Kimchi Nabe (Hot Pot)
December being a colder, rainy (or snowy) month makes it the perfect season for a warming kimchi nabe (hot pot) (キムチ鍋). This is a Japanese-Korean dish, incorporating the best of both cuisines. In this hot pot, you can find the both Japanese and Korean ingredients in a kimchi soup base that is deliciously hot and sour.
See Also:
- Yosenabe (Japanese Hot Pot) Recipe
- Korean Army Stew Recipe
- Easy Japanese Recipes
- Easy Korean Recipes
Kimchi (hot pot) nabe is very popular in Japanese restaurants here. At home, one can prepare the hot pot easily with more generous and authentic ingredients. I usually make the soup base the night before to keep in the fridge. The next day, I’ll assemble the hot pot, add the kimchi broth and let your diners do the cooking. Easy, fun, warming and works well during this busy festive season.
Arrange the ingredients attractively in a Japanese donabe or a Korean hot stone bowl (dolsot).
Add kimchi soup base and bring the pot to a simmer over a portable stove.
To make a more filling meal, you can have ramyeon (Korean instant noodles), brown or multigrain rice, shirataki noodles and/or udon. I like to add egg and cheese too.
The messier it looks, the tastier the hot pot ;)
Kimchi Nabe Recipe
Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients from (B) to (D) – they are suggestions and you can pick just some of the ingredients each time you make the hot pot.
Ingredients:
(A) Soup Base
A1:
- 20-25 Korean large anchovies (myulchi) de-gutted
- 20g kombu (dried kelp) wipe with a damp cloth
- 1500 ml water
A2:
- 2 level tbsp guchujang
- 1 tsp gochugaru (chilli flakes) for the heat; to taste
- 2 tbsp kimchi juice
- 1 level tbsp miso
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp soy sauce
(B) Vegetables and Tofu
Essential:
- 4 napa cabbage leaves cut to bite-sized chunks
- 150g kimchi cut to bite-sized lengths
- 100g firm (pressed) tofu cut to 2 cm lengths
- 4 shiitake mushrooms stalks removed; make a star pattern on each mushroom cap
- 2 Japanese scallion (negi) sliced white portion at a slant to 2.5cm length
- 5 stalks garlic chives cut to 4 cm lengths
- 1 green chilli thinly sliced
Optional:
- 100g soya bean sprouts (kongnamul) (soya bean sprouts)
- half carrot thinly sliced to flower shapes
- 100g Japanese shingiku leaves (chrysanthemum greens; substitute with local ‘tang oh’)
- small handful assorted mushrooms such as enoki & hon shimeji ends trimmed
(C) Meat and Seafood Suggestions (choose at least 1)
- 150 grams shabu-shabu pork
- 8 large oysters thaw if using frozen
- 150 grams boneless chicken thigh cut to bite-sized pieces
- 8 cooked scallop (hotate) thaw if using frozen
(D) End Session (choose at least 1)
- 1-2 egg
- 1 packet udon
- cheese slices
- 1 packet ramyeon (Korean instant noodles)
- 1 bowl cooked short-grain rice/multigrain rice
- 100 grams prepared shirataki noodles (ito konyaku) blanched in boiling water for 2 minutes, submerge cooked noodles in cold water bath for a few minutes; drained
Directions:
- Kimchi Soup Base. Soak anchovies, kombu and water (A1) in a soup pot for 20 minutes. Slowly bring to a simmer but not boiling for 20 minutes. Discard kombu and anchovies. Add A2, bring to a boil and season to taste. If you are busy, you can replace (A1) with 2 tsp instant dashi powder as a short-cut.
- Hot Pot Ingredients. Prepare (B), (C) and (D). Arrange each ingredient from (A) and (B) attractively in the pot and any remaining ingredients in a platter.
- Serve. When ready to serve, fill pot with kimchi soup base and enjoy the hot pot, topping up regularly with more soup stock and ingredients from the platter. Towards the end of the meal, add ingredients from (D) to soak up all the broth.