What is Huo Guo?
火锅 literally means "fire pot". Hot pot is eaten all over China, from Beijing to Guangzhou, with different broths. In Chongqing and Sichuan a red, oily broth with chili and Sichuan pepper simmers, with a numbing heat. In Chinese this heat is called mala. In the north, you cook thin lamb in clear broth in a copper pot, as in the Mongolian hot pot. Many restaurants serve the divided yuanyang pot, with a spicy and a mild broth side by side.
Hot pot at home: the equipment
You need a heat source for the table and a wide pot holding about 4 l. An induction or gas burner keeps the broth boiling. A fondue burner with fuel paste often cannot manage that. Set out a small strainer ladle, chopsticks and a bowl for dipping sauce for each person.
The right ingredients
Broth
The recipe card seasons chicken or vegetable broth with Sichuan pepper, chili and fermented bean paste (doubanjiang). Plan on 2 l of broth for four people and keep hot broth ready for topping up, since some boils away over the evening. For the oily mala broth from Sichuan there is a separate recipe for Sichuan hot pot.
Meat and shrimp
Beef cooks in 10 to 20 seconds as long as the slices are paper-thin. Put the piece in the freezer for 30 minutes, then cut it with a sharp knife into slices of 2 mm. At an Asian grocery store you can buy frozen hot pot rolls of beef or lamb, already sliced. Cut chicken into thin strips and cook it for 2 to 3 minutes until white inside. Take shrimp out as soon as they turn pink.
Vegetables, tofu and noodles
Napa cabbage, shiitake and radish slices tolerate long cooking times. Firm tofu absorbs the broth and tastes best after a quarter of an hour in the pot. Add glass noodles at the end, so they carry the flavor of everything that was in the pot before.
How the evening goes
Bring the broth to a boil on the stove and move it to the tabletop burner. Add mushrooms, cabbage and radish first so the broth gets flavor. Everyone cooks their own meat and shrimp in small amounts and fishes them out with the strainer ladle. Keep the broth at a gentle simmer and skim off the foam now and then. At the end, drink the broth as soup or cook noodles in it.
Dipping sauces
- Sesame dip: Sesame paste stirred smooth with soy sauce, a little sugar and water, typical for Beijing.
- Chongqing oil dip: Sesame oil with chopped garlic, cilantro and scallions. The oil tames the heat of the red broth.
- Sha cha dip: Sha cha sauce with soy sauce and an egg yolk, common in Taiwan and Chaozhou.
You find more mixes under hot pot sauces. The sauces for fondue chinoise work too, since the table routine is the same there.
Common mistakes
- Too much at once: The broth stops boiling, and the meat turns gray and tough.
- Meat too thick: Slices over 3 mm take minutes and turn hard in that time.
- Broth too salty: It reduces over the evening and gets saltier. Season it more mildly at the start.
The Japanese relative with kombu broth and ponzu is called shabu-shabu.
