The Hot Pot Conundrum: A Look At Restaurant Practices

Hot pot is an interactive and communal dining experience, with roots in East Asian culture. After eating, the pot is usually left on the table, with the broth still bubbling gently, ready for diners to ladle and sip. The remaining broth is often infused with extra flavour from the array of ingredients cooked within it.

Some restaurants may top up the broth throughout the meal to prevent it from becoming too salty or oily, and to ensure there is enough liquid to finish cooking the ingredients.

At the end of the meal, diners may be offered fresh fruit or ice cream to cool down after a spicy hot pot.

How to cook the perfect hot pot

Hot pot is a fun and interactive communal dining experience. It's an experience rather than just a dish, and it's very customizable. Here is a guide on how to cook the perfect hot pot:

The Setup

To cook hot pot at home, you'll need a pot and a portable stove. If you want to offer multiple flavours of broth, invest in a split pot. Get a larger pot, about 4 quarts or more, so you have room to add ingredients. For the portable stove, a cordless gas stove is a good option, powered by a canister of butane fuel. You can also use an electric stove or an Instant Pot.

The Broth

Hot pot is centred around a vessel of broth, so this is key. You can make your own broth from scratch, use a store-bought soup base, or even buy broth from a restaurant. If you're making your own, popular broths include chicken, tom yum, ma-la, and mushroom. If you're using a store-bought soup base, popular options include Little Sheep Hot Pot Soup Base and Haidilao Broth Flavor Hot Pot Seasoning.

The Ingredients

The fun of hot pot is in the variety of ingredients you can add. The four main categories are broth, protein, carbs, and veggies, but you can also add sauces and condiments.

Protein

Thinly sliced beef is the most popular choice, as it cooks quickly (within 10-30 seconds). Other options include chicken, lamb, tofu, shrimp, crab, fish, meatballs, and eggs.

Veggies

You can add a wide variety of vegetables to your hot pot. Options include napa cabbage, chrysanthemum greens, yu choy, potato, mushroom, onion, bell peppers, and baby corn.

Carbs

Noodles are a great addition to hot pot, as they're filling and cook quickly. Popular choices include udon, vermicelli, chow mein, and shangdong noodles. You can also add rice.

Sauces and Condiments

Many hot pot restaurants offer a selection of sauces and condiments to accompany the meal. You can create your own dipping sauce by combining ingredients such as scallions, cilantro, garlic, soy sauce, peanut sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, chilli oil, vinegar, and sesame paste.

Cooking

Bring the broth to a boil, then take it down to a simmer. Start by adding the ingredients that take the longest to cook, such as hardy vegetables and meats, which will also add flavour to the broth. Then, it's a free-for-all! Add whatever ingredients you want, cooking them to your desired level of doneness. Remember to cook for your fellow diners too, and be careful not to overcrowd the pot, as this can reduce the temperature of the broth.

Leftovers

If you have any leftovers, store them in sealed containers in the fridge. Separate cooked ingredients from raw, and keep carbs like noodles separate so they don't get soggy.

What to do with the broth at the end of the meal

Hot pot is an interactive and communal dining experience. It involves cooking an array of ingredients in a pot of seasoned broth, placed on an induction burner or electric range at the centre of the table. The broth is an essential part of the hot pot experience, providing a base for the flavours of the various ingredients cooked in it.

Towards the end of the meal, the broth will have been infused with the flavours of the meats, seafood, vegetables, and noodles cooked in it. It is customary to ladle some of this flavourful broth into bowls and sip it slowly, savouring the concentrated flavours of the various ingredients. The broth will still be very hot, so caution should be exercised when consuming it.

In some cases, the broth may become too salty or strong due to the continuous simmering and boiling, as well as the addition of ingredients throughout the meal. In such cases, it is advisable to top up the broth with a milder broth or water to dilute it and restore balance to the flavours.

Additionally, some restaurants may offer to replenish the broth with a pitcher of fresh broth to ensure that the flavours remain robust and well-balanced. This is done to prevent the broth from becoming too spicy or oily, especially if a variety of ingredients have been cooked in it.

At the end of the meal, it is important to properly dispose of any remaining broth. It is not advisable to keep the broth for an extended period as it may spoil. Proper disposal methods should be followed to ensure that no harm is caused to the environment.

The best vegetables to add to hot pot

Hot pot is a fun and social dining experience, where a selection of raw ingredients are cooked in a pot of flavoured broth. The best vegetables to add to a hot pot are those that can be cooked quickly, as hot pot is an interactive and leisurely meal.

Leafy greens

Leafy greens such as spinach, watercress, lettuce, bok choy, napa cabbage, and Chinese lettuces are great for hot pot as they cook quickly and won't get soggy.

Mushrooms

Mushrooms are another popular choice, with a variety of types to choose from: shiitake, enoki, button, straw, and oyster mushrooms. These also cook quickly and add a savoury flavour to the broth.

Starchy vegetables

Starchy root vegetables like taro, lotus root, potato, sweet potato, Japanese yam, and corn will take a little longer to cook but are delicious additions.

Other vegetables

Other vegetables to consider are bamboo shoots, daikon radish, tomatoes, and bean sprouts. Just remember that different vegetables will cook at different rates, so add the quicker-cooking veggies towards the end, after the broth has been bubbling away with meats and other ingredients.

Asian vegetables

If you want to be more adventurous, try some Asian vegetables such as tong ho (edible chrysanthemum), Taiwanese spinach, or water spinach.

Tips

Remember to cook small amounts of food at a time and keep an eye on everything so it doesn't overcook. Also, don't forget to sanitise your chopsticks by holding them in the boiling broth, especially when handling raw meat.

The best meats to add to hot pot

Hot pot is a fun and interactive dining experience, where you cook an array of ingredients in a pot of seasoned broth. The best meats to add to a hot pot include a variety of thinly sliced options, such as beef, lamb, and pork. Here are some specific cuts and preparation tips to elevate your hot pot experience:

Beef

Beef is one of the most popular choices for hot pot due to its quick cooking time and versatility. Here are some recommended cuts:

• Short ribs—par-freeze, trim the silver skin, and slice thinly against the grain. Cook for about 15 seconds for medium-rare slices.
• Fatty beef, such as brisket or chuck—thaw if frozen, then cook for 8 seconds for medium, or up to 1 minute to your desired doneness.
• Ribeye steak—slice thinly and cook for a few seconds to your desired doneness.

Lamb

Lamb is commonly used in Chinese hot pots, especially in Sichuan and northern Chinese variations. The following cuts are ideal:

• Leg—ask your butcher to remove the bone and slice the meat narrowly. Cook for around 90 seconds for tender meat, or less if you prefer it rare.
• Shoulder—also a great option, with a mix of fat, connective tissue, and lean parts.

Pork

Pork belly, shoulder, and loin are widely used in hot pots. Here's how to prepare them:

• Thinly slice the pork belly, about 1/8" thick, and thaw if frozen. You can let it cook in the broth for up to 10 minutes due to its high fat content.
• For the shoulder and loin, slice thinly and cook according to your desired level of doneness.

Other Meats

In addition to the big three (beef, lamb, and pork), you can also add other meats to your hot pot:

• Chicken—while less common due to its longer cooking time, chicken pieces can be added.
• Offal—animal offal cuts like liver and kidneys are popular in Chinese hot pots. Be sure to slice them thinly.

When preparing meats for hot pot, it's essential to freeze or partially freeze the meat before slicing to achieve thin, even slices. This technique ensures the meat cooks quickly and evenly in the broth. Additionally, using a small strainer ladle can help control the cooking process and make it easier to retrieve the meat from the pot.

The best seafood to add to hot pot

Seafood is a key component of hot pot, and there are many options to choose from. Here are some of the best seafood choices to add to your hot pot:

Fish

Fish is a great addition to hot pot, but it's important to choose a species with firmer flesh. Salmon, cod, halibut, catfish, mullet, snakehead fish, and any other type of fish can be used. The fish is typically sliced into fillets to make it easier to cook in the boiling broth.

Shellfish

Any type of shellfish, from shrimp and crab to clams and mussels, is an excellent choice for hot pot. Shrimp is one of the most popular seafood ingredients and is usually cooked whole with the shell and head-on, as this adds flavour to the broth. Other options include oysters, lobsters, crabs, abalone, and geoduck. Shellfish can be cooked whole or added as balls or cakes, which are available ready-made or can be made at home.

Squid and Cuttlefish

Both fresh and dried squid and cuttlefish can be added to a hot pot. The body and tentacles of the squid can be used, offering different textures. Fresh squid and cuttlefish should be cleaned thoroughly before being sliced into strips or rings. Dried cuttlefish requires more preparation time but has a bolder, meatier flavour.

Fish Balls and Fish Cakes

Fish balls and cakes are a distinct element of Chinese hot pot. They are made from pounded fish or shellfish and have a bouncy texture. Some variations are filled with corn or pork. These can be made at home or purchased ready-made from any Chinese grocery store.

Frequently asked questions