Instant Pot Asian Pulled Pork

Step 1

Gather all the ingredients first.

Step 2

Cut 1 onion into big chunks.

Step 3

Slice 1 knob of ginger and smash 6 garlic cloves.

Step 4

Cut the butcher’s twine and season the pork shoulder (or pork butt) with 2 tsp kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper on all sides.

Step 5

Press the “Sauté” button on your pressure cooker (I use 6 QT Instant Pot) and heat 1 Tbsp oil. When the pot is hot, add the pork shoulder.

Step 6

Sear all sides of pork shoulder, about 2 minutes per side, then transfer the pork to a clean plate and set aside.

Step 7

Add the ginger slices and mashed garlic cloves in the pot, and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Once fragrant, add the chopped onion and coat with oil.

Step 8

Add 1 ½ cup chicken stock, 5 Tbsp soy sauce, and 2 Tbsp sake.

Step 9

And 4 Tbsp brown sugar and mix well, scraping the juicy brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Add the pork shoulder back into the pot.

Step 10

Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the steam release handle points at “sealing” and not “venting”. Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button on the Instant Pot to stop cooking. Press the “manual” button to switch to the pressure cooking mode. Press “+ (plus)” button to change the cooking time to 60 minutes on high pressure. It'll take about 15 minutes to pressurize.

Step 11

[stove-top pressure cooker] If you’re using a stove-top pressure cooker, you won’t have the buttons to press. Just cook on high heat until high pressure is reached. Then reduce the heat to low but maintain high pressure for about 60 minutes.

Step 12

When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to the “Keep Warm” mode. Slide the steam release handle to the "Venting" position to let out steam until the float valve drops down, or let the pressure release naturally for about 15 minutes. Unlock the lid and transfer to a rimmed baking sheet pan.

Step 13

Shred the pork with two forks.

Step 14

[Optional] Using a ladle, take out oil/fat (top layer of the liquid). Oil stays near the surface of the liquid, so if you gently submerge the ladle, only oil goes into the ladle, leaving the flavorful liquid behind. Here I discarded ¾ cup of oil.

Step 15

Put the pork back into the pot, and give everything a good toss so that it can soak up the flavors from the sauce.

Step 16

Press the “Saute” button again to heat up and serve immediately. Or if you want to give some nice char, transfer to an oven-safe skillet.

Step 17

Put the skillet under high broil for 3-5 minutes until the shredded pork has nice char.

Step 18

You can make pulled pork tacos, serve pulled pork over rice (see the post), or make a pulled pork sandwich!

Step 19

Keep the pulled pork in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the refrigerator and up to 2-3 months in the freezer.