What could be better than a meal that is healthy yet satisfying, comforting yet exotic, quick and easy to prepare yet impressive? One that is also served in one pot that can be brought to the table for family members to gather round and choose whichever morsels they particularly like?
If that sounds like a great way to warm up a winter evening then I have just the cookbook for you: Japanese Hot Pots: Comforting One-Pot Meals by Tadashi Ono and Harris Salat. My co-worker Samantha Bednarek and I were lucky enough to attend the book launch party held at the elegant Matsuri restaurant, in downtown New York City’s Maritime Hotel. Authors Salat and Ono cooked up three delicious selections from the book for us to sample.
All the dishes are cooked in one pot and are surprisingly simple. Some do have exotic ingredients which might require a visit to an Asian grocery (or you can order online from Asian Food Grocer), but author Salat says hot pots are incredibly flexible, and substitutions won’t diminish the taste. For example in the chicken hot pot recipe below, Salat suggests these substitutions: “If you can’t find shungiku, you can substitute with spinach. No shiitake? Sub with crimini or white button or any mushroom except for portobello, which would overwhelm it. Instead of negi, scallions work great. Finally, if you can’t find itokonnyaku, you can use harusame or “bean thread noodles,” available in Asian markets, or just skip it."
No special equipment is needed—a dutch oven will keep the meal warm on the table (or you can use a hot plate). The hot pots are typically served with either a bowl of rice or noodles and diners can use chopsticks or forks to select what they want right from the pot.
Need more convincing? Japanese people are among the healthiest on earth so we would do well to follow their lead when it comes to food. If you're nervous about trying something new check out the helpful youtube video of Salat and Ono preparing this chicken hot pot.
HAKATA CHICKEN HOT POT
(Tori Mizutaki)
SERVES 4
4 chicken legs and thighs (2 to 3 pounds), skinned, boned, and cut into bite-size pieces
2 6-inch pieces kombu
1/4 small head green cabbage (about 1/2 pound), cut into bite-size pieces
1 7-ounce package itokonnyaku, well rinsed, strained, and quartered
1/2 package (about 1/2 pound) firm tofu, cut into 4 pieces
1 negi, white part only, sliced on an angle into 2-inch pieces
4 ounces shiitake mushrooms (about 8 pieces),stemmed
3-1/2 ounces shimeji mushrooms, trimmed and pulled apart
1/2 medium carrot, peeled, cut into 2-inch pieces, and thinly sliced lengthwise
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups shungiku leaves, stemmed
1/2 cup shibori scallions, for garnish
4 teaspoons green yuzu kosho, for accent
1). Fill a large stockpot with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Add the chicken. When the water returns to a boil, poach for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, strain
the chicken in a colander, and cool under running water. Set aside.
2). Place the kombu on the bottom of a hot pot and add the cabbage over it. Add the chicken, itokonnyaku, tofu, negi, shiitake and shimeji mushrooms, and carrot on top
of the cabbage, arranging each ingredient in a separate, neat bunch. Sprinkle in the salt and add the chicken stock. Cover the hot pot and bring it to a boil over high heat.
3). Decrease the heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover the pot, add the shungiku leaves, and simmer for 1 minute more.
4). Transfer the hot pot to the dining table. Serve the ingredients together with the broth in small bowls. Garnish with the shibori scallions and accent with the green yuzu kosho.
—Lisa Kelsey, art director
