I wanted to open our pork series with probably one of my favorite pork products…PORK BELLY! If you’re a little confused about what exactly pork belly is, see my previous post here for a brief description, The Many Faces of Pork (The Winner!). I know that for many pork belly may sound exotic and fancy, but its actually not as difficult as you might think. Trust me! I recently bought a beautiful batch of pork belly from my neighborhood Costco…if Costco sells pork belly, its no longer exotic. I know, I was shocked too! If your supermarket does not have pork belly, ask your local butcher. Another option is to go to an Asian grocery store, as they are more likely to have unique cuts of meat.

I’m going to be honest, because I don’t believe in sugar coating things, but pork belly takes a little bit of work. You have to cook it long and slow in order to ensure the meat in melt in your mouth tender and you have rendered the fat. BUT it is SO worth all the effort, and will result in a fantastic reward.

Now, as I mentioned you need about three hours to slow cook pork belly. BUT with two small children, I often don’t have that much time to spare. So I came up with this variation which uses your pressure cooker and takes less then a third of the time. The results are just as delicious, the pork is just as tender, and best of all the whole recipe takes about an hour. AN HOUR! Delicious juicy pork belly in an hour. Now if you want three hours to escape, I’ll soon post the extended version which actually takes that much time. But until then, feel free to hide in the kitchen and close the door and drink your wine. If anyone gets close to the door, turn on the sink and bang a pot until they go away. We wont tell anyone that this is really so simple to make.

Asian Sautéed Pork Belly, with Instapot

• 1 c chicken broth
• 3 tbsp. miso paste (fermented soybean paste)
• 2 tbsp. mirin
• 1/2 c soy sauce
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar
• 6 thick slabs of pork belly
• 1 tbsp. olive oil

1. Mix the ingredients completely in a bowl, and pour the mixture in the base of the Instapot. Roll the pork belly through the liquid until the meat is completely covered. This sauce is over seasoned, but it will be deliciously absorbed into the pork. I promise. Trust me.
2. Turn the Instapot on, and set the timer to 20 min.
3. Once the timer is complete, use a large slotted spoon to gently remove the meat from the juices.
4. Add olive oil to a sauté pan set to medium-high heat, once the pan and oil are both hot, gently place the pork belly in the heated pan. Brown the pork belly on both sides, so the fat is slightly rendered and melted and the meat is slightly crispy.
5. Slice the pork belly, serve and enjoy!