Sukiyaki: A Sweet and Savory Japanese Beef Hot Pot
Sukiyaki: A Sweet and Savory Japanese Beef Hot Pot
#Sukiyaki #JapaneseBeefHotPot #EasySukiyaki #Nabemono #HomeCooking #ParkShinHyeRecipe
Sukiyaki is a classic Japanese hot pot dish where thinly sliced beef is simmered with ingredients like onions, cabbage, and mushrooms in a sweet and savory broth called ‘tare’. The beauty of sukiyaki lies in its interactive cooking process; you continuously add more broth and sauce as you grill the ingredients. For an extra layer of richness, dip the cooked beef and vegetables into a raw egg yolk mixture. This recipe is wonderfully simple to make at home, perfect for a hearty and healthy beef meal. Inspired by Park Shin-hye’s simplified version using soy sauce on the TV show ‘Three Meals a Day’, this recipe guarantees a delicious experience, especially when dipped into the creamy egg yolk sauce. Enjoy the delightful harmony of sweet, savory, and rich flavors!
Main Ingredients- 300g thinly sliced beef for Sukiyaki (shabu-shabu cut also works well!)
- 1 onion
- 1/5 head of napa cabbage
- Assorted vegetables and mushrooms of your choice (e.g., shiitake mushrooms, bok choy, bean sprouts)
- 2 bowls of warm cooked rice
- 2 egg yolks
Sukiyaki Sauce (Tare) Ingredients- 2 cups water or dashi stock (you can use fish stock, kelp stock, or even a simple homemade broth)
- 2 cups mentsuyu (Japanese dipping sauce; can substitute with soy sauce if unavailable)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons sake or mirin (sweet rice wine)
- 2 cups water or dashi stock (you can use fish stock, kelp stock, or even a simple homemade broth)
- 2 cups mentsuyu (Japanese dipping sauce; can substitute with soy sauce if unavailable)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons sake or mirin (sweet rice wine)
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
First, let’s prepare the delicious sukiyaki sauce (tare). While you can use commercial dashi stock or seafood broth, you can also make a flavorful broth at home using ingredients like crab shells, shrimp heads and shells, scallion roots, cabbage cores, and dried pollack heads for a deep umami flavor. Once your clear broth is ready, proceed to the next step.
Step 2
Now, let’s add flavor to the prepared broth. The easiest way is to use mentsuyu, a pre-made Japanese dipping sauce. If you don’t have mentsuyu, regular soy sauce will work as a substitute. Combine 2 cups of mentsuyu (or soy sauce), 2 tablespoons of sake or mirin, and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Mix well until everything is incorporated. This creates your delicious sukiyaki sauce. Feel free to adjust the seasoning to your taste.
Step 3
Prepare the essential vegetables for sukiyaki: napa cabbage and onion. Using plenty of napa cabbage will enhance the sweetness and flavor. Onions, when cooked, become wonderfully sweet and pair perfectly with the beef. Feel free to add other vegetables and mushrooms you have on hand, such as shiitake, oyster, or enoki mushrooms, bok choy, or bean sprouts, for a richer sukiyaki experience. You can also add glass noodles, konjac noodles, or tofu if you like.
Step 4
For the beef, use thinly sliced cuts suitable for sukiyaki or shabu-shabu. Thinly sliced beef absorbs the sauce beautifully and cooks quickly, making it easy to enjoy.
Step 5
Let’s make the dipping sauce for the sukiyaki. In a small bowl, combine 2 egg yolks with a small amount of the prepared sukiyaki sauce (tare). This creates a wonderfully creamy, savory, and slightly sweet dip that complements the dish perfectly.
Step 6
Now, let’s assemble and cook the sukiyaki right at the table! Start by arranging the prepared onion and cabbage attractively in a heated pan or pot. Their natural sweetness will infuse the dish as they cook.
Step 7
Pour about 2 tablespoons of the sukiyaki sauce (tare) over the vegetables. The sauce will simmer and reduce, flavoring the vegetables and providing seasoning for the beef as it cooks. If the dish seems too bland, don’t hesitate to add more sauce during cooking.
Step 8
Next, arrange the thinly sliced beef over the vegetables. As the beef cooks, it will simmer in the sauce along with the vegetables, creating a delicious and visually appealing sukiyaki. Cooking over medium heat rather than high heat will help bring out the natural flavors of the ingredients.
Step 9
Dip the perfectly cooked beef and vegetables into the egg yolk mixture. The creamy richness of the egg yolk combined with the sweet and savory sukiyaki sauce creates an exquisite taste experience that fills your mouth with delight. If you’re a fan of egg yolks, you can also dip the ingredients directly into a plain egg yolk without the sauce for a different, yet equally delicious, flavor. The egg yolk helps to mellow the intensity of the sukiyaki sauce, making it even more palatable.
Step 10
As you continue to cook and enjoy the sukiyaki, feel free to add more broth sauce (tare) a little at a time to keep the ingredients simmering and flavorful. At the end, you can even add cooked rice to the remaining sauce and simmer it into a delicious porridge, enjoying two wonderful meals in one!
