Korean Pork Belly is a wildly flavorful main course that you can make in just over 30 minutes, including the time to marinate! Crispy on the outside and juicy within, it's a dish you'll crave.
Korea has a rich culinary history dating back thousands of years and is home to some of the world’s best chefs and restaurants. The country’s cuisine is influenced by its geography, climate, and culture. Korean food is known for being hearty and filling, two great words for describing unctuous pork belly. It's also very diverse, ranging from simple dishes like kimchi (pickled cabbage) to more complex ones like Budae Jjigae (army base stew).
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Ingredients You Need to Make Korean Pork Belly
- Pork Belly: raw pork belly (without skin)
- Ginger: fresh ginger root
- Korean Got Pepper Paste: (gochujang)
- Korean Hot Pepper Flakes: (gochugaru)
- Soy Sauce: or tamari for a gluten free version
- Toasted Sesame Oil
- Honey
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Onion: yellow onion or white onion
- Green Onions
- Toasted Sesame Seeds: for serving
This recipe is a no fuss, super simple version of Korean Pork Belly that I adapted from Maangchi's beautiful cookbook, Maangchi's Big Book of Korean Cooking: From Everyday Meals to Celebration Cuisine. Her recipes are easy to follow and made with simple ingredients you can find at most grocery stores. This is slightly milder than the cookbook version, uses honey instead of sugar, and adds a 10 minute marinade (or longer) for added flavor depth.
Recipe Tips
- For easier slicing, put pork belly in the freezer for 15-30 minutes before you begin.
- You can marinate the pork for a full day in the refrigerator before cooking. The meat will absorb even more flavor and you'll be just 15 minutes away from sitting down to dinner.
- Serve with cucumber slices or on lettuce leaves for a refreshing contrast.
More great Pork Belly Recipes
How to Make Korean Pork Belly
Combine all ingredients except for sesame seeds in a medium bowl; stir well to coat pork belly evenly and let stand 10 minutes.
Add pork belly mixture to a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat; cook, stirring occasionally until cooked through and crispy at the edges, 12 to 15 minutes.. Garnish with sesame seeds and green onion if desired and serve.
Recipe Video
Korean Pork Belly
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- 3 tablespoons Korean hot pepper paste (gochujang)
- 1 tablespoon Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound pork belly skinless, cut into 2 to 3-inch slices that are ⅛-inch thick
- 1 small onion halved and thinly sliced
- 4 green onions cut into 2-inch pieces, plus more for garnish
- toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- Combine first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl (ginger through black pepper) and stir to combine. Add pork belly, onion slices and green onion; stir well to coat evenly and let stand 10 minutes.
- To a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat, add pork belly mixture; cook, stirring occasionally until cooked through and crispy at the edges, 12 to 15 minutes (let cook undisturbed for a few minutes at a time between stirring for the crispiest edges). Transfer to platter and garnish with sesame seeds and green onion if desired; serve.
Notes
- This is a milder version of the recipe from Maangchi's Big Book of Korean Cooking: From Everyday Meals to Celebration Cuisine. Add another tablespoon of Korean hot pepper paste and double the Korean hot pepper flakes (or more) for a spicier version.
- Place pork belly in the freezer for 15-30 minutes for easier slicing.
Tried out this recipe last night when I was way too tired to cook anything. The dish was delicious and was a hit with my kids. I was pleasantly surprised that it was pretty easy to cook. It will now be one of my fav go to recipes. Thank you
That's wonderful to hear, Saty. I'm so happy to hear that you and your family enjoyed this.
This was really great and super easy to put together on a busy work night. Though, maybe you can give me some advice? I followed the instructions of using Med-High in a heavy cast iron pan, should I have done a lower setting? I felt like while I did get some char on the meat pieces, my house smelled of things burning in the pan and I feel like I overcooked it with a couple of pieces a little overdone, even doing only 8 minutes instead of the recommended 12-15. Was still delicious, and I'll definitely make it again, but should I maybe use a different type of pan or is there a different heat setting I should use? It's a gas stove. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Brian! I'm so glad you enjoyed this. There are so many variables with stovetops. It sounds like yours may run a bit hot? I'd stick with the same pan, but reduce the heat a bit next time. I hope that helps!
Turned out delicious!! was so easy and fast to make too. Will definitely make this again
I'm so glad to hear this, Tracy!
Fantastic dish! Easy and tastes better than restaurants I've ordered from.
aww, I love to hear that, Jess! So glad you're enjoying the recipe.
I made this for my family (4 children, some who like spicy and some who don't) and it was a hit!!! I served it with lettuce and vermicelli noodles. SO.GOOD. I modified the recipe by omitting the Pepper Flakes. It was mild but still had REALLY good flavor! I shared it on my Instagram Story and SO MANY asked for the recipe! I was so happy to share this!
Hi Kischa! I'm so happy to hear this was a hit with you and your family! Thank you for sharing the recipe and for your cooking notes.
This is a really good recipe, I love it!
Thanks! 🤩
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Bianca!
This sounds delicious. Gonna make this for Friday night dinner! Does it matter if the pork belly is with or without skin?
Hi Kayte! You'll want skinless pork belly for this recipe. I hope it's a hit!
I kind of figured it should be skinless. Thank you for the confirmation! I’m excited to try this! I’ll be back to let you know how it went!
OMG! This was amazing! HUGE hit with the family! We’re talking third-helpings delicious! Prep was easy (and I did marinate overnight) and so a quick 15 minutes in the skillet and dinner was served. This is a great weeknight dinner and I’m really looking forward to making this again! (Actually, I’m trying to figure how SOON I can make this again!) Fantastic! Thank you!
aww...I'm so happy to hear this was such a hit with you and your family, Kayte! Thanks so much for coming back to let me know.
My family loves Korean food. The spices and flavors always draw me in and I inevitably eat too much. 😉 This recipe sounds/looks absolutely delectable! ~Valentina
haha, I know what you mean , Valentina! It's hard to stop. I hope you and your family will love this!
Wow does this look good! And it’s fast. Amazing!
Thanks, Mimi!
I'm embarrassed to admit I've never cooked with pork belly, particularly because I thought it's a super longer process as you need to marinade belly for hours (days, weeks lol). But I'm truly impressed that it could require as little as 30 minutes. I'm definitely making this soon - thank you for inspiration!
My pleasure, Ben! I'm excited for you to try this.
Oh, this looks fantastic - and totally doable at home! I've never tried cooking with pork belly, and the first couple times I had it...well, it was pretty disappointing. However, a taco shop here in Asheville had pork belly tacos - woah! "So that's how pork belly is supposed to taste!" Haha. Now I need to try my hand at making this Korean version - it sounds delicious!
I'm so glad you had something like pork belly tacos to change your mind, David! We love those too - decadent. So excited for you to taste this spicy take on it.
Love pork belly! This is definitely something I should try too as it looks heavenly.
Thanks so much, Angie! I hope you will.