Okinawa's take on shabu-shabu using agu pork — an indigenous Okinawan breed prized for its fine marbling and sweet fat. Thin slices are swished in a light konbu broth and dipped in a citrus-soy sauce. The agu's fat, lower in melting point than mainstream pork, gives an unusually clean, sweet richness.
Agu shabu is Okinawa's adaptation of shabu-shabu using agu pork. The agu is an indigenous Okinawan pig breed, documented by Wikipedia as a distinct breed with a long history on the island. The breed was nearly lost during the Battle of Okinawa but has been revived in recent decades. Its meat is prized for its fine marbling, tender texture, and fat that is lower in melting point and sweeter than conventional pork.
A slice of agu pork, swished briefly in the konbu broth, is meltingly tender — the fine marbling ensures that the fat distributes evenly through the meat, giving it a buttery, almost sweet richness. The konbu broth's umami enhances the pork's natural savoriness; the ponzu cuts the fat. Eaten with Okinawan vegetables and tofu, it is a luxury version of shabu-shabu unique to Okinawa.
Agu shabu rests on the pork breed's unique fat composition. Agu pork, like other Asian indigenous pig breeds, has a higher proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in its intramuscular fat than Western commercial breeds; this gives the fat a lower melting point (it begins to melt at body temperature) and a cleaner, sweeter taste. The extreme thinness of the shabu-shabu slices ensures that the fat renders almost instantly in the hot broth, distributing its flavor through the meat.
Variations
Some versions use Okinawan soba noodles in the remaining broth; the agu pork and the konbu-shabu method are the Okinawan constants.
On the Palate
Where Agu Shabu sits in the Japanese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4How it's made
6 steps · 20 min
- 110 min
Slice agu pork belly paper-thin against the grain.
Watch outSlice the pork belly paper-thin against the grain — agu fat melts at body temperature, so the thinner the slice, the faster it renders sweet in the broth.
- 210 min
Prepare a light konbu broth in a donabe.
- 35 min
Arrange the pork, Okinawan vegetables, and tofu on platters.
- 410 min
At the table, each diner swishes a slice for a few seconds.
Watch outSwish each slice in the hot broth only a few seconds — the moment it turns from pink to pale, lift it; longer and the tender meat toughens.
- 55 min
Dip in ponzu or a sweet-savory Okinawan-style sauce.
- 65 min
Finish with soba noodles in the remaining broth.
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