-
1
Place the pork belly whole in a large pot. Cover generously with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a steady simmer. Cook uncovered for 1 hour, skimming scum and rendered fat from the surface at intervals. The parboil is complete when a skewer meets noticeably reduced resistance and the skin has softened and begun to loosen at the edges.
-
2
Lift the pork from the water and allow it to cool sufficiently to handle. Discard the parboiling liquid. Cut the belly into portions approximately 4 cm × 5 cm, cutting through skin, fat, and meat together so each piece retains all three layers.
-
3
Arrange the pork pieces skin-side down in a wide, heavy pot. Add the awamori, soy sauce, kokutou, and dashi. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring briefly to begin dissolving the kokutou. The liquid should smell of awamori warmth and mineral dark sugar before the lid goes on.
-
4
This is where the dish lives or dies: maintain the braise at the barest simmer — a surface that shivers rather than boils — for 3 to 4 hours, skimming rendered fat from the surface periodically throughout. Patience here converts all collagen to gelatin; rushing to 2 hours produces tough, under-converted pork. The braise is ready when a piece trembles visibly when the pot is gently shaken and the skin has turned translucent, silky, and offers a distinctive bounce when pressed.
-
5
Remove the pork pieces and set aside. Raise the heat under the braising liquid and reduce it, uncovered, until it thickens to a glossy, coating glaze. Return the pork to the pot and turn each piece to baste it thoroughly in the reduced glaze, working over low heat. The surface of each piece should appear lacquered and deeply coloured.
-
6
Serve the rafute on a small plate alongside blanched Okinawan mustard spinach. Finish each portion with a pinch of katsuobushi. The finished pork should hold its shape on the plate yet collapse without resistance under the edge of a spoon.