Guide to Nabemono: 8 Types of Japanese Hot Pot Dishes

Nabemono, called nabe for short, is a category of Japanese hot pot dishes traditionally cooked at the dinner table in a donabe (clay pot). The word nabemono is a compound of nabe, which translates to “cooking pot" and mono, meaning "thing.” Indeed, a nabe can contain almost anything. In Japan, nabemono is a winter comfort food staple. It's usually made by preparing a simple dashi stock and simmering a mix of vegetables and meat or seafood until just cooked.

To make nabemono at home, you'll need a few cooking tools and utensils:

1. 1. A donabe: This Japanese clay pot is glazed on the outside only, so you'll need to season it before use. If you don't have a donabe, you can use a Dutch oven.
2. 2. Portable burner: Portable burners, common in Japan, can be used to make nabemono at the dinner table with your family and friends. A portable burner is a must for hot pot dishes that require dunking ingredients—such as shabu-shabu and sukiyaki—but you can make other types of nabemono on a regular stove in the kitchen.
3. 3. Skimmer: For a clear broth, use a skimmer or slotted spoon to remove the scum as it floats to the top of the broth.
4. 4. Cooking chopsticks: These extra-long chopsticks are great for fishing ingredients out of the depths of the donabe.

You can make Nabemono with an endless variety of vegetables and proteins. Some of the best-known combinations of ingredients and styles of nabemono include:

1. 1. Shabu-shabu: Shabu-shabu, which translates to "swish swish," is an interactive hot pot dish that allows everyone at the table to swirl thin slices of beef and other ingredients in a simple dashi broth. Shabu-shabu is typically served with two dipping sauces: ponzu and sesame sauce.
2. 2. Sukiyaki: One of the oldest and most famous types of nabemono, sukiyaki is often made in a cast iron pan instead of a donabe and features thin slices of beef cooked in sweetened soy sauce.
3. 3. Yudofu: This simple vegetarian hot pot dish features tofu cooked in a kombu broth.
4. 4. Oden: Cooked in a dashi soup base, oden incorporates daikon radish, boiled eggs, and konjac (an herb with an edible corm).
5. 5. Chankonabe: Chankonabe means “sumo wrestlers' stew" and features chicken broth and udon noodles with various proteins, such as meatballs, chicken, and shrimp.
6. 6. Mizutaki: This is a chicken and vegetable nabe from the Kyūshū region of Japan.
7. 7. Motsunabe: This nabe from Fukuoka Prefecture features offal, such as tripe.
8. 8. Yosenabe: Yose means "everything,” and so this nabe typically features a combination of different types of meat, seafood, and vegetables, along with tofu and egg. It's sometimes made with a miso soup base instead of dashi.

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