Make-Your-Own Hot Pot: A Fun And Flavorful Dining Experience

Hot pot is a tasty, festive and communal dining experience that involves cooking and eating together. It is a social way of eating, where a variety of food is cooked in a communal simmering pot of flavoured broth.

Hot pot is a Chinese way of cooking food, similar to fondue, but instead of cheese or hot oil, you have a pot of soup stock. Raw ingredients are cooked in the soup and then eaten with dipping sauces. It is a fun and interactive meal, where everyone cooks whatever they want to eat, whether it be meat, vegetables or noodles.

The theme of hot pot is choice. You can choose your ingredients, the type of broth, and the sauces you want to dip your food in. It is a very customisable meal.

Choosing your broth

Types of Broth

Firstly, you'll want to decide on the type of broth you want to use as your base. There are two main types of hot pot broth: spicy and mild.

• Spicy broths are a popular choice, especially the Sichuan-style broth, which has a high content of fat (usually beef tallow but can also be cooking oil) and the distinctive mouth-numbing and spicy flavour of Mala, a signature of Sichuan cuisine.
• Mild broths, on the other hand, are non-spicy and typically consist of stock, aromatics, herbs, and sometimes vegetables. Chicken stock is a common choice for a mild broth, but you can also use pork, beef, mushroom, or tomato stock.

Homemade vs. Store-Bought

Once you've decided on the type of broth, you need to choose between making your own broth from scratch or using a store-bought option.

• Making your own broth allows you to control the ingredients and ensure there are no preservatives or additives. It can also be a fun and rewarding process, especially if you enjoy cooking.
• Store-bought broth bases are convenient and can save time, especially if you're short on preparation time. They come in powder or sauce form and are typically diluted with water or stock.

Ingredients

The ingredients you use will depend on the type of broth you've chosen. Here are some common ingredients for each type:

• For a spicy broth, you'll need dried chillies, Sichuan peppercorns, beef tallow or cooking oil, spices like star anise and cinnamon, aromatics like scallions and garlic, and fermented ingredients like chilli bean paste and black beans.
• For a mild broth, chicken (or other types of meat/bones) is often used to make the stock, along with aromatics like scallions and ginger. You can also add vegetables like daikon radish and mushrooms to enhance the flavour.

Personalisation

Hot pot is a deeply personal and customisable meal, so feel free to experiment with different ingredients and flavours to suit your taste. You can also offer multiple broths to your guests, such as serving a spicy broth alongside a milder option, to cater to different preferences.

Serving Tips

When serving your hot pot, make sure to keep the water level at around 75% to avoid overflowing. It's also important to maintain a steady heat source to keep the broth simmering throughout the meal. Remember to refill the pot with water as needed, especially if you're enjoying a lengthy hot pot session.

Now that you've chosen your broth, you're well on your way to creating a delicious and memorable hot pot experience!

Selecting your ingredients

The beauty of hot pot is that you can choose your own adventure once you've learned the basics. You can make it as simple or as complex as you like, depending on your preferences and how much time you want to spend preparing ingredients. Here are some tips for selecting your hot pot ingredients:

Meat & Seafood

Meat is a popular choice for hot pot, and it's best to choose thinly sliced cuts that will cook quickly in the broth. Options include:

• Beef: short ribs, brisket, chuck, ribeye, sirloin, flank steak (thinly sliced against the grain)
• Lamb: leg, shoulder (thinly sliced)
• Pork: belly, shoulder, loin (thinly sliced)
• Chicken: boneless breast, thighs (thinly sliced)

Seafood is also a great addition to hot pot. Options include:

• Fish fillets (such as tilapia, bass, flounder)
• Shrimp
• Squid or cuttlefish
• Scallops
• Fish balls, shrimp balls, beef balls, pork balls, squid balls, mixed seafood balls

Vegetables

A variety of vegetables will add flavour, colour and texture to your hot pot. Here are some options:

• Leafy greens: baby bok choy, napa cabbage, spinach, pea tips, watercress, chrysanthemum leaves, choy sum
• Other vegetables: lotus root, potato, sweet potato, pumpkin, daikon radish, tomatoes, corn, winter melon
• Mushrooms: enoki, wood ear, king oyster, shiitake, oyster, shimeji

Starches

Starches are an important part of the hot pot experience, providing a filling element to the meal. Options include:

• Noodles: mung bean vermicelli, rice vermicelli, thin fresh white noodles, spinach noodles, shirataki noodles
• Rice cakes: thin ovals are best as they cook faster
• Dumplings: frozen dumplings, preferably smaller ones

Tofu & Soy Products

Tofu and soy products are a must-have for many hot pot enthusiasts. Options include:

• Firm tofu
• Frozen tofu
• Bean threads (dried bean curd sticks)
• Soy puffs
• Dried bean curd rolls
• Fresh tofu sheets/skin

Preparing your ingredients

First, decide on your proteins. Thinly sliced beef or lamb is a popular choice for hot pot, but you can also use chicken, pork, or seafood. If you're slicing the meat yourself, partially freeze it first and then slice it as thinly as possible. This will make it easier to cook in the hot pot. You can also buy pre-sliced meat from Asian grocery stores, which often carry a variety of options specifically for hot pot.

Next, select your vegetables. Leafy greens such as napa cabbage, bok choy, spinach, and kale are popular choices. Other options include mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, baby corn, and squash. Wash and dry all your vegetables, and cut any large leaf or root vegetables into small pieces.

Now, choose your tofu and/or soy products. Fried tofu is a popular option, but you can also use firm or extra-firm tofu. Drain and cut the tofu into bite-sized pieces.

Finally, select your noodles or rice. Udon, ramen, rice noodles, vermicelli, and shirataki noodles are all great options. If using dried noodles, soak them in hot water for 30 seconds to 10 minutes before adding to the hot pot.

Arrange all your ingredients on separate platters or plates, keeping the meats, seafood, and vegetables separate to avoid cross-contamination. You're now ready to start cooking your hot pot!

Setting up your equipment

The equipment you will need for your hot pot will vary depending on how traditional you want to be and how much you want to invest. The most important piece of equipment is a burner and a pot. The burner needs to be portable so it can sit at the centre of your table. It can be anything you like, but make sure it's not charcoal as this will fill your home with carbon monoxide. For the burner, you could use induction, gas, or a two-in-one pot connected to an electric source. If you're looking to invest in a hot pot set, you can get one with a built-in electrical heating element, which is easy to clean as the pot is removable.

For the pot, a Chinese stainless steel hot pot is ideal due to its round shape and depth. It's wide and deep enough to hold a good amount of food, while not being so deep that the food gets lost at the bottom. The metal is also thin, allowing the soup to heat up quickly as you add ingredients. Some designs even have a ""yin-yang" feature, where you can have two different soup flavours at the same time. However, any wide, relatively shallow pot will work.

You will also need chopsticks. It's best to use bamboo or wooden chopsticks as these are heat-resistant and cool off quickly. Plastic and metal chopsticks are not ideal as plastic may melt and metal conducts heat.

Additional equipment includes sauce bowls, metal hot pot baskets/wire ladles, and soup ladles. You will need small bowls (e.g. Chinese rice bowls) for each person to assemble their own dipping sauce. Metal hot pot ladles are useful but not necessary. They are basically wire sieves with wide holes that you use to cook the food through and then tip it into your bowl.

If you want to go all out, you can buy a stainless steel-divided electric hot pot, which has a grill at its base so you can grill your meats and seafood before combining them with your broth. You can also find hot pots with a butane heater or an induction burner to warm the pot at the table.

Cooking your hot pot

Hot pot is a fun and social meal to share with family and friends. It's a great dining experience that involves cooking your food in a pot of broth at the table. Here's a step-by-step guide to cooking your hot pot:

Step 1: Gather Your Equipment

You'll need a heat source such as a portable butane burner or an electric burner, and a pot to hold your broth. A shallow pot is best so that the food doesn't get lost at the bottom. You'll also need chopsticks, sauce bowls, and metal hot pot baskets or wire ladles for serving.

Step 2: Prepare Your Broth

You can make your own broth from scratch or use a pre-packaged hot pot soup base. If making your own, a simple option is to use chicken broth with some ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and toasted sesame oil. You can also add ingredients like goji berries, scallions, and mushrooms for extra flavor.

Step 3: Choose Your Ingredients

The beauty of hot pot is that you can choose a variety of ingredients to cook in the broth. Here are some options:

• Proteins: Thinly sliced beef, pork, chicken, lamb, or seafood are popular choices. You can also use pre-cooked meatballs, fish balls, or tofu.
• Vegetables: Leafy greens such as bok choy, napa cabbage, spinach, and mushrooms are great options. You can also add harder root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, or daikon.
• Carbohydrates: Noodles, dumplings, or rice cakes can be added to the broth to soak up the flavors.

Step 4: Make Your Dipping Sauces

A variety of dipping sauces are essential for enhancing the flavor of your hot pot ingredients. Some popular options include soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, Chinese BBQ sauce, chili garlic sauce, and peanut sauce.

Step 5: Set Up Your Table

Place the burner and pot in the center of the table. Arrange the ingredients, sauces, and condiments around the table. Provide each person with a bowl, plate, chopsticks, and napkin.

Step 6: Start Cooking!

Bring the broth to a boil, then add your ingredients. Cook your ingredients in small batches to avoid overcrowding the pot. Use a ladle to scoop out the cooked ingredients and dip them in your sauce. Enjoy!

Frequently asked questions