Fish One-Pot

Photo: flickr user 独自又何妨

Ingredients

2 Dried chile peppers - (to 3)

1 Four-inch length of daikon

6 Napa cabbage leaves

6 Dried gourd strips - (4" long) softened in

Boiling water

2 bns Enoki mushrooms

2 Tofu blocks cut into chunks

1 bn Edible chrysanthemum leaves washed, trimmed

1 Carrot peeled, and

cut into rounds (or decorative stamps)

1 bn Watercress washed

pound Snow peas blanched, and

halved diagonally

pound Firm white fish fillets with skin cut 2" pieces

(such as snapper or bream)

1 Four-inch square giant kelp (konbu) wiped with

a damp towel to clean

6 Scallions, finely chopped for garnish

Ponzu Sauce For Dipping see * Note

Preparation

Chop the tops off the chile peppers and shake out the seeds. Peel the daikon radish, and puncture one end deeply in several places with an ice pick or chopstick. Force the peppers into the holes, then set aside for 5 minutes to let the chiles soften.

Grate the stuffed daikon over a bamboo mat or cheesecloth, and squeeze out some of the moisture. Set aside for garnish.

Wash and parboil the cabbage leaves in a large pot of water for 2 to 4 minutes, or until tender. Drain, salt lightly and pat dry. Lay the leaves on a bamboo mat and roll to form a tight cylinder. Press for a few minutes, then unwrap and cut into 1 1/2-inch rounds. Refrigerate until ready to arrange the platter.

Cut off the root cluster of the mushrooms. Separate each bunch into thirds and tie each bundle with a gourd strip. Parboil the carrots briefly and plunge into cold water. Drain and set aside.

Arrange all of the ingredients on a large platter, decoratively placing the fish and other ingredients, and balancing the color.

Place the kelp in a donabe casserole and fill 2/3 full of water. Bring just to the boiling point and remove the kelp. Begin by placing some of the fish into the pot.

After 2 or 3 minutes, place some of each remaining ingredient in pot. When ingredients are cooked, diners should remove them with chopsticks and dip them into Ponzu Sauce and daikon. Season to taste with chopped scallions and Daikon-Pepper garnishes. Keep adding and cooking remaining ingredients.

When all of the fish and vegetables are eaten, diners can drink the remaining broth.

This recipe yields 6 servings.