You seriously gotta try this Ultimate Classic Taiwanese Comfort Food – Instant Pot Taiwanese Braised Pork (Chinese: 滷肉飯; Lu Rou Fan)! Mouthful of savory-sweet-umami melt-in-the-mouth tender juicy pork belly rice is super comforting & satisfying to eat. You’ll fall in love with the gorgeously flavorful Lu Rou Sauce.
Taiwan will always hold a special place in our hearts. I miss this beautiful place & the wonderful people!
We’ve been eager to recreate more Taiwanese dishes that bring back the lovely memories of our awesome trip there. And of course the legendary classic Taiwanese Lu Rou Fan is a must! 😀
Still remember after strolling through the iconic National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (Chinese: 中正紀念堂) in Taipei, Jacky & I were eager to try this famous local spot – named the Top 5 Must Eat Lu Rou Fan in Taiwan – Jin Feng Braised Pork Rice Restaurant (Chinese: 金峰魯肉飯).
This simple Taiwanese meal just hit the spot for us that rainy autumn day – true comforting & satisfying flavors of Taiwan!
By the way, we got the below small yummy bowl of Lu Rou Fan for only $25NT (~$0.81 USD)! 🙂
What is Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice (Lu Rou Fan)?
Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice (Lu Rou Fan), sometimes known as Minced Pork Rice, is one of the most popular & iconic Taiwanese street food!
There are some variations on the name, ingredients, and cooking methods depending on the region, but generally it’s a classic comfort food made with Pork Belly braised in a rich savory-sweet-umami sauce.
Taiwanese Braised Pork Belly is slightly similar to the Shanghainese Red Braised Pork Belly (Chinese: 紅燒肉; Hong Shao Rou), Chinese Dongpo Pork (Chinese: 東坡肉), and Japanese Braised Pork Belly Kakuni (Japanese: 角煮).
Join us for a trip back to Taiwan through this intensively flavorful Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice!
A mouthful of savory-sweet-umami juicy melt-in-the-mouth bits of pork served with fluffy plump rice.
The burst of flavors & satisfying textures…oh, we simply couldn’t stop eating one mouthful after another.
You need to try these classic comfort flavors of Taiwan! 😀
Time to make this gorgeously delicious Instant Pot Lu Rou Fan!!
Step-by-Step Instant Pot Taiwanese Braised Pork Cooking Guide
Prepare Ingredients for cooking this delicious Taiwanese Braised Pork in Instant Pot:
What is Pork Belly?
Pork Belly? Think Bacon, Pancetta, Korean BBQ…ohhh yaasss!! But there’s more you can do with this yummy cut…
Pork Belly (Chinese: 五花肉) is a well-loved boneless cut of fatty meat from the pig’s belly (the underside). If you purchase it whole, pork belly is a big, long cut of meat.
Chefs and food lovers love pork belly for its’ juicy fat layers wrapped around the meat. When cooked properly, the meat is gorgeously tender with an amazingly juicy melt-in-the-mouth satisfaction. SO good!!
This is a particularly popular cut of pork among Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, Philippine cuisines.
After conducting a few tests, we found that using fried shallots and brown sugar work the best in creating a yummy Taiwanese Braised Pork dish.
*Pro Tip – Soy Sauce: For soy sauce, we used the above Taiwanese brand – Kim Lan. Regular soy sauce will work fine as well. Be mindful that every bottle of soy sauce (even the same brand) varies in taste (especially the level of saltiness), so ensure to taste & adjust the seasoning properly depending on your bottle of soy sauce.
*Pro Tip – Fried Shallots: If you don’t want to make your own fried shallots, you can purchase ready-to-use fried shallots from Asian supermarkets. If you don’t want to purchase additional ingredients, you can also substitute with normal shallots for this dish.
Tools for Instant Pot Taiwanese Braised Pork
Brown Pork Belly in Instant Pot
Heat up Instant Pot using “Sauté More” function. Wait until Instant Pot says “HOT”.
*Pro Tip: Make sure the Instant Pot is as hot as it can be in order to induce a maillard reaction.
Add 1 tsp (5ml) peanut oil or vegetable oil in Instant Pot’s inner pot. Ensure the whole bottom is coated with oil.
Lightly season the pork belly’s skin side with salt.
Place pork belly’s seasoned skin side down in Instant Pot.
Brown pork belly for roughly 5 minutes per side. Lightly season the other side of pork belly with salt.
*Pro Tip – Browning the Sides: We also browned the pork belly’s two thinner sides for 3 minutes per side (shown in bottom 2 photos).
Set aside the browned pork belly.
Optional Step – Caramelize Sugar
*Note: This is an optional step, but it will greatly enhance the flavors of the braised pork! 🙂
Add in 1.5 tbsp (22g) unsalted butter to the Instant Pot. Ensure the whole bottom is coated with melted butter.
Add 2 tbsp (29g) brown sugar, then stir very occasionally.
*Pro Tip: Ensure the sugar reaches the deep caramelized color (shown in bottom right corner below). The process will take roughly 1.5 – 2 minutes.
Saute Shallot and Garlic
Once the brown sugar has a deep brown color, add ¼ cup (60g) deep fried shallots (or minced shallots) in Instant Pot to stop the sugar from burning.
Then, add in ginger slices and minced garlic. Saute for another minute.
Deglaze
Pour 1 tbsp (15ml) Shaoxing wine and 1 cup (250ml) cold water in Instant Pot.
*Note: Be careful as the steam will be really hot.
Deglaze by scrubbing all the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Give it a quick mix.
Pressure Cook Pork Belly
Add in 2 – 3 (3g) star anise, 2 bay leaves, 3 tbsp (45ml) soy sauce, 1 tbsp (15ml) dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp (15ml) Chinese black vinegar, ½ tsp (0.8g) five spice powder, ¼ tsp (1g) ground white pepper. Give it a quick mix, then turn off the heat.
With the heat turned off, slowly cut the pork belly into small strips (as shown in photo below).
Place the pork belly in Instant Pot, then give it a quick mix.
*Pro Tip: Make sure the pork belly is partially submerged in the cooking liquid.
Close lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing position.
- Pressure Cooking Method: Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 20 minutes + 10 minutes Natural Release
After 10 minutes, release the remaining pressure by turning the Venting Knob to Venting position.
Carefully open the lid.
*P.S. As it’s natural releasing, take a big big sniff & take in all the delicious smell of the flavorful braised pork belly – it smells soooo yum yum good!! 😀
Thicken Sauce
Remove & discard the star anise and bay leaves.
If you want to add in soft or hard boiled eggs, add the eggs at this stage.
Bring the delicious content to a simmering with the “Saute More” function. Let the content simmer for 3 – 10 minutes to break down the meat & thicken the sauce. Stir occasionally.
Check out this gorgeously delicious Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice with Eggs.
Season & Serve Taiwanese Braised Pork
Taste and season the Taiwanese Braised Pork.
*Pro Tip – Seasoning: For reference, we used 3 pinches of salt and about 1 tsp white sugar at the end to further season the Braised Pork to balance & bring out the depths of flavors.
Garnish with thinly sliced green onions, then serve on rice. Ta da!
Enjoy your Delicious Classic Instant Pot Taiwanese Braised Pork!~ 🙂
*Note: the already flavorful Taiwanese Braised Pork Belly will be even more flavorful the next day! So yummy!
Instant Pot Taiwanese Braised Pork
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds (680g) pork belly (with skin)
- ¼ cup (60g) deep fried shallots or minced shallots
- 8 (36g) garlic cloves , roughly minced
- 4 (15g) ginger slices
- 2 - 3 (3g) star anise
- 2 (0.3g) bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon (0.8g) five spice powder
- ¼ teaspoon (1g) ground white pepper
- 1 cup (250ml) cold water
- 3 tablespoons (45ml) Taiwanese soy sauce or regular soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) Shaoxing wine
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) Chinese black vinegar (optional)
- 2 tablespoons (29g) brown sugar
- 1.5 tablespoons (22g) unsalted butter
- 3 - 6 soft or hard boiled eggs (optional)
Garnish:
- 1 stalk green onion , thinly sliced
Equipment
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Instructions
- Brown Pork Belly in Instant Pot: Heat up Instant Pot using “Sauté More” function. Wait until Instant Pot says "HOT" in order to induce a maillard reaction. Add 1 tsp (5ml) peanut oil in Instant Pot's inner pot, then ensure the whole bottom is coated with oil. Lightly season the pork belly's skin side with salt. Place pork belly's seasoned skin side down in Instant Pot. Brown pork belly for roughly 5 minutes per side. Lightly season the other side of pork belly with salt. Then, brown the pork belly's two thinner sides for 3 minutes per side. Set aside the browned pork belly.
- Optional Flavor Enhancing Step - Caramelize Sugar: Add 1.5 tbsp (22g) unsalted butter in Instant Pot, then ensure the whole bottom is coated with melted butter. Add 2 tbsp (29g) brown sugar, then stir very occasionally. *Pro Tip: Ensure the sugar reaches a deep caramelized color (see photo). This process will take ~1.5 - 2 mins.
- Saute Shallot and Garlic: Once the brown sugar has a deep brown color, add ¼ cup (60g) deep fried shallots (or minced shallot) in Instant Pot to stop the sugar from burning. Then, add in ginger slices and minced garlic. Saute for another minute.
- Deglaze: Pour 1 tbsp (15ml) Shaoxing wine and 1 cup (250ml) cold water in Instant Pot. Deglaze by scrubbing all the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Give it a quick mix.
- Pressure Cook Pork Belly: Add in 2 - 3 (3g) star anise, 2 bay leaves, 3 tbsp (45ml) soy sauce, 1 tbsp (15ml) dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp (15ml) Chinese black vinegar, ½ tsp (0.8g) five-spice powder, ¼ tsp (1g) ground white pepper. Give it a quick mix, then turn off the heat. Slowly cut the pork belly into small strips (see photo), then place pork belly in Instant Pot, and give it a quick mix. *Pro Tip: Ensure the pork belly is partially submerged in the cooking liquid. Close lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing position. Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 20 minutes + 10 minutes Natural Release. After 10 minutes, release the remaining pressure by turning the Venting Knob to Venting position. Carefully open the lid.
- Thicken Lu Rou Sauce: Remove & discard the star anise and bay leaves. *Pro Tip: If you want to add in soft or hard boiled eggs, add them at this stage. Bring the delicious content to a simmer with the "Saute More" function. Let the content simmer for 3 - 10 minutes to break down the meat & thicken the sauce. Stir occasionally.
- Season & Serve Taiwanese Braised Pork: Taste and season the Taiwanese Braised Pork Belly (for reference, we used 3 pinches of salt & ~1 tsp white sugar here to balance & further bring out the depths of flavors). Garnish with thinly sliced green onions, then serve on rice. Enjoy your delicious Classic Taiwanese Minced Pork!~ 🙂
Notes
Nutrition
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