With our recent snowfall and blustery weather, we were in the mood for hot pot! Japanese hot pot is cooked in a clay pot called a "nabe." That is why hot pot in Japan is called simply, "nabe" (nah-beh). This particular nabe has chicken drumsticks, shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, naga-negi (Japanese leek), carrots, daikon (Japanese giant radish) and konnyaku (devil's tongue jelly). The broth is dashi stock mixed with about 1 tbsp of soy sauce. On top of all these goodies I placed...
A LOT of hakusai or suey choy. This cabbage goes on last, as it cooks very quickly. The harder to cook ingredients such as chicken, go in first. There are many different types of nabe and you can use almost any type of meat or seafood in it. As well, most any type of vegetable goes well in it. Tofu and fish cakes are also great additions. A particular delight is crab nabe...expensive though.
With some types of nabe, you cook the food yourself at the table using a hot plate or portable gas range. The broth is heated and each diner chooses from a plate of chopped vegetables and sliced meat. You can then cook your selection and eat it piece by piece. This is great for parties, but does not work if you are including chicken in your nabe. For safety reasons, chicken nabe is simmered beforehand. Tonight's nabe had chicken in it, so I simmered it for sometime and added everything at once. My husband and I each have a small bowl and we choose ingredients from the nabe to place in this bowl. We add a bit of the simmering broth and then a bit of flavouring such as ponzu or kimichi. It is always delicious and warms you right to the core! We will be eating nabe a lot more often now that the weather has turned cold. It is one thing to look forward to in the winter. ^_^
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