Buta-Shabu (Pork Shabu-Shabu Or Hot Pot)

Photo: Bebe Love Okazu

Ingredients

Buta-Shabu (Pork Shabu-Shabu)

2 packages of pork shabu-shabu meat

1 bunch of spinach

1/4 nappa cabbage, rough chopped

1 block of soft tofu, cubed

1 package ito-konyaku noodles

1/2 Shiitake mushrooms, sliced in

Enoki mushrooms, ends removed

Shungiku

1 piece konbu dashi

Water

Bottled ponzu sauce

garnish for ponzu dipping sauce:

3 grated carrots

1/2 grated Japanese daikon

3 stalks green onions, chopped

Preparation

Pour water into nabe about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way full. Add a piece (or two) of konbu dashi to the water and allow it to soak. After you’ve prepared all of the ingredients, simmer water on medium heat.

Grate daikon and carrots separately and place each in serving bowls.

Remove stalks from shiitake and slice. Cut bottom of enoki mushrooms. Rinse ito-konyaku and cut noodles into shorter 6-inch pieces. Cube tofu, chop cabbage. Trim spinach if you like. We like to buy Japanese or Korean spinach with the pink roots attached. We trim off the stringy roots but save the pink portion of the root because this part tastes pretty good when prepared shabu-shabu style. Set aside.

Once the water in the nabe is hot enough, add pork one slice at a time. Once it is cooked, remove pork from the nabe and set aside in a dish. Skim all of the fat and residue from the nabe so that your broth is clear of debris.

Add tofu, cabbage, konyaku, nappa, and mushrooms. Allow this to cook for about 4 minutes. Add in the spinach, shungiku and cooked pork. Transfer the nabe to a portable tabletop stove and dig in!

Enjoy shabu-shabu by dipping the pork and vegetables into a ponzu dipping sauce garnished with grated carrots, daikon and green onions. Add a dash of togarashi for a little spice. This takes shabu-shabu to a new level of flavor.