Hot Pot Soup Secrets: The Magic Behind This Comforting Dish

Hot pot is a dish that involves a pot of soup stock simmering on a heat source placed on the dining table. It is accompanied by an array of raw ingredients, such as meat and vegetables, which diners cook in the broth themselves. The cooked pieces are then dipped into sauces for additional flavour.

Typical hot pot ingredients include thinly sliced meat, leaf vegetables, mushrooms, sliced potatoes, tofu, seafood, and noodles. The raw ingredients are pre-sliced into thin sections so they will cook quickly and consistently in the broth.

Hot pot is considered a main course and is usually served without rice or noodles on the side. However, noodles can be added to the broth towards the end of the meal to soak up the flavours.

Meat and seafood

The joy of hot pot lies in the variety of ingredients used, and the interplay of meat, vegetables, and seafood. Meat is often thinly sliced to allow it to cook quickly, and there are many options to choose from.

Meat

Beef, lamb, and pork are the most widely used meats for Chinese hot pot. For beef, opt for cuts with a good balance of lean and fat, such as ribeye steak, brisket, or beef belly. Leaner cuts like sirloin or eye of round can also be used but take care not to overcook them. Lamb is widely eaten in Sichuan and northern Chinese hot pots and is excellent cooked in a spicy broth. Use either the leg or shoulder cuts for the best texture. For pork, thinly sliced pork belly, shoulder, or loin are ideal.

Animal offal, such as liver or kidneys, is also a popular choice in Chinese hot pots. These can be purchased at any Asian market and should be sliced thinly to ensure the best texture.

Seafood

When it comes to seafood, it's important to choose fish with firmer flesh, such as salmon, cod, or halibut. Any shellfish, from shrimp and crab to clams, will also work well. Chinese hot pot is all about the combination of flavours, so don't be afraid to mix and match ingredients.

A distinct element of Chinese hot pot is fish and shellfish balls. These are made from pounded fish or shellfish, moulded into balls with a bouncy texture, and are available ready-made at any Chinese grocery. Some variations are even filled with corn or pork.

Cooking Meat and Seafood

Meat is cooked by swishing slices in the hot broth with chopsticks or by placing them in a small strainer ladle, which allows better control over the desired doneness. Larger quantities of meat can be added to the pot at once, but this may result in overcooking, especially for more expensive cuts.

For shellfish, scrub them clean and purge in water for 30 minutes before cooking. Manila clams can be added one at a time, cooking from 30 seconds to around 5 minutes, depending on your preference. Shrimp, a popular choice, should be salted and rinsed before cooking for about a minute, or until opaque.

Vegetables

When it comes to hot pot, the sky's the limit when it comes to vegetables. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Leafy Greens

• Spinach
• Baby bok choy
• Morning glory
• Kale
• Watercress
• Tatsoi
• Napa cabbage
• Chrysanthemum greens
• Yu choy

Mushrooms

• Oyster
• Brown
• Enoki
• Shiitake
• King oyster
• Beech

Onions

• Green onion
• Red onion
• Sweet yellow onion

Peppers

• Bell peppers
• Spicy peppers

Other Vegetables

• Baby corn
• Bamboo shoots
• Potato or sweet potato
• Daikon radish or other radishes
• Squash (kabocha or other types)
• Corn on the cob
• Chinese cauliflower
• Winter melon
• Celtuce
• Lotus root

Noodles and starches

Hot pot is a communal dining experience that involves cooking various raw ingredients in a pot of flavoured broth. The ingredients typically include meats, seafood, vegetables, and starches. The latter category, noodles and starches, is what we'll be focusing on here.

Types of Noodles and Starches

• Mung bean vermicelli: Soak these thin noodles in warm water for about 10 minutes before adding them to the hot pot.
• Rice noodles: Par-cook by boiling according to the package instructions, then rinse in cold water and drain.
• Thin fresh white noodles
• Fresh spinach noodles
• Shirataki noodles: These can be added directly to the boiling broth and cook in seconds.
• Rice cakes: Opt for the thin ovals instead of the thick Korean-style rice cake logs, which take too long to cook.
• Frozen dumplings: Smaller dumplings are preferable, and they will cook in 5 to 10 minutes.
• Bean threads: Soak these dried bean curd sticks in warm water for 3 to 4 hours, then cut into 2-inch pieces.
• Soy puffs: These can be left whole or sliced in half for quicker cooking.
• Frozen tofu: Cut into small 1-inch chunks.
• Firm tofu: Cut into 1-inch chunks.
• Dried bean curd rolls
• Fresh tofu sheets/skin
• Instant ramen: Use the noodles and save the flavour packets for something else.
• Rice: To make congee, first remove any lingering hot pot ingredients from the broth, then add leftover cooked rice and stir frequently to avoid burning.
• Glass noodles: Sze's go-to starch. These are not too heavy, soak up flavour well, and cook quickly. Buy the mung bean version to avoid excess starch.

Tips for Preparing Noodles and Starches

• Pick one ingredient from each category to ensure a varied hot pot meal.
• Since all the hot pot ingredients are raw, you can easily repurpose leftovers into other dishes the next day.
• If you're adding flavour sponges like tofu or Napa cabbage to a spicy broth, be prepared—they absorb heat and can become overwhelming to eat.
• Sanitize your chopsticks in the boiling broth, especially when handling meat.

Broths

Spicy Broth

The spicy broth is the most popular choice for hot pot. It is a must-have for most hot pot dinners and can be further categorised into Sichuan, Chongqing, and Mongolian styles. The Sichuan and Mongolian styles are the most popular, but the Chongqing style features a thicker and richer broth. The base of the spicy broth is typically made with beef tallow or cooking oil, dried chilli peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, and various herbs and spices such as star anise, cassia cinnamon, bay leaves, and black cardamom. Other ingredients like aromatics (scallions, onion, coriander, garlic, and ginger), fermented ingredients (Sichuan chilli bean paste and fermented black beans), Shaoxing rice wine, and sugar are also added to enhance the flavour.

Clear Broth

The clear broth is the default type of broth in northern China. It is typically made with simple ingredients such as water, scallions, ginger, peppers, shiitake mushrooms, and jujubes. However, to make the broth more flavourful, a packaged soup base can be added. This broth is usually served alongside a spicy broth to balance things out and cater to guests who do not eat spicy food.

Homemade vs Store-Bought Broth

While it is possible to make the hot pot broth from scratch, it is highly recommended to purchase a hot pot broth base for convenience. Making the broth from scratch may require many special ingredients that are expensive or hard to find. A hot pot party is supposed to be easy and fun, so save yourself the trouble and buy a good-quality broth base from an Asian store or online.

Condiments and sauces

Hot pot sauce is used as a dip for cooked ingredients. The dipping sauce is essential for enhancing the flavour of the hot pot ingredients. It is a customisable mix of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, and other condiments. The must-have ingredients for a good hot pot sauce include satay sauce, soy sauce, cilantro, garlic, and sesame paste.

• Slice green onions and mince garlic. Add them to a bowl.
• In a pot, heat up avocado oil or canola oil on medium heat for 4-5 minutes. To check if the oil is hot enough, add one small piece of green onion. If it starts bubbling, the hot oil is ready.
• Add hot oil to the bowl and mix everything together.
• Add 1 tablespoon of sesame sauce, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of satay sauce, 1 tablespoon of chili oil or XO sauce, chopped cilantro, sesame seeds, and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Mix everything together and your sauce is ready!

Other condiments and sauces to serve with hot pot include:

• Eastlake Shanxi Black Vinegar
• Bull Head Sacha BBQ Sauce (a seafood paste)
• Wang Zhihe Pure Sesame Paste
• Minced scallions, cilantro, and garlic
• Soy sauce
• Peanut sauce
• Sesame oil
• Vinegar
• Oils
• Seasonings (such as sacha and chilli flakes)

Frequently asked questions