Soba recipe. 🙂
Oh, my mouth is watering just looking at the photos! One question: do you peel your eggs before putting them in the instant pot or do they go in with their shells on?
Many thanks!
Hi Art! Thank you for your kind words. 🙂 Yes, peel the eggs first, and then add to the IP. Hope you enjoy!
Just wanted to let you know that I made this last night for my family. It was wonderful. It’s all gone… Next time I’m going to have to double the recipe!
(sorry, I forgot to take a picture)
Hi Tina! I’m so happy to hear you tried this recipe and your family enjoyed it! Yay!!! Don’t worry about the picture, I’m so glad you had a great meal with your family! And thanks for writing your feedback here. xo
Hi,Nami-san, I’m a Japanese wife married to a Russian-American guy, living in Japan.
The pressure cooker which I had been using since we got married had broken several month ago, then my husband bought Instant Pot by Amazon suddenly. I was upset, coz almost just few instruction or recipes in Japanese on the internet , even in the Japanese biggest cooking site “ cookpad “ doesn’t have anything. But finally, I could find your website, that is ,saving my cooking life everyday!
I have been trying to cook several recipes, all are quite awesome! Including Kakuni, Nikujaga, Bolognese sauce, and so on. I’m looking forward to finding more recipes especially for instant pot. I really really appreciate you, Nami-san!
Hi Mina-san! Aww thank you so much for your kind words, and I’m glad you found my site! I live in the US (San Francisco) so I cook Japanese food with ingredients I can find from a local Japanese grocery store (which we can buy almost everything, but not too many choices to pick from). Hope you find my site and recipes useful. 🙂 And have fun cooking in IP! I’ll be adding more Japanese IP recipes to the site this fall/winter!
Hi Nami,
Would it be possible to cook the pork belly whole the entire time and slice only when serving? Do I need to increase cooking time?
Hi Jade! You can, but for the meat to soak up the flavor, I recommend to boil a big block first and cut into smaller pieces before adding seasoning. Hope that helps!
Wow, simply amazing! This tasted just like the Kakuni I had in Japan! Thank you for the wonderful recipe!!!
Thank you so much for your kind feedback, Leslie! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it. 🙂
Do you use skin off or skin on pork belly for this recipe?
Hi Trudy! Pork belly block sold at Japanese market is usually already skin off. 🙂
I’ve enjoyed cooking your other recipes and this one looks delicious, too. You used dashi in the traditional stove top version. Is there a reason dashi is not needed here? I recently bought an instant pot, but I’m not sure how to modify traditinal recipes for the IP, any tips would be greatlt appreciated 🙂
Hi Guangye! I keep it simple in this recipe as making dashi can be one extra step for many (I don’t mind). You can replace ½ cup water with ½ cup dashi for more flavor. I don’t always make the same dish and always find a way to arrange a dish. So feel free to adjust, but keep the liquid amount same. Thank you so much for trying my recipes! And happy cooking with your new IP! 🙂
This is definitely better with the dashi instead of plain water! Even using powdered dashi has made a huge difference [drool emoji]
Hi Patrick! Thank you for your kind feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Jufr! Welcome to the IP club. 😀 So happy to hear you tried this recipe and enjoyed it (and are making it again!). Thank you very much for your kind comment. 🙂
Delicious. I added carrots and turnips and cut back on sugar. Fantastic meal.
Hi V! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Nami,
Have just made this recioe this morning, and I really enjoy it, thanks so much for creating the recipe 😀
Hi Christine! Thank you so much for your kind feedback! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
Hi Nani, I love all your recipes and a big hello from Australia. I have a question about this pork dish. I have just bought a instant pot and I’m going to try this recipe tomorrow.
If I blanched the pork in boiling water before pressure cooking, can I skip the step of draining water and washing it after cooking? Can I put all the seasoning and water into the half cooked and washed pork? ( Australian pork has a game smell and I usually blanch it with boiling water and ginger,n wash it before stewing.
Thank you very much.
Hi Jasmine! I’m sorry for my late response. Thank you for trying out my recipes. 🙂
So what you’re saying is that you will boil the water first, add in the pork to blanch (which means just short cooking), and then wash. Well, it comes down to preference, but it doesn’t render fat enough in such a short cooking time and then later you will be cooking in a fatty sauce. In Japanese cooking, we prefer more “clean” taste and this pre-cooking time is actually important before seasoning. But again, this is all preference. 🙂 Hope that helps!
Hi Nami-san, I made kakuni with instant pot for the first time tonight. Your recipe worked so well! My family loved it. I have a question, but how thinly do you cut the pork belly block? I do not think you mentioned about it in your recipe. Thank you for creating all the easy-to-follow delicious recipes!
I just read the other comments and found that you said that you buy pre-sliced meat from Korean grocery store. I have never shopped at Korean grocery store. Which store do you recommend in SF? Thank you for your advice!
Sorry I just read this comment. One in Sunnyvale, Hankook Supermarket. 🙂 There is one in Daly City too.
Thank you for your reply! I will try those stores next time I make kakuni!
Hi Fumiko-san! I’m glad this recipe worked out for you! Thank you for trying this recipe.
Ah thanks for bringing to my attention. I used a pre-sliced pork belly from the Korean market for this recipe. It was roughly 1/4 inches. I updated the recipe. 🙂
Hi. I was comparing your Kakuni traditional recipe vs instant pot version and I have a question about the size of the pork belly. On the traditional recipe you cut the pork to 2”x2” squares/cubes while the instant pot recipe are cut to 1/4” slices. How much time would you add to the instant pot method if using the 2”x2” cube size? Would you increase in both the first part boiling the pork in water and the 2nd part boiling with all the seasoning? Any adjustments to the amount of seasoning? How would you adjust the instant pot recipe? Thanks so much. Can’t wait to try it. I just bought a pack of belly from Costco 😃
Hi Karen! The pork belly for the instant pot recipe was from a Korean market which was pre-sliced. You will not need to increase the cooking time for the first part (blanching the pork), but for the simmering part, I would increase the time a bit (cook 15-20 mins) to so that the flavor will go in more. If you’re using 2 lbs, you should not need to increase the seasoning. 1.5 x would be okay… but I don’t think it’s necessary. 🙂
Thank you so much for the quick reply! Happy Labor Day weekend 😉
You too, Karen!
To double this recipe, do we double the cooking times? I’ve made this before, and it’s fabulous! Thanks!
Hi Nikolai! No, unless it’s a significant amount difference, it should be the same cooking time. 🙂
Thanks Nami! Actually I live in Japan, and my girlfriend was quite impressed by this recipe. BTW I did double it, and it went fine even with the extra ingredients (which, btw, brought it just over the “fill” line on my 6 Quart Insta Pot).
Hi Nikolai! Thank you for the feedback! Oh! You have an Instant Pot in Japan! How is it in the Japanese kitchen? I can imagine this machine is gigantic. 😀 I’m so happy to hear you two enjoyed the recipe!
Well of course my kitchen is pretty small, but I have a decent sized place so it is separate from the rest of my living room. I keep it stored away under my floor when I am not using it 🙂
I meant I keep my InstaPot under the floor in my kitchen that is haha.
Hi Nikolai! Yes, I understood. 🙂 In winter months, I keep my IP on the counter all times! 😀
Hi Nami, do you use pork belly with skin or without skin for this recipe?
Hi Yi-Nan! Without skin. Japanese don’t use skin-on pork belly so ones you can get from Japanese grocery stores are all no-skin. 🙂
HiHi 🙂
Is Sake & Mirin suitable for 15month old? I love to cook Japanese dishes – always referring to your blog. But not sure if I can use the above 2 ingredients when I cook for my boy? Thank u!
Hi Fen! If the recipe requires cooking the sake and mirin, sure! Alcohol is all evaporated from cooking, so there is no alcohol. If you don’t smell the alcohol then it’s already gone. All you have left is non-alcohol liquid (with umami and sweetness from fermented rice). If the recipe calls for sake/mirin and no need to cook, don’t use it. 🙂
Great! I’m going to get sake & mirin now. Thanks Nami 😘
You’re very welcome! Good luck! 🙂 xo
Nami, you may want to revise this as alcohol does not evaporate in the IP.
Hi Neelie! Please read Step 6: Bring it to simmer to let the alcohol evaporate (no more than a minute).
Ah yes, I did miss that. And I want to reply, of course, only to bring awareness to this issue as this is something I’ve had to research myself, having two young kids to cook for.
For simplicity, I’ll just cut and paste from Food Network, but a quick Google across different platforms will give the same basic conclusion:
“The longer you cook, the more alcohol cooks out, but you have to cook food for about 3 hours to fully erase all traces of alcohol. … After an hour of cooking, 25 percent of the alcohol remains, and even after two and a half hours there’s still 5 percent of it.”
I’ve had to modify so much of my cooking to try to accommodate the kiddos.
In any case, I love your recipes. I often use them and am always assured that they turn out yummy and well-received.
– A Fan from Across the Bay 🙂
Hi Neelie! Because sake (and mirin) is a big part of Japanese cooking just like soy sauce, we do have a lot of discussions online on this matter (on Japanese websites) too. The official doctor’s recommendation in Japan is to wait until 12 months to introduce sake/mirin to the kids, and we have to make sure to cook (boil) it before using it.
It also depends on how much alcohol in the recipe, too. In general, Japanese recipes use a few tablespoons of sake and mirin to make sauce or season the simmered dishes. Since sake and mirin are pretty much in all recipes, and we do not omit them for kids (unless it’s for a baby under 1 year old). This is just how we’re typically advised in Japan. However, it’s best to use your own judgment for your children and do what’s best for them. 🙂
I also should mention that we pre-make alcohol-evaporated sake or mirin and use it for recipes (without worrying about evaporating). We can still use the sake/mirin effect without alcohol. You would cook sake (or mirin) in a pot, bring it to a boil, and let it cook until alcohol is evaporated. Then you keep that in a jar etc and use in whatever recipes that require sake (or mirin). So that’s another option.
Thanks so much for the discussion!
Nami, thanks so much for sharing that! I’ve been wondering what the standard practice is in other countries, and whether the recommendation in the States to leave out alcohol might not be universal.
Anyway, thank you also for the discussion 🙂
Hi Neelie, the pleasure was all mine. Thank you!
I just wanted to say thank you!! I used your method to make some Okinawan shoyu pork to top my ramen and it was out of this world! I don’t have an instapot, but I have a Ninja Foodi and your directions worked great for it as well! Definitely saving and I look forward to trying more of your recipes! After being stationed in Okinawa, I’m always on the hunt to replicate the most amazing food I’ve had in my life! Love Japanese food!
Hi Amanda! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for trying this recipe! I hope you find some recipes that you enjoyed while you lived in Okinawa. 🙂 Thank you for your kind feedback! xoxo
I made this tonight for the second time and my husband loves this! Your recipe is super easy to follow and it’s really delicious. Thank you!
Hi Jean! Thank you so much for trying this recipe! I’m so glad you and your husband enjoy this dish! Thank you!!
This was so good ! Just like my mom used to make. I also put Daikon.
Hi Naoko-san! I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for trying this recipe!
Hi Nami,
I’m either not doing this right or there’s a typo in the recipe instructions, which I followed precisely. I used the 1/4 inch pork belly slices and put them in my InstantPot as instructed for 35 minutes, which in my experience with the InstantPot is a pretty long time for most meats. When I took them out, the pork had rendered all of the fat so that only the meat was left, and when I did the second 10-minute cook in the sauce, the pork came out even leaner and quite broken down. The final result looks nothing like yours. I’m wondering if the initial cook should be a shorter time to preserve the integrity of the pork belly. Please advise. Thanks!
Hi Weston! Thank you so much for trying this recipe! I actually cook this recipe often, and I do not have the issue you had. Seeing my ingredients picture at Step 1, do you think your pork belly has a lot more fat than mine? If you look at this video recipe, you see how mine looks. It’s tender, but not broken into pieces… If you think 35 minutes is too long, you can definitely cut down to adjust and I hope that will help. 🙂
I see you’ve updated the recipe! Good stuff! Question, about how long will the left over sauce last in the fridge? Thanks!
Hi Nikolai! The amount of recipe should be the same, right? I edit instructions by improving my sentences to make it clear (especially if someone has trouble understanding my English). xD
I’d say up to 3-4 days? Or freeze it if you want to keep longer. 🙂
Hi!
Just wondering if you use less pork in this recipe, say half of the recipe amount or less, should we reduce the pressure cooking time from 35 minutes? Thank you!
Hi Cathy! I would start just following my recipe (see this post: https://www.thekitchn.com/instant-pot-cook-time-half-recipe-22932622) but check the result and see if you can adjust based on how it’s cooked. 🙂
This looks so good! I want to make this for my family, but the block of pork belly I have is fully frozen. Do you have any recommendations for cooking kakuni from frozen pork belly?
Hi Jonathan! You will still need to defrost most of it so you can properly sear. Otherwise, the moisture will come out while you’re searing and you probably have a hard time searing it correctly. 🙂
This was great! I left out the Japanese five spice and only had 1/4 cup Mirin so substituted the remainder with 1/4 cup rice vinegar and 1/8 cup sugar. It was so easy and the pork was soft and delish as promised. The egg sits in the sauce while it reduces to soak in the flavour so my egg was definitely hard boiled, which was fine too.
Hi Sarah! Thank you so much for your kind words and feedback. Thanks for trying this recipe and I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I can’t wait to try this recipe. The only this is I don’t have any scallions. I have onions and Korean chives. Would either of those work as a substitute? Or can I leave it out without losing flavor? Thank you!!
Hi Sylvia! The scallions or negi (long green onion) is to remove the unwanted flavor from the pork, not too much for flavoring. You can use onion, leeks, shallot, as a substitute. 🙂
I made this with no variations to the recipe. It was marvelous. Gochisou sama deshita.
Hi Bkhuna! Wonderful! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Arigato!!
This is absolutely yummy and I’m so glad I found it. We have had Kakuni in our fav restaurant (Kura) in Ak, New Zealand but we live in Portland, OR now and it’s not a good time to go to restaurants of course. Making this just made me feel so accomplished, it really was meltingly delicious. It was hard to throw away the first cooking liquids and onions and ginger but I’m glad I did. The second batch of cooking and reducing really brought everything harmoniously together. I added some carrots and just a few garlic bulbs. I think I could’ve skipped the garlic but the carrots were soft and delicious! Thanks! Julia
Hi Julia! Aww I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for your feedback, and I’m happy you got to enjoy this at your home during this pandemic.
On the YouTube video you press “Meat/Stew” but in the instructions you put “Manual.” Which one should it be or does it even make a difference?
Hi Justine! The preset mode is helpful if you don’t have to adjust (just one click) but if you adjust the timer, it’s same as. using manual… so it’s up to you how you want to use it. 🙂
Hi Nami, the pork belly block I purchased at the Chinese market has skin on top. Should I remove the skin for this recipe?
Thank you!
Hi Jen! Yes, please remove the skin/rind. In Japan (or Japanese markets here), pork belly is sold skin-less. I’ll mention in the recipe. 🙂
Made it last night and was a huge hit. The broth is amazing. It’s definitely a keeper! Thank you!
Hi Jen! So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for your kind feedback!
The meat was tough and fibrous. The sauce tasted very good though. In the end I had to mince the meat so that we could eat it with ease. I later noticed that in the video you clicked “meat/stew” but in the directions you pressed “manual. Is there a difference?
Hi Justine! Thanks for trying this recipe and I’m sorry it didn’t come out the way it should. I wonder why the meat was tough and fibrous…
– Could you tell me how thick was your pork belly?
– Was there enough fat for the block/slices you got? Pork belly has good amount fat, which is great for braising. You should get tender meat, not tough or fibrous.
– You cooked high pressure for 35 minutes, right? “Meat/Stew” vs “Manual” doesn’t matter as long as you cook the same time. Pre-Program mode (like Meat/Stew) makes it easier for users with one button, if you don’t change the cooking time, etc.
I followed the cook times. The meat was about one inch by two inches thick. I cooked it according to the recipe you posted. The only difference I could think of is that after the first 35 minutes on Manual, it stayed in there for another 40 minutes because I was out of the house. Could it be that?
Thank you,
Justine
Hi Justine! The pork belly is 1 x 2 inch… that’s good! When you were out, was the meat in the sauce or exposed? Even so, when you reheat and pour the sauce over etc, it should not be tough or fibrous. Fibrous or tough meat happens to the different cut of meat like tenderloin and loin… I’m really not sure why pork belly gets dry. 🙁
Is it ok to keep the pork skin on?
Hi Evelyn,
We usually make Kakuni without skin. However, Okinawan Rafute, which very similar to Kakuni, is cooked with skin-on. Here is the recipe link for Rafute. https://www.justonecookbook.com/rafute/
If you prefer cooking this Kakuni with skin, we recommend pre-boil the meat to reduce the fat and unwanted smell first as we do in the Rafute recipe.
We hope this helps!
What’s the best way to reheat the pork belly the next day?
Hi Lauren!
If you have a lot of Kakuni left in the pot, it’s easier to reheat in the pot so that it’s reheated through.
The microwave sometimes has hot spots and is not thoroughly reheated. However, if you only need to reheat just one piece of Kakuni, microwaving is easier.
Hope this helps!
Hello Nami!
I have an 8qt InstantPot. Do you know if I need to adjust the cooking times due to the difference in volume from the 6qt IP you used? Additionally, I read your post about soy sauce (very informative!), would you recommend using the koichuchi shoyu for this recipe?
I’ve followed your recipes for several dishes now, and they have all turned out delicious. Thank you for creating such holistic content for everyone to enjoy authentic Japanese cooking 🙂
Thanks!
Shi Ya
Hi Shi Ya Ni,
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipes and for your kind feedback.
In most of the recipes, cooking time doesn’t need to be changed for 8qt Instant Pot. However, it requires at least 2 cups of liquid to pressurize, so it may take a little longer to pressurize.
For soy sauce, Koikuchi soy sauce is the most common Japanese soy sauce used for recipes, and Nami used “Koikuchi” in this recipe.
We hope this is helpful, and you enjoy this delicious Kakuni!🙂
This looks and sounds great. I am not against cooking with fatty meats, as long as I can remove a lot of it easily. I really don’t like to eat it though. It looks like pork belly is 50% or more fat. It makes my heart hurt just looking at it. Could I cut off some more of the fat before cooking without loosing too much flavor?