Loaded with vegetables, mushrooms, and tofu, this Japanese Sesame Miso Hot Pot is the perfect dish to whip up when you have friends and family over. The broth is made with kombu and shiitake dashi seasoned with savory miso and sesame seeds. It’s full of umami’s punch that you want to drink it all up!This recipe is created by Nami( Just One Cookbook®)
1 lbThinly sliced pork loin (optional, skip for vegan)
【Hot Pot Broth】
5cupsWater
1 (0.2 oz)pieceKombu (3 x 3 inches)
4Dried shiitake mushrooms
3tbspRoasted white sesame seeds
2clovesGarlic (minced)
2tbspSake
2tbspMirin
4-6tbspORGANIC MISO RED
【Optional Seasonings (to your liking)】
Kosher salt
Spicy chili bean paste (Doubanjiang)
Shichimi Togarashi
Instructions
To Prepare Soup Stock
In a large donabe (earthenware pot, or anypot), add 5 cups water, kombu, and 4 dried shiitake mushrooms to make coldbrew, vegan friendly dashi. Set aside.
To Prepare Ingedients for Hot Pot
In a large ungreased frying pan, add the sesame seeds and toast the sesame seeds until you smell the toasted sesame seeds.
Transfer to the Japanese mortar and pestle (suribachi and surikogi). Grind the sesame seeds until 90% of sesame seeds are crushed, keep 10% uncrushed.
Cut the napa cabbage into smaller bites. Once you cut all the ingredients, you can place them on a large plate.
Cut the green onions, mizuna, and garlic chives into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces.
To remove excess oil in the aburaage, put it in the boiling water for 15 seconds, flipping once. Drain water and let cool. Cut the aburaage into 1 inch strips. Also, cut the medium-firm tofu into 9 pieces.
Discard the bottom of shimeji mushrooms and maitake mushrooms.
Peel and discard the outer skin of the carrot. Then using the same vegetable peeler, thinly peel the carrot into thin strips.
Using the back of the knife, scrape off the skin of the gobo. The flavor of gobo is right below the skin, so you do not want to peel off using a peeler. Then just like carrot, peel the gobo into strips with the peeler.
Soak the gobo in water to prevent from browning and to remove the bitter taste.
To Cook Sesame Miso Hot Pot
Slowly bring the cold brew kombu and shiitake dashi, covered with a lid, to a simmer over medium low heat. Once simmering, skim off the foam/scum on the broth.
Discard the kombu and add the minced garlic.
Add sake, mirin and miso. Let miso completely dissolved in the ladle before releasing to the broth.
Add the ground sesame seeds. Taste the broth and adjust the flavor. You can add salt here or spicy chili bean paste (la doubanjiang) if you like it spicy.
Add the tough/dense ingredients to the broth. I add the bottom tough part of napa cabbage to the bottom of the pot. Then on top, I add tofu, carrot, and gobo.
Then add the aburaage and green onion. Cover the pot and bring to the table along with the plate of ingredients you prepared.
At the table, cook for 10 minutes. Then add the sliced meat and leafy ingredients that would cook fast. Add more ingredients you prepared on the plate as you scoop out the cooked food from the hot pot. Enjoy!
Product used in this recipe
Organic Miso Red 17.6 oz (500 g)
Our Organic Miso Red is made from organic rice and soybeans, with bright red in color. Long fermentation process creates it distinct, deep, and rich taste, with strong miso aroma.
