What I recr-eat-ed: Hot pot

 Originally written January, 2013

Where and what

Restaurant: Hangawi

Location: 12 East 32nd Street, New York, NY 10016

Dish: Vegetable and tofu hot pot with kimchi

Memories

Eating this dish my mind wanders to studying abroad in Hong Kong 2011. Huddled around a big boiling pot with 30 other people at a fish farm surrounded by banana trees. This time it's just me, alone, sitting on a pillow without any shoes on, ears cold, heart and belly warm.

What is inside the pot

broth
mini dumplings
mushrooms
bok choy
tofu
scallions

All served to me boiling and piping hot in a clay.. or was it cast iron?... pot

This dish came with a side dish of kimchi and rice. If you have a <a href="http://<a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Aroma-Housewares-ARC-914SBD-Cool-Touch-Stainless/dp/B007WQ9YNO/ref=sr_1_4?crid=FM8E1U9U5ZP8&keywords=rice+cooker&qid=1673454120&sprefix=rice+cooker%252Caps%252C174&sr=8-4&_encoding=UTF8&tag=indigenousn02-20&linkCode=ur2&linkId=f0efbd3b5ef3ba47a2203d3f4b5ebd7b&camp=1789&creative=9325">Rice Cookerrice cooker, get it out. If you do not. I love Aroma Housewares brand.

My recreation

Veggie and tofu hot pot without the kimchi (and without a hot pot-pot).

My ingredients:
mushroom medley (a mixture of mushrooms I found at Whole Foods)
bok Choy
kale
yams
scallions
red onion
crushed garlic
sunflower seeds
kelp

I chose to seasoned the above with a little pepper and Chinese 5 Spice Powder; which was staring at me from my shelf, and while I know it is recommended for pork, this was my own recreation, so why not?

I didn't add salt because I seeped the water and spices in kelp (from my Motherland, Maine). At first taste I thought maybe it could have used some added salt. But by the end, I was sompletely satisfied.

Using a crock pot I put all ingredients inside with the tofu on top, filled it with water and spices so that it was about covered in liquid (your choice how much broth you want) and placed it on high for 4 hours.

The result

A hot pot gone crock pot. This dish cleared my nose, and was a nice use of the tofu I bought. A wonderful choice of protein that is overall inexpensive. Imagine a warm winter soup, glistening like snow, with cubes of white tofu and colorful vegetables bobbing up from a sea of lightly salted broth.

The place

This restaurant is recommended for sit-down business lunch and dinners. Make sure the business deal is a lenghty one as this is no fast cash meal.