00:00If you're looking for a dish that is packed with flavour and melts in your mouth,
00:04then look no further than this Bhutan no Kakuni,
00:07a Japanese homestyle dish made with tender marinated pork belly.
00:11You can also find this recipe on my website, along with over 400 Japanese recipes.
00:16Just google Kakuni space Dachi to find me.
00:20I'm going to start by taking a frying pan large enough to fit my slab of pork belly
00:24and heat it on medium. Place it in the pan and sear it on each side.
00:30This is above 700g or 1.5lbs.
00:34I've gotta say, whenever I make this dish, I always think the pork looks so big at the beginning,
00:40but once it's cooked, I always regret not getting a bigger one.
00:43Not only because it shrinks, but also just because it's so delicious.
00:48Anyway, this step helps render out some of the excess fat and those grill marks look pretty nice too,
00:54but honestly, it's an optional step. Some people don't sear it at all,
00:59other people boil first then sear. It's a personal preference.
01:03I do find it holds its shape better if you sear it though.
01:07Once it's seared all over, take it off the heat and let it cool down a little bit before you
01:13cut it.
01:14While you wait for it to cool down, you can start boiling your pot water.
01:18When it's cool enough to touch, cut it into cubes a bit bigger than by size.
01:22This pork belly is actually a bit wider than I anticipated, so I'm cutting it in half lengthways first.
01:31Ideally, you should do this before searing because now it might lose its shape when simmering,
01:36but that's okay. It's still gonna taste amazing.
01:39If you're wondering about the name,
01:40buta no kaku ni. It's pretty straightforward when you break it down.
01:45In Japanese, buta is poked.
01:46Kaku means it's cut into these nice little cubes, and ni tells us it's all simmered together.
01:58Once they're all cut, place them in a pot of boiling water and cook them for 10 minutes.
02:08The purpose of this pre-boiling is to remove the excess fat and make the meat extra tender.
02:14Pork belly has a lot of fat, but the best part of kaku ni is to enjoy the melted fat.
02:20By pre-boiling the meat, you can remove excess fat and only enjoy the tasty parts.
02:31After 10 minutes, drain the pork and rinse it with cold water like this. This is just to remove the
02:37excess fat I was talking about. Rinse out the pot and fill it back up with fresh water. Bring it
02:43to
02:43a boil once more and then add the pork back in. This time we're going to make a simple broth.
02:49So
02:50add 30g of sliced ginger root. The green parts of a Japanese leek we call negi or regular leek if
02:58it's
02:58not available. Adding new ingredients to the pot will lower the temperature of the water. So wait
03:05for it to come back to a boil before lowering it to a simmer and leave it to gently bubble
03:11for an hour.
03:18Check it regularly to make sure the pork is always submerged in the broth and top up the water if
03:23necessary. Exposing any part of the pork to the air can cause it to harden or dry out and that's
03:29the
03:29opposite of what we want. After an hour, turn off the heat and take 500ml of the stock from the
03:36pot.
03:36We're going to use this as a base for our marinade. Pour it into a saucepan
03:47and then add 100ml of lager bib,
03:561 tbsp of honey, 2 tbsp of light brown sugar and 100ml of soy sauce. We're just going to bring
04:06that to a boil. Any brand of lager beer is suitable for this recipe. For a more elegant touch, you
04:12could
04:12use an equal amount of white wine and for a more Japanese flavour, swap it for sake. Using alcohol
04:20contributes to the melting mouth texture and improves the overall flavour so I don't recommend omitting it.
04:27As always, all the ingredients and exact measurements for this recipe can be found
04:32in the description box below. Once the mixture is bubbling, add the pork belly pieces and leave that
04:38to simmer on low for 30 minutes. This time add a droplet. This will promote even cooking and flavouring
04:46and reduce the amount of evaporation. You can check out my how to make otoshibuta video if you don't have
04:53one.
04:54While we wait, I'm going to show you how to make a classic Japanese leaf garnish called
04:59Shiraganagi while I tell you a little history about this dish. Kakini is believed to have been inspired
05:05by the Chinese Dongpo Pouk. Now, if you're wondering how this dish made its way to Japan,
05:11we need to travel back to the Edo period, which is around 1603 to 1868.
05:21Back then, Japan wasn't exactly open for business with the whole world. They were pretty selective about
05:27who they traded with. There was this tiny artificial island called Bejima in Nagasaki prefecture that
05:33served as a Japanese window to the outside world. That's why this dish first stepped onto Japanese
05:39soil. From there, it spread throughout Kyushu and even made its way to Okinawa. Over time, Japanese
05:46cooks started adding their own twist to it and now it's become such a staple in Japanese home cooking.
05:53When we hear the word Kakuni, Japanese people like me automatically think of pork belly,
05:59but it doesn't have to be pork and there are also versions that use other ingredients such as tuna,
06:05bonito, beef, vegetables, tofu, and konnyaku.
06:15Okay, let's check on our pork. It's been simmering for 30 minutes in the marinade and it looks like this.
06:22Technically, you could eat it straight away, but I'm going to continue marinating it off of the heat
06:28for even more flavour. I'll leave that to cool completely and then when it's cool enough to
06:36touch, add some boiled eggs, marinate for one more hour or longer in the fridge if you have time.
06:54When you want to serve it, return it to the stove to warm it through. I'll take the eggs out
07:00first
07:00because these are soft boiled and I don't want them to overcook, but you can warm them through a bit
07:06if
07:06you prefer. The brazen liquid from Kakuni is a flavourful concoction, rich with the essence of
07:16the pork and the depth of soy sauce. Discarding it would indeed be wasteful. You can use this to
07:23make noodle soup as a secret ingredient for curry rice, fried rice, more marinated eggs. You can get
07:31creative with it. And there it is! Tender, melting-mouthed Japanese
07:39butanokakuni with shiraganegi and bonus marinated eggs. You can serve this as a side dish or for a
07:47complete meal, serve it over rice and transform it into a donberry. It's also perfect for steamed buns.
07:54The possibilities are endless. Want even more delicious recipes? Grab my free cookbook from the
08:01link in the description. Thank you everyone who voted for this recipe and thank you for watching.
08:07If you'd like to see the written version with more tips and info, check out the article on my blog,
08:12I've put the link on the screen. And if you loved this video, don't miss my pork
08:16playlist popping up on your screen right now. Hope to see you in the next video. Until then, bye!
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