When I was in college, I used to make a big pot of this pork and vegetable miso soup and ate it throughout the week. Not only it was a hearty miso soup for the soul and brainpower, but it also gave me good nutrients from the meat and all kinds of vegetables. This all-mighty miso soup is called Tonjiru (豚汁) or sometimes called Butajiru. I’ve already shared a regular Tonjiru recipe that requires cooking on the stovetop, but today I’ll share the Instant Pot Tonjiru recipe. Although the actual cooking time is roughly the same as the stovetop method, the benefit of cooking Tonjiru in the electric pressure cooker is you can walk out of the kitchen once you press “start,” and go back to study, work, or spend the time with your family.
Key Ingredients for Tonjiru
Tonjiru is easy to make, especially if you already know how to make miso soup. For Tonjiru, you will prepare dashi – Japanese soup stock – ahead of time and then stir fry pork and vegetables first before adding dashi to cook them further. Let’s go over the key ingredients in detail below.
1. Pork
This miso soup won’t be called “Tonjiru” or “Butajiru” without pork (ton or buta) in it. In Japanese kanji characters, we write 豚汁 and read it Ton-jiru or Buta-jiru, depending on the Chinese reading or Japanese reading. The cut of pork can be your choice, but in Japan, pork belly slices are the more popular choice for Tonjiru as it is more flavorful. The next choice is pork loin slices. If you cannot get ready sliced pork belly or pork loin at local Japanese/Asian grocery stores, you can cut the meat into thin slices or strips yourself (See the tutorial here).
2. Vegetables
The flavor essence of the soup comes from pork, but it actually features more vegetables. Common vegetables used in Tonjiru are root vegetables such as:
carrotspotatoes or satoimo (Japanese taro)daikon (Japanese radish)gobo (burdock root)
Besides the root vegetables, there are other ingredients you can add.
konnyaku (kanjac)tofu or aburaage (deep-fried tofu pouch)shiitake mushrooms or shimejibean sprouts (my mom always includes them)green onions/spring onions
We do not put leafy vegetables, but if you like to add, say spinach, I recommend blanching them separately and adding directly to the soup bowl. This way, you can retain the bright green color and won’t overcook the leafy veggies.
3. Dashi (Japanese soup stock)
Because Tonjiru has a lot of ingredients that contribute to a decent-tasting broth, you can get away by using water instead of dashi. However, my choice is always dashi because it gives more depth and umami that pork and vegetables don’t have. You can taste the difference right away. I use the combination of kombu and katsuobushi for dashi (we call Awase Dashi) in the majority of my cooking, and this recipe is no exception. I highly recommend making homemade dashi, but if you’re in hurry, a dashi packet from Kayanoya makes nice quick dashi in no time.
4. Miso (Japanese fermented soybean paste)
There is no specific type of miso you have to use for Tonjiru. If you like one type of miso (such as white miso, awase miso, or red miso), you can use it. If you are new to miso, read this post to get familiar with it. For this Tonjiru, I used Enjuku Koji Miso from Hikari Miso®. I love the hint of sweetness that Koji Miso gives. More koji in the miso, the sweeter it tastes.
What Dishes to Serve with Tonjiru
My mom always served Tonjiru in a donburi bowl as it was the main dish, and accompany the soup with a grilled fish. Because Tonjiru has meat in it, she usually avoids meat as a main dish. I follow the same way and usually serve a simple grilled fish such as Grilled Pacific Saury (Sanma), Grilled Mackerel (Saba Shioyaki), or Salted Salmon (Shiojake). Tonjiru already has tons of root vegetables, so you can skip side dishes that contain similar ingredients, and instead, serve sides like:
Tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelette)Simmered KoyadofuInstant Pot KuromamePickled TomatoHijiki Seaweed Salad
Or if you’re really busy, just prepare a grilled fish and steamed rice, and that will still be an amazing nutritious meal!
Looking for Similar Comforting Miso Soups?
Kenchinjiru (Vgetable Soup) {vegan}Sanpeijiru (Salmon Miso Soup)Miso Soup with Yuzu Kosho
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