Soups & stews · Korean home cooking

Home-style pork rice soup (dwaeji-gukbap)

Name: Home-style pork rice soup (dwaeji-gukbap)
Total time: 100 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Korean
Ingredients: Boneless pork shoulder — 1 pack (400 g); Cooked short-grain rice — 2 small bowls (300 g); Unsalted pork or beef bone broth — 3 paper cups (540 ml); Water — 3 paper cups (540 ml); Onion — ½ medium onion; Peeled garlic — 6 cloves; Fresh ginger — 2 thin slices (5 g); Spring onion — 1 stalk; Garlic chives — 1 small handful (20 g); Salt — ¼ small teaspoon (1.5 g); Ground black pepper — 1 small pinch

A practical pork-and-rice soup using pork shoulder and optional ready-made unsalted bone broth. It gives a hearty bowl at home without claiming to reproduce an all-day restaurant broth.

100 min2 servings6 stepsDifficulty: Intermediate

Home-style pork rice soup (dwaeji-gukbap)

AI-generated cooking illustrations. Follow the written quantities and instructions.

02 / You’re ready to cook

Step-by-step cooking

Step 1

Put the pork in a pot, cover with extra cold water and bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Drain this first water. Rinse the cooked outside of the pork carefully and wash the pot; the measured broth is not used yet.
Step 1
Step 2

Return the pork to the clean pot with the onion, whole garlic and ginger. Add 3 paper cups of unsalted broth and 3 paper cups of water. Use a compact pot so the meat is mostly covered.
Step 2
Step 3

Bring to a boil and skim foam. Reduce to a gentle simmer, partly cover and cook for 60–75 minutes. Turn once halfway through. Add a little hot water if needed to keep the pork mostly covered.
Step 3
Step 4

When the pork is tender enough to pierce easily, check its centre reaches at least 63°C. Lift onto a clean board and rest for at least 3 minutes. Strain the broth, discarding the cooked aromatics, then skim excess surface fat.
Step 4
Step 5

Slice the pork thinly across the grain. Warm the cooked rice separately. Chop the spring onion and garlic chives. Bring the strained broth back to a boil and return the pork slices to heat through.
Step 5
Step 6

Divide the warm cooked rice between two deep bowls. Add pork and boiling-hot broth, then spring onion and chives. Add the listed salt gradually at the table, with pepper if using; packaged broth may need less salt.
Step 6

03 / Enjoy your meal

Finished dish

Helpful tips

Allow about 100 minutes overall; larger meat pieces may take longer to become tender. Rice is already cooked, not dry. Keep rice and broth separate for storage. Check packaged broth ingredients for allergens. Divide leftovers into shallow containers and refrigerate within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if the room is hotter than 32°C. Keep at 4°C or below, use within 3–4 days and reheat leftovers to 74°C.