Chinese Hot Pot Guide (火锅)
The ultimate Chinese hot pot guide that explains the different types of broth, dipping sauces, ingredients and equipment, plus all you need to know to host a successful hot pot party.
Ingredients
Hot pot base
- 1 to 2 hot pot bases spicy, non-spicy, and / or other types you prefer
- 1 thumb ginger , sliced
- 2 to 3 green onions , cut to 4” (10 cm) pieces
- Dried chili peppers (optional, only for spicy pot)
Meat and seafood (choose 3 to 4, 4 oz per person)
- Lamb or mutton shoulder, leg, or any well marbled cut , thinly sliced
- Beef short ribs, ribeye, flank, sirloin, or other marbled cut , thinly sliced
- Pork loin, sirloin, shoulder or pork belly , thinly sliced
- Chicken breast or thigh , thinly sliced
- Fish balls
- Beef balls
- White fish (marinate them Shaoxing wine, salt and cornstarch for a better texture)
- Squid or cuttlefish , cut to bite-size pieces
- Scallops
- Shrimp
- Shrimp cake, fish cake, and fish tofu
Tofu and tofu product (choose 2 to 3)
- Blocks of tofu (firm or extra firm) , sliced
- Yuba sheet , sliced
- Tofu knots
- Tofu sticks
- Deep fried tofu puffs , halved
- Frozen tofu , thawed and sliced
Mushrooms (choose 1 to 2)
- Enoki (golden needle mushrooms) , separated into smaller threads
- Shimeji , separated into smaller bunches
- King oyster mushrooms , sliced
- Shiitake mushrooms , sliced or halved
- Wood ear mushrooms , soak to rehydrate first
- Oyster mushrooms , separated into bite-size pieces
Leafy greens (choose 1 to 3)
- Napa cabbage , sliced
- Baby bok choy , quartered or halved
- Chinese broccoli , Stem peeled
- Yu choy , tough ends trimmed and served whole or halved
- Spinach
- Snow pea shoots
- Watercress
- Chrysanthemum leaves
Other non-leafy vegetables (choose 1 to 3)
- Chinese cauliflower , separated into bite-size pieces
- Winter melon , sliced
- Celtuce , sliced
- Lotus root , sliced
- Bamboo shoot , sliced large bamboo shoot, or smaller long shoots served whole
- Potato or sweet potato , sliced
- Daikon radish or other radishes , sliced
- Squash, kabocha or other types , sliced
- Corn on the cob , cut to 2” (5 cm) long round pieces
Noodles and dumplings (choose 1 to 2)
- Hand-pulled noodles or other fresh noodles
- Packaged dried noodles
- Vermicelli noodles
- Rice noodles
- Shirataki noodles (konnyaku)
- Rice cakes
- Frozen dumplings
Hot pot dipping sauce
- Beijing-style sesame dipping sauce
- Chili oil
- Dumpling dipping sauce
- Chinese sesame paste or natural peanut butter
- Soy sauce
- Shacha sauce
- Sesame oil
- Minced garlic
- Cilantro , chopped
- Green onion , sliced
Instructions
- Add the soup base along with the ginger, green onion, and chili pepper into the hot pot. Add water according to package instructions. Place the hot pot on the portable stove cooktop.
- Place the raw ingredients into serving platters, you can group several ingredients onto one plate. Arrange them around the hot pot.
- Mix a big batch sesame dipping sauce or dumpling dipping sauce. Display the rest of the sauce options close by, in case your guest would like to make their own.
- When the party starts, turn on the stove and wait until the hot pot broth comes to a full boil before adding the ingredients. You should also prepare hot water on the side. If the hot pot broth has reduced to half, add more hot water to the pot. Wait until it comes to a full boil before adding any more ingredients.