Pork belly. It sounds unappetizing. So, why is it on the menu of every single "modern American" restaurant? What if I called it fresh bacon - would that get your attention? If so, do I have the pressure cooker meal for you.
Pork belly is the same cut of meat as bacon, but pork belly has not been cured. It has all the advantages of bacon - meat layered with thick veins of delicious pork fat.
*The disadvantage is…all those delicious layers of pork fat. Let's just say this is not a low-cal recipe and leave it at that, shall we?
How to cook it? In this recipe, I use the pressure cooker to braise it with beer. The result is tender pork, melting fat, and a delicious sauce to pour over the top. Looking for a luxurious meal that's a bit out of the ordinary? Try this recipe.
*Don't have a pressure cooker? No worries. See the Variations section for cooking instructions with a standard dutch oven.
**h/t Michael Symon for the phrase "fresh bacon".
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| Removing the skin from the pork belly and cutting into 2 inch strips |
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| Searing the belly |
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| Sauteing the aromatics |
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| Ready to lock on the lid |
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| Under pressure. Exciting, isn't it? |
📖 Recipe Card
Pressure Cooker Pork Belly Beer Braise
- Total Time: 5 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Brined strips of pork belly, seared, then pressure cooked with beer, chicken broth, onion, carrot, bell pepper, garlic, coriander and thyme until meltingly tender.
Ingredients
Brine
- 2 quarts water
- ½ cup table salt (or 1 cup kosher salt)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Braise
- 2 pounds pork belly, skin removed, cut into 2 inch strips
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 carrot, peeled and diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 teaspoon coriander seed
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup beer
- 1 cup chicken broth (preferably homemade)
Instructions
- Brine the pork belly: Stir the water, table salt and brown sugar in a container until the salt dissolves. Add the pork belly, and refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours. Take the pork out of the brine, and pat dry.
- Sear the pork belly: Preheat the pressure cooker pot over medium heat. Add the pork belly fat side down, and sear for 5 minutes. Flip, and sear 5 minutes more. Move to a bowl, and pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat.
- Saute the aromatics: Turn the heat to medium-high, and add the onion, carrot, bell pepper, garlic, coriander, thyme and ½ teaspoon salt. Saute until the onion starts to brown, about 8 minutes.
- Deglaze: Add the beer, and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Pressure cook: Add the pork belly in a single layer if you can, and pour the chicken broth over everything. Lock the lid, and bring the cooker up to high pressure. Reduce the heat to maintain pressure, and cook for 40 minutes.
- Release the pressure: Remove from the heat, and let the pressure come down naturally, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Serve: Move the pork to a platter, and pour the cooking liquid into a gravy boat. Top each serving with a generous ladle of the sauce and vegetables.
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
Equipment: A 6 quart or larger pressure cooker. Read your cooker's manual for how to lock the lid and bring it to pressure.
Finer sauce: Scoop out the vegetables with a slotted spoon, pour the liquid into a fat separator, and let it rest for 5 minutes. Return the defatted liquid to the pot, boil until reduced by half, and serve a couple of tablespoons over each piece.
No pressure cooker? Use a heavy Dutch oven and 2 cups of broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and bake at 350°F for 3 hours, until the pork is tender.
Crisp edges: After pressure cooking, pat the pork dry, and sear it in a frying pan over medium-high heat for 3 to 6 minutes per side.
It's even better the next day. Refrigerate overnight, scrape off the fat, and simmer for 10 minutes before serving.
For more, try my Instant Pot Red Braised Pork Belly or Pressure Cooker Short Ribs with Mexican Flavors.
Adapted from Michael Symon's Live to Cook.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Brine: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts:
Instant Pot Red Braised Pork Belly
Pressure Cooker Short Ribs with Mexican Flavors
Pressure Cooker Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
Pressure Cooker Cochinita Pibil ("Pit Cooked" pork)
My Other Pressure Cooker Recipes
Adapted from:
Michael Symon's Live to Cook
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PH Lim says
Hi, would like to try your above pork belly recipe with my new Phillip electric pressure cooker (HD3129). I have not cooked any food with a pressure cooker before. Please advise how to Sear the pork belly (your step 2)using my Phillip electric pressure cooker. This pressure cooker has a "bake" button, do I use the "Bake" button to sear the pork? But how to do it.
Mike V says
Sorry - I've never used a Phillips pressure cooker, so I don't know what settings to use. You will have to check your manual. If it doesn't have a sauté or browning mode, you can brown the pork belly in a frypan in the stovetop before pressure cooking.
PH Lim says
Thanks. Will try with my Roichem (Korea) semi pressure cooker instead of Phillip electric pressure cooker.
Steve says
Hi Mike,
Thanks for what looks like a lovely recipe I'll be trying tonight.
One question I have however is, why do you remove the skin?
Can you not cook it with skin on till half-time (or full-time?), then remove it to crisp it under a grill (or on a barbeque/broiler(?)) for some deelish crackling?
Seems a waste of a delicacy!
Thanks, Steve
Mike V says
Crackling is a great idea - but it doesn't work well in the pressure cooker. You'll get better results removing the skin and roasting it on its own to get cracklings. (Or, roast the pork belly instead of pressure cooking: https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/rotisserie-barbecued-pork-belly/)
ndbrian says
Was really easy and good. (I halfed the recipe) A bit salty, I think. Maybe 1 Cup of kosher salt is too much to brine it in? Still like it and can see how it would be really good without so much salt.
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
The Cuisinart is about 20% less powerful than regular pressure cookers, so go 48 to 50 minutes under high pressure.
Yay Pork. says
This looks awesome! I have the Cuisinart electric pressure cooker; can you estimate how long it takes in there versus the standard pressure cookers? I'm a little afraid of doing this without your advice on that step...thank you!
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
Thanks, Nicole!
Nicole says
looks amazing. Just got my first pressure cooker and first slab of pork belly. My neighbors always appreciate me testing out recipes! This one I am sure they will LOVE!
I also have a blog with recipes: culinaryease.wordpress.com if you are interested.
Thank you for this post.
JMom says
Pork belly doesn't sound unappetizing at all! Actually, it's what attracted me and made me click on the link 🙂 I love the idea of braising it in beer. Will have to try that next time.
MikeV @ DadCooksDinner says
@Debbie Fox:Thank you!I got the skin-on pork belly at my local Asian market, but it's also available at my local Whole Foods most of the time.
Debbie Fox says
This looks delicious. I have a whole pork belly in the freezer, half of which will be used for this recipe, thanks. Where do you get pork belly with the skin on? And yes, bacony is a word, at least in my book. Here's to all things pork!