Beef Shabu Shabu Food

BEEF SHABU-SHABU

Steps:

• Place kombu on the bottom of a shallow 3 1/2-quart enameled cast-iron pot. Place harusame over kombu and top with tofu, cabbage, negi, and enoki and shiitake mushrooms, arranging each in a separate bunch in the pot. Add 8 cups of water and season with salt.
• Cover pot and bring to a boil over high heat on a portable burner set on a dining table. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, arrange meat, spinach, and sesame sauce on a serving platter. Uncover pot and add some of the meat slices, arranging in a single layer over other ingredients. Poach until rare or medium rare, 15 to 30 seconds. Dip into sesame sauce before eating. Add spinach and cook for 1 minute before eating. Continue cooking meat and spinach, adding more water as needed. Other ingredients in pot may also be eaten; dip in sesame sauce before eating.

SHABU-SHABU HOTPOT

Steps:

• Cut the konbu into 2-3 short pieces and place in a pot with 1L (2.1pt) water. Soak for 30 minutes.
• Bring the water with konbu to a boil over high heat. As soon as small bubbles start rising, remove the konbu (note 7). The broth is ready for Shabu-shabu.
• Cut Chinese cabbage leaves crosswise into 4cm (1½") long pieces. If the leaves are very wide, cut the leaves vertically in half first.
• Cut shallots diagonally into 10cm long pieces. Cut shiitake mushrooms in half diagonally (note 2). If chrysanthemum leaves are long, cut them into two.
• Rinse shirataki and spread the bunch of strands on the cutting board, then cut into two or three portions so that each noodle is short (easier to pick them up).
• Plate the vegetables and beef slices on a large serving plate, clustering each ingredient together (see the photo in the post).
• Finely grate roasted sesame seeds in a mortar & pestle until they become slightly wet (oil from sesame seeds).
• Add the remaining Sesame Sauce ingredients to the mortar. Mix the sauce mixture well so that there are no lumps of miso paste. Leave it until required.
• In the centre of the dining table, place the broth in a pot on a portable cooktop with a ladle and a bowl of water next to it.
• Place the plate of meat and vegetables near the cooktop and two medium-sized bowls per diner with Sesame Sauce and Ponzu in each bowl.
• Bring the broth to a boil.
• Pick a slice of beef with chopsticks and shake a few times in the boiling water (about 10 seconds or so) to cook the meat. Then, dip the meat in the sauce of your choice and eat.
• Cook all the meat first so that you will have a better broth to cook the vegetables in.
• Add a small amount of vegetables of your choice to the broth and cook until tender. Dip the meat in one of the sauces to eat.
• After cooking beef slices, scum will surface. Use the ladle to remove the scum (try not to take too much broth with it) and wash it off in the bowl of water. Repeat this throughout the cooking as you see scum surfacing.

SHABU SHABU

Steps:

• Put the water in a pan and add the dried seaweed. Simmer over a medium heat for about 10 minutes. Pull out the kombu when the water starts to boil. To enhance the flavour you can add some dried bonito flakes 5 minutes before taking the kombu out. It is important not to let the water and kombu boil. Strain the broth, discarding the kombu and bonito flakes.
• Place the beef between 2 sheets of cling film and bash with the back of a knife until it is very thin. Slice the beef into thin strips and place on a serving plate.
• Bring the broth to the boil. Add the shiitake mushrooms, followed by the enoki mushrooms, then the tofu and finally the watercress. Serve this pan of boiling broth at the table immediately and get your guests to cook their beef by dipping it in the broth with chopsticks.
• Give each guest a bowl of rice and a bowl for their broth, and a small dish of the ponzu dipping sauce. Don't forget the sake or Japanese beer.

SHABU SHABU

Steps:

• Arrange beef on a platter; spinach, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, cabbage, and onions on another platter; and tofu on a third platter or with the vegetables.
• Combine soy sauce, lemon juice, and 1/2 cup chicken broth in a bowl; portion dipping sauce into 6 very small bowls.
• Pour remaining broth into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Transfer hot broth to a fondue pot.
• Serve with chopsticks or forks. Individuals cook their own portions of meat, vegetables, and tofu in the boiling broth, then dip in dipping sauce and eat.

SHABU SHABU WITH DIPPING SAUCES

Steps:

• Arrange the meat attractively on a round platter, so that each slice can be easily picked up with chopsticks or a fondue fork. Arrange vegetables on a second platter.
• Fill a hot pot or nabe pot 2/3 full of dashi set on a burner on the table. Each diner picks up a piece of meat from the serving platter and swishes it around in the simmering broth until the red meat becomes pink, or cooked to the degree desired. Diners may alternate between meat and vegetables. The tofu breaks easily, so be careful when adding it to the pot. Diners eat from the pot, dipping the food into the dipping sauces which are placed in individual cups at each person's place.
• Combine the water and kelp in a large pot. Bring the water to a boil, removing the kelp just before water boils since it emits a strong odor. If the fleshiest part of the kelp is still tough, return it to the water for a few more minutes, along with a little cold water. (Soft kelp means sufficient flavor has been extracted.) Remove the kelp and bring stock to a full boil.
• Add 1/4 cup cold water to bring the temperature down quickly and add the bonito flakes. Bring to a boil, and then immediately remove from the heat. (If bonito flakes boil too long, the stock becomes bitter.) Allow the flakes to settle to the bottom of the pan, then filter the stock through cheesecloth. Yield: About 2 quarts
• Combine the dashi, soy sauce, and mirin in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let boil for a few minutes to reduce by 1/3, then remove from heat and cool. Stir in vinegar to taste. Pour sauce into individual cups.
• Toast the sesame seeds in a heavy pan until lightly browned. Transfer warm seeds to a mortar and grind to a paste, or whirl in a blender. Add the dashi, soy sauce, mirin, sugar and sake, and mix well, using a spatula to blend and smooth the sauce. Add cayenne to taste. Pour sauce into individual cups.

SHABU SHABU

Steps:

• Place in a medium-sized pot a couple of slices of kombu (kelp) and cover with cold water.
• Gently bring the water to a boil and remove the kombu just before it starts to boil.
• Let the water boil very gently.
• Take one of the items, swish it around in the hot water for a few seconds (for beef) to a few minutes (for vegetables).
• Combine 2 parts soy sauce with 1 part lemon juice for dipping sauce.
• Serve with hot steamed rice.