Do you know a recipe in Japanese cuisine that consists of dipping meats and foods to cook in a pot and sauce? In this article, we will talk about Shabu-shabu, a dish that originated in China but was adopted and adapted by the Japanese.
The shabu-shabu (しゃぶしゃぶ) Japanese is made in a specific pot. The ingredients are brought to the table raw and cooked during the meal. Basically, the dish consists of thin slices of meat and fresh vegetables cooked together. The dish was introduced in Japan after the Second World War. It became popular among both soldiers and the Chinese who came to Japan.
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Information about shabu shabu
The name shabu shabu was created by a restaurant owner named Suehiro, in Osaka. He saw one of his employees washing a towel using a basin. Thus, he associated this with the movement of dipping the meat in hot water, naming the dish shabu shabu because of the onomatopoeia of the water splashing.
The pot used to prepare it has a chimney. This way, the heat that escapes does not burn the hand of the person cooking the meat. Various types of meat and vegetables can be used, varying from region to region.
You can use various ingredients in Shabu Shabu such as pork, beef, and chicken, onions, Chinese cabbage, mushrooms, mizuna (mustard), tofu, slices of mochi, kuzukiri (noodles) that are cooked and dipped in a variety of sauces.
There are other concepts and ways to prepare food in Japan through cooking in sauces like the famous Nabe and even Sukiyaki, but each has its differences that we will also see at the end of this article. Now, without further ado, let’s go to the Shabu Shabu recipe.
RECIPE – How to prepare Shabu shabu
As mentioned, there are many variations of this dish, which can be changed and modified depending on the region and personal taste. We will teach one of these variations.
Ingredients:
(Broth and cooked items)
⦁ 2 liters of water;
⦁ 2 dried sardines (dashiko);
⦁ 500 g of tofu;
⦁ 5 leaves of Swiss chard;
⦁ 10 stalks of green onion;
⦁ 7 whole shiitake mushrooms;
⦁ 100 g of bean sprouts (moyashi);
⦁ 300 g of ribeye in slices;
⦁ 1 packet of ready-made fish broth (hondashi);
⦁ 200 g of shimeji mushrooms;
⦁ 10 stalks of watercress;
⦁ 1 sheet of kombu seaweed;
Preparation method for SHABU SHABU
1. Wash the vegetables, mushrooms, and sprouts;
2. Cut the Swiss chard leaves, green onion stalks, and tofu into small square pieces;
3. Cut the stems of the shiitake mushrooms;
4. The watercress should be cut into small strips;
5. Alternate the vegetables, mushrooms, sprouts, and tofu on a plate;
6. For the broth, put water in a pot with half a sheet of kombu.
7. Add a packet of hondashi and 2 dried sardines;
8. With the ingredients in the water, start cooking;
9. When boiling, lower the heat a little until the broth becomes stronger;
10. Remove and separate the broth, keeping it on high heat like a fondue.
Dipping sauce for SHABU SHABU
Ingredients:
⦁ 100 ml of sake;
⦁ 50 ml of soy sauce;
⦁ 50 ml of rice vinegar;
⦁ 4 tablespoons of sugar;
⦁ 200 g of soybean paste;
⦁ 1 teaspoon of Ajiomoto;
⦁ 100 ml of the fish broth from the shabu shabu;
Preparation method:
1. Mix all the ingredients in a container;
2. Combine with the warm fish broth from the shabu shabu until it has a pasty appearance;
3. Divide the sauce into bowls for guests to use to season the meat.
How to serve Shabu shabu
The fish broth should be placed in a fondue pot, kept at a high temperature to cook the meat. Each person should take the item they prefer using their own chopsticks, dipping the chosen ingredient in the broth. Remove it when you consider it ready.
The tofu just needs to be waited for to hydrate and heat, and it can be removed. Each person should receive a dipping sauce container and rice to accompany. After eating all the food, they usually mix the remaining soup with rice, ramen, or udon; this action is called Shime.
If you prefer to visit a Shabu Shabu restaurant, your job will be much easier. You will be served with a large pot that can sometimes be divided into two. You choose the sauces and the meats and vegetables you prefer and dip them for a short time.
You should remove the meat with chopsticks and dip it in another sauce before finally consuming the food. Not all vegetables or meats cooked in the pot need to be dipped in the second sauce. Sometimes it is good to have a basic knowledge of which sauce to choose.
What is the difference between Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki?
Both Nabe and Shabu Shabu are thin slices of meat and vegetables cooking in a pot, so what is the difference between Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki? Sukiyaki is a dish of Japanese origin, and unlike shabu shabu, the meat is cooked completely, sometimes even grilled before being placed in the sauce.
Both can be dipped in sauce, but the main difference is that Sukiyaki is usually cooked in a skillet style and offers a rich flavor, seasoned with soy sauce and sugar, while shabu shabu is a hot pot full of sauce and resembles more of a soup.
The similarities may be greater or lesser depending on how the two recipes are prepared. It is worth noting that both recipes have numerous versions from different regions. The best way to differentiate the two recipes is that one was entirely made in Japan while the other was adapted from Chinese cuisine.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SHABU SHABU AND NABE?
The word Nabe literally means pot, so both Sukiyaki and Shabu Shabu fall into the category of foods that are cooked in a pot like Oden, motsunabe, yodofu, yosenabe, chankonabe, and others.
Nabe usually refers to any dish cooked in a pot, but unlike Shabu Shabu, the term Nabe can be a simple traditional meal where we put rice, noodles, gyoza, moyashi, meat, and other vegetables in the pot.
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