7/31/2023 0 Comments Whats a hot pot restaurant![]() In the centuries that witnessed the growth of the Song Dynasty, hot pot moved - and morphed - further south into China, with each successive region adapting it to their local ingredients and tastes. However, the Chinese took a little bit of the good with the bad and incorporated this style of eating, modifying it over the years for themselves. Heck, they even built the Great Wall to keep them out, which despite its splendour did not succeed. ![]() Mongol horseman knew how to pack light.Ĭhina resisted the Mongols. Legend has it that the Mongols used their helmets as vessels to simmer broth over open fires, and cooked chunks of meat in that broth.Īnd their shields? They were used as a sort of frying pan to sear meat, of course. Hot pot's roots can be found in the dining practices of Mongolian horsemen who rode across the steppe and into northern China. The concept of Chinese Hot pot ( huǒ guō) is believed to date back more than 1,000 years to the time of the Jin Dynasty. So what are the origins of Chinese hot pot and what’s the best to enjoy it? Chinese hot pot: a brief history It’s a cultural one - and a social one, too. However, whether you go with a group, or even by yourself, hot pot in China is so much more than just a culinary experience. The concept of it is simple - simmering meat, vegetables, and noodles in spicy (or plain) broth fondue in the centre of the table. Another “it takes a village” hot pot experience in Kaili, Guizhou.Ĭhinese hot pot. Because in the city of Urumqi that night, it almost did. You might even say that for our first Chinese hot pot experience, it took a village. Others still, undeterred, interrupted their own tables to deliver from the fresh bar the critical components we’d missed. Inspired by our waitress, some would motion their recommendations as to other ingredients we ought to try. For as she brought us along to a point of hot pot graduation - from neophytes to mere novices - we received nods of approval, even hearty double thumbs-up, from the other diners across the length of the restaurant. So participation didn’t end with the interaction between our hot pot shepherd and us. Or, she would bring to us new ingredients from the bar that she felt were essential either for cooking or creating new dipping sauces.Ĭhinese society and culture values harmony. Any hint of violation of hot pot rules - for example, frying the tofu on the tableside pan instead of simmering it in the broth, she was there with a gentle nudge away from the transgression. Each time she sensed our struggle she paid us a visit to make things right. To ensure we had the perfect hot pot experience, our waitress - nay, our shepherd - regularly monitored our table, from afar and up close. Guided through the proper hot pot experience in Urumqi, Xinjiang. She strongly “suggested” what sorts of meats and vegetables we ought to select to cook in our bubbling broth. ![]() Then, she took us by the hands - quite literally - to the fresh display case of sliced meat, chopped vegetables, and dumplings. ![]() She brought out a split broth pot, a pan for searing, a gas stove, and two small plates. Fortunately, she took control, aided by her few words of English (against our even fewer words of Mandarin Chinese). We had no idea what we were doing in regards to Chinese hot pot - the protocol, the choices, the process. We’d found the local Chinese hot pot joint.įrom the moment we walked in the door, our waitress could sense that we were out of our element. We eventually spotted a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant whose windows were filled with steam and whose seats were filled with locals actively digging in, enjoying their eating experience. Looking for a local place to eat, we wandered around a few back streets where English was nowhere to be heard. We were in Urumqi in China’s westernmost province of Xinjiang, having just crossed over the border from Kyrgyzstan. Before I take you on a journey of hot pot history, and teach you how to enjoy this hands-on way to eat, I’ll first tell you the story of our very first Chinese hot pot experience.
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