Hot pot

Not to be confused with Hotspot.

Hot pot
Raw meats ready to be cooked
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	火鍋
Simplified Chinese	火锅
Literal meaning	fire pot
Transliterations Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin huǒguō Cantonese - Jyutping fo2 wo1
alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	打邊爐 or 打甂爐
Simplified Chinese	打边炉 or 打甂炉
Transliterations Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin da3 bian1 lu2 Cantonese - Jyutping daa2 bin1 lou4
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese	lẩu

For the style of "hot pot" cooking that uses a clay pot, see Clay pot cooking. For the English dish, see Lancashire hotpot.

Hot pot (Chinese: 火鍋; pinyin: huǒ guō), less commonly Chinese fondue or steamboat, refers to several East Asian varieties of stew, consisting of a simmering metal pot of stock at the center of the dining table. While the hot pot is kept simmering, ingredients are placed into the pot and are cooked at the table. Typical hot pot dishes include thinly sliced meat, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, wontons, egg dumplings, and seafood. The cooked food is usually eaten with a dipping sauce. In many areas, hot pot meals are often eaten in the winter.

History

Hot pot served in Chinatown, Singapore

Some have claimed that the Asian hot pot tradition had its origins in the region of Mongolia, even before the rise of the Mongols, although there is little historical evidence to support this, including the fact that hot pot is not a part of Mongolian cuisine but rather Chinese cuisine. Another more likely claim of origin is from near the Sichuan province of China, more specifically - the Ba region surrounding the municipality of Chongqing. In any event, the practice of hot pot spread to other parts of Asia through Chinese influence.

The Mongolian hot pot tradition originated from northern nomadic tribes. The Mongolian version of the steaming feast has been called the father of all Chinese hot pot.^[1] The Chinese hot pot boasts a history of more than 1000 years.^[1] Both the preparation method and the required equipment are unknown in the cuisine of Mongolia of today. Due to the complexity and specialization of the utensils and the method of eating it, hot pot cooking is much better suited to a sedentary culture. A nomadic household will avoid such highly specialized tools, to save volume and weight during migration.

Hot pot cooking seems to have spread to northern China during the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-906).^[1] In time, regional variations developed with different ingredients such as seafood. By the Qing Dynasty, the hot pot became popular throughout most of China. Today in many modern homes, particularly in the big cities, the traditional coal-heated steamboat or hot pot has been replaced by electric or gas versions.

Because steamboat and hot pot styles change so much from region to region, many different ingredients are used.

Cooking method

Hot pot with grill surrounding it

Frozen meat is sliced deli-thin to prepare it for hot pot cooking. Slicing frozen meat this way causes it to roll up during cooking, and it is often presented as such. Meats used include lamb, beef, chicken, and others. The cooking pot is often sunk into the table and fueled by propane, or alternatively is above the table and fueled by a portable butane gas stove or hot coals. Meat or vegetables are loaded individually into the hot cooking broth by chopsticks, and cooking time is brief. Meat often only takes 15 to 30 seconds to cook.

There are often disagreements between different styles of hot pot enthusiasts. Some like to place items into the hot pot at a relaxed, leisurely pace, enjoying the cooking process, while others prefer to throw everything in at once and wait for the hotpot to return to a boil.

Common ingredients

A hotpot cooking

• Condiments:
  • Hoisin sauce
  • Soy sauce
  • Vinegar (white or black)
  • Coriander / Cilantro (or xiāng cài)
  • Garlic
  • Scallion
  • Sesame oil
  • White pepper
  • Sa cha sauce
  • Chili
  • Sesame butter
  • Chive flower paste (韭菜花酱)
  • Satay or Peanut butter sauce, made by mixing peanut butter with water to a thick consistency (or hua sheng ru fu)

Regional variations

Inside the hot pot

Hot pot meals can get messy towards the end

Traditional Chengdu divided hotpot

In Beijing (Peking), hot pot is eaten year-round. Typical Beijing hot pot is eaten indoors during the winter. Different kinds of hot pot can be found in Beijing - typically, more modern eateries offer the sectioned bowl with differently flavored broths in each section. More traditional or older establishments serve a fragrant, but mild, broth in the hot pot, which is a large brass vessel heated by burning coals in a central chimney. Broth is boiled in a deep, donut-shaped bowl surrounding the chimney.

The Manchurian hot pot (Chinese: 東北酸菜火鍋) uses plenty of Suan cai (Chinese sauerkraut) (Chinese: 酸菜; pinyin: suān cài) to make the pot's stew sour.

One of the most famous variations is the Sichuan or Szechuan "má là" (Chinese: 麻辣 — "numb and spicy") hot pot, to which a special spice known as huā jiāo (Chinese: 花椒 — "flower pepper" or Sichuan Pepper) is added. It creates a sensation on the tongue that is both spicy and burns and numbs slightly, almost like carbonated beverages. It was usual to use a variety of different meats as well as sliced mutton fillet. A Sichuan hotpot[1]is markedly different from the types eaten in other parts of China. Quite often the differences lie in the meats used, the type of soup base, and the sauces and condiments used to flavor the meat. The cities of Chengdu and Chongqing are also famous for their different kinds of huǒ guō. "Sì Chuān huǒ guō" could be used to distinguish from simply "huǒ guō" in cases when people refer to the "Northern Style Hot Pot" in China. "Shuàn yáng ròu", Chinese: 涮羊肉 (instant-boiled lamb) could be viewed as representative of this kind of food, which does not focus on the soup base.

In Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province in southwestern China near the border with Myanmar, the broth is often divided into a yin and yang shape - a bubbling, fiery red chilli broth on one side, and a cooler white chicken broth on the other.

A Cantonese variation includes mixing a raw egg with the condiments to reduce the amount of 'heat' absorbed by the food, thereby reducing the likelihood of a sore throat after the steamboat meal, according to Chinese herbalist theories.

In Taiwanese hot pot, people eat the food with a dipping sauce consisting of shacha sauce and raw egg yolk.

In Thailand, hotpot is called sukiyaki or suki, although it is quite different from Japanese-style sukiyaki. Originally a Chinese-style hot pot, the number of ingredients to choose from was greatly increased and a Thai-style dipping sauce with chili sauce, chilli, lime and coriander leaves was added.

In Vietnam, a hot pot is called lẩu, and the sour soup called canh chua is often cooked in hot pot style (called lẩu canh chua). The generic term for a salted fish hot pot is lẩu mắm.

In Singapore and Malaysia, hot pot is known as steamboat. While most Singaporean hot pots are in the classical Chinese tradition, there are also local variants like laksa steamboat.^[2]

Related dishes

• Jjigae Chongol - Korea
• Nabemono - Japan
  • Shabu shabu
  • Sukiyaki
  • Chankonabe
• Thai suki
• Clay pot cooking - referred to as "hot pot" or "hotpot" on Chinese restaurant menus in English-speaking regions
• Lancashire hotpot - a dish referred to as "hot pot" (or "hotpot") in Britain
• Stew

References

External links

• Varieties of Hot Pot
• Singapore-style Hot Pot
• Things You need for Hot Pot