15-Minute Salmon Nabe (Hot Pot)
This 15-minute salmon nabe (Japanese salmon hot pot) was my simple but pampering meal for one. I made it on Friday, where I ended my WFH slightly early for the week. Such a meal is my way of indulging myself before the start of the weekend, by way of an affordable izakaya-at-home. This simple hot pot had fresh salmon chunks, mushrooms and napa cabbage. You can serve it with multigrain rice, or cook some chewy udon for a one-dish meal. Since I am having a few drinks, I skipped the carbs and enjoyed it with some sake (liquid carb :P)
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As a luxurious touch, I garnished the dish with my favourite salmon roe :)~~ These days, I enjoyed relaxing and staying home a lot more, and a nice & quick home-cooked meal definitely contribute to that.
INGREDIENTS & STEP-BY-STEP (15-Minute Salmon Nabe)
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FRESH SALMON
Drizzle sake (or any rice wine) over fresh salmon fillet (cut into chunks) and season with a tiny sprinkle of salt. Let the salmon marinate for 5 minutes. This will remove any strong or fishy smell.
2. Easy nabe soup broth
Make a quick nabe broth. I used a combination of dashi soup broth (by using an instant dashi soup pack) and then seasoning the soup with ramen paitan concentrate for a slightly thicker & cloudy soup base. You can also buy ready-to-cook hot pot soup pack from the supermarkets, but I like to make my own soup broth to save money. This soup broth is enough for two servings and you can keep the leftover soup in the fridge for a few days.
3. Hot pot ingredients (veggies and mushrooms)
Line a fitting and shallow casserole with napa cabbage, followed by mushrooms, carrots and Japanese scallions. I’m using a smallish 300ml casserole, though I think 500ml will be slightly more ideal to accommodate more ingredients for one person.
4. Cook the salmon nabe
Ladle the soup broth to the casserole. Once the soup starts to boil, Add the salmon, cover with lid and simmer for a few short minutes until the salmon is just cooked.
5. Garnish and serve.
Garnish with salmon fish roe (ikura), chopped long green onions (konegi) and lettuce. Serve with a saucer of ponzu sauce for dipping at the side.
15-Minute Salmon Nabe Recipe
This is a simple salmon nabe (hot pot) recipe for one, but you can increase the ingredients & casserole size accordingly to feed more persons.
To serve and cook this in the casserole directly, I recommend a Japanese-style shallow claypot with a capacity of about 500ml for one person.
You can replace the hot pot broth in step 2 with any ready-to-cook hot pot soup packet from the supermarket.
Check out the ingredients and step-by-step photos on the previous page.
Ingredients:
- 75g salmon fillet bones & scales removed; cut into chunks
- 1/2 tbsp cooking sake
- light sprinkle of salt to taste
- 400ml dashi soup see cooking note below
- 1-2 tbsp pork/chicken ramen paitan concentrate optional; to taste; see note below
- 50g napa cabbage cut to large pieces
- a handful hon shimeji mushrooms ends trimmed
- 1 large shiitake mushroom make a decorative cross cut on mushroom cap
- a small bundle of enoki mushrooms ends trimmed
- 1 Japanese scallion (negi) bottom white portion; sliced diagonally to smaller sections
Serving Suggestions
- 1 tbsp salmon roe (ikura)
- 1 tbsp Japanese long green onion (konnegi) chopped
- saucer of ponzu sauce & chopped green onions
Directions:
- Marinate the salmon. Spread out the salmon on a plate. Drizzle sake and sprinkle a bit of salt over the salmon. Set aside for 5 minutes.
- Make soup base. Bring water and dashi soup pouch to a boil for 3 minutes. Discard soup pouch and season the soup stock to taste with paitan soup concentrate.
- Arrange the casserole. Line the base of a shallow claypot with napa cabbage. Then top it with mushrooms, carrots and scallions. Pour the soup base into the casserole. Keep the the leftover broth in the fridge. Bring to a boil.
- Add salmon once the soup starts to boil and cover with lid. Simmer for about 3 minutes, or until salmon is cooked.
- Garnish and serve. Add lettuce immediately while the soup is hot. Garnish with salmon roe & chopped green onions. Serve with a side saucer of ponzu sauce. You can enjoy this salmon nabe on its own, with rice, or add some udon at step 4 to serve as a one-dish meal.
Cooking Note(s):
- Add 750ml water to a boil. Add instant dashi soup pouch. Boil for 3-5 minutes (according to package instructions) and discard the soup pouch. This is the brand of instant dashi soup pack I am using. You can use any favourite brand from Japanese supermarkets. You can also use instant dashi powder (to taste) or any preferred soup base.
- The ramen paitan concentrate is an optional ingredient. I am using the Ebara brand which can be found at Donki, NTUC & Sheng Siong. It is a useful ingredient for ramen and soup dishes! It makes the soup creamier and cloudier, which makes it suitable for hot pot.