{{short description|Japanese braised pork dish}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}} {{Infobox food | name = Kakuni | image = Kakuni by Kanko.jpg | image_size = 300px | image_alt = | caption = ''Kakuni'' | alternate_name = | type = | course = | country = Japan | region = Kyushu | national_cuisine = Japanese cuisine | creator = <!-- or | creators = --> | year = | mintime = | maxtime = | served = | main_ingredient = Pork | minor_ingredient = Dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sugar, sake | variations = | serving_size = | calories = | protein = | fat = | carbohydrate = | glycemic_index = | similar_dish = ''Rafute'', Dongpo pork | other = }}

{{Nihongo|'''Kakuni'''|角煮}} is a Japanese braised pork belly dish which literally means "square simmered".<ref name="Tanumihardja 2020 p. 106">{{cite book | last=Tanumihardja | first=Patricia | title=Instant Pot Asian Pressure Cooker Meals: Fast, Fresh & Affordable | publisher=Tuttle Publishing | year=2020 | isbn=978-1-4629-2139-3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=urjjDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA106 | access-date= | page=106}}</ref> It is made by braising fatty pieces of pork in soy sauce, mirin, and sugar.

== History == [[File:Stewed pork (5674239440).jpg|thumb|left|''Kakuni'' and bok choy]] Kakuni is a popular regional cuisine (''meibutsu'') of Kyushu, particularly Nagasaki. This particular dish most likely originated from the famous Chinese dish Dongpo Pork, making it a form of Japanese Chinese cuisine, although the gravy is less heavy than the original dish.<ref name=sbs>{{cite web|url=http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/nagasaki-style-red-braised-pork-belly-buta-kakuni |title=Nagasaki-style red-braised pork belly (buta kakuni) |last=Liaw |first=Adam |access-date=16 February 2017|work=SBS Food}}</ref> During the Ming Dynasty and Song Dynasty, the main Sino-Japanese trading route existed between Hangzhou and Kyūshū. Many Chinese lived in major port cities in Kyushu, such as Nagasaki; likewise many Japanese lived in Hangzhou. Therefore, pork was popularized in major Kyushu cities.{{citation needed|date=February 2017}}

==Preparation== Kakuni is made of thick cubes of pork belly simmered in dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sugar, and sake.<ref name=sbs/> By cooking it for a long time over a low temperature the collagen breaks-down into gelatin keeping the meat moist while becoming extremely tender allowing it to be consumed with chopsticks easily. The dish is often served with scallions, daikon and karashi.<ref name=sbs/>

<gallery mode="packed" widths="150px" heights="150px"> Kakuni by jetalone at home.jpg Kakuni ramen by Ozchin.JPG|In ramen Stewed pork bowl of Sukiya.jpg|Kakuni bowl from Sukiya アオサンズのバインミー３.jpg|Kakuni burger Kakuni by shibainu in Suginami, Tokyo.jpg Butakakuni - Dec 2014.jpg </gallery>

==See also== *{{annotated link|Dongpo pork|Dongpo rou}} *{{annotated link|List of pork dishes}} *{{portal-inline|Food}}

==References== {{reflist}}

{{Commons category|Kakuni}}

{{Japanese food and drink|state=autocollapse}}

Category:Japanese Chinese cuisine Category:Japanese pork dishes

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