As spring settles in and the chill of winter gradually fades, I find myself reminiscing about the cozy meals that warmed up the colder months. One dish, in particular, stands out—a staple in many Japanese households during winter and a personal favorite at my dinner table. If you have lived long enough in Japan, you should have seen that supermarkets stock up on ingredients for this curious dish.
What is it exactly?
Nabe in Japanese means pot (鍋). It is basically a Japanese hot pot where various ingredients are cooked in a broth. There are many types of broths, so mainly the taste of the nabe is determined by the ingredients with which the base broth was made.
Preparation
If you have time and want to give it a try, you can make the base broth from scratch and add the ingredients to it. If you are not that kind of person, you can simply go to any supermarket and buy one of the many prepared nabe broths. Regarding the ingredients, usually the suggestions come on the back of the package. However, you can always be original and put whatever you want.
Nabe is a synonym for a social event
It can be cooked like any other dish on the stove in your kitchen and simply served there. However, many Japanese families decide to put a portable stove in the center of the table, and add ingredients little by little as they eat. In this way, it becomes almost a social-family event that revolves around the nabe.
What’s my favorite nabe?
I want to be honest and admit that, even though I’ve been living in Japan for two years, it wasn’t until recently that I started cooking nabe every week. It is a very convenient dish, since it is made in quantity and you can eat it for two/three days. Besides, it gets better and tastier with each passing day! Of all the ones I’ve tried, the one I liked the most is kimchi nabe (yes, it’s a bit Korean I must say). You can add any ingredients you want, but the ones I usually add are Chinese cabbage, tofu, finely chopped carrots, shitake mushrooms and the meat of your choice (in this case, pork). My goal is to keep discovering new flavors of nabe!
