Lẩu, Vietnamese Hot Pot

Hot pot less commonly Chinese fondue or steamboat refers to several East Asian varieties of stew, consisting of a simmering metal pot of stock at the center of the dining table. While the hot pot is kept simmering, ingredients are placed into the pot and are cooked at the table. Typical hot pot dishes include thinly sliced meat, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, wontons, egg dumplings, and seafood. The cooked food is usually eaten with a dipping sauce. In many areas, hot pot meals are often eaten in the winter.

The Chinese hot pot boasts a history of more than 1000 years. While often called "Mongolian hot pot", it is unclear if the dish actually originates in Mongolia. Mongol warriors had been known to cook with their helmets, which they used to boil food, but due to the complexity and specialization of the utensils and the method of eating it, hot pot cooking is much better suited to a sedentary culture. A nomadic household will avoid such highly specialized tools, to save volume and weight during migration. Both the preparation method and the required equipment are unknown in the cuisine of Mongolia of today.

Hot pot cooking seems to have spread to northern China during the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-906). In time, regional variations developed with different ingredients such as seafood. By the Qing Dynasty, the hot pot became popular throughout most of China. Today in many modern homes, particularly in the big cities, the traditional coal-heated steamboat or hot pot has been replaced by electric, gas or induction cooker versions.

Because hot pot styles change so much from region to region, many different ingredients are used.

Cooking method

Frozen meat is sliced deli-thin to prepare it for hot pot cooking. Slicing frozen meat this way causes it to roll up during cooking, and it is often presented as such. Meats used include lamb, beef, chicken, duck, mutton and others. The cooking pot is often sunk into the table and fueled by propane, or alternatively is above the table and fueled by a portable butane gas stove or hot coals. Meat or vegetables are loaded individually into the hot cooking broth by chopsticks, and cooking time is brief. Meat often only takes 15 to 30 seconds to cook.

There are often disagreements between different styles of hot pot enthusiasts. Some like to place items into the hot pot at a relaxed, leisurely pace, enjoying the cooking process, while others prefer to throw everything in at once and wait for the hotpot to return to a boil.

Common ingredients

Basic stock is often made using: Water, Salt, Soup base.

Meats vary, and can include: Thinly sliced beef, pork,chicken, lamb, goat, Fish, Prawns, Scallops, Cockles, Clams, Mussels, Beef balls, Fish balls, Chicken balls, Fish slices, Offal, ear, and other delicacies as Squid, Crab, Lobster, Octopus, Geoduck, Cuttlefish, Sea Cucumber, Sea Asparagus...

Vegetables include and not limited: Bok choy, Choy sum, Napa cabbage, Spinach, Bean sprouts, Green beans, Fat choy, Garland chrysanthemum, Snake beans, Mung bean, Daikon, Shallots...

Varieties of mushrooms, straw mushroom, enoki mushrooms, Shiitake, Chinese black mushrooms, Golden mushrooms, Ginger, Tofu, Tofu skin...

Thinly sliced potatoes, Taro, Tomato, Pumpkin...

Starches include: Niangao, Chinese noodles, Udon...

Condiments: Hoisin sauce, Soy sauce, Vinegar (white or black), Coriander, Garlic, Scallion, Sesame oil, White pepper, Sa cha sauce, Chili, Sesame butter, Pickled tofu, Satay or Peanut butter sauce...

Regional variations

In Vietnam, a hot pot is called lẩu, and the sour soup called canh chua is often cooked in hot pot style (called lẩu canh chua). The generic term for a salted fish hot pot is lẩu mắm.

Canh chua is a sour soup indigenous to the Mekong River region of southern Vietnam. It is typically made with fish from the Mekong River, pineapple, tomatoes (and sometimes also other vegetables such as okra or bạc hà), and bean sprouts, in a tamarind-flavored broth. It is garnished with the lemony-scented herb ngò ôm(Limnophila aromatica), caramelized garlic, and chopped scallions, as well as other herbs, according to the specific variety of canh chua; these other herbs may include rau răm (Vietnamese coriander), ngò gai (long coriander), and rau quế (Thai basil).

The sour taste of the soup comes from tamarind, which is mixed with a small amount of hot water; the mixture is then stirred for a few moments to release all the essence, and the liquid (minus the tamarind seeds and other solids, which are discarded) is then added to the soup.

When made in style of a hot pot, canh chua is called lẩu canh chua.