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Hotpot Must Haves
18
items I love hotpot and combine the best of my fellow Asian countries and these are a few of my favorites essentials to enjoy this delectable dish that is versatile and easy
Sections
2
Hot Pot Sauce - star of hotpot
Essentials proteins and veggies
Hot Pot Sauce - star of hotpot
The soul and essence to an amazing hotpot meal
If you only buy one sauce for hotpot, this is it. Bull Head is the non-negotiable — savory, slightly sweet, with a depth that no copycat recipe fully captures. This is the sauce that makes people ask what your secret is. My family has had this in the...
Bull Head Sa Cha Sauce 沙茶醬 — The Original Hotpot Dipping Sauce
For the days when you want to understand what's actually in your sauce. Making sa cha from scratch gives you control over the heat level, the sweetness, and the depth — and once you've made it you'll appreciate the jarred version even more. This is t...
Shacha Sauce (Bullhead Sha Cha Copycat) - I Heart Umami
My other two favorite essentials alongside sa cha. This Japanese sesame dipping sauce is creamy, nutty, and completely different from the Chinese sa cha base — it's the sauce for people who want something milder and more aromatic. Perfect for shabu s...
Mizkan Goma Shabu Sesame Dipping Sauce — Japanese Hotpot Essential
If you are going to put egg yolk go for the quality ingredients is a must
Pasture Raised Eggs with Rich Yolks
The Hong Kong version of sa cha — slightly different flavor profile than Bull Head, a little more complex and less sweet. I keep both in my pantry because they do different things. Use Bull Head as your base dipping sauce and Lee Kum Kee when you wan...
Lee Kum Kee Sa Cha Sauce - HK Hotpot
A few drops of sesame oil in your dipping sauce changes everything. This is the finishing touch that makes your sauce taste intentional instead of assembled. Kadoya is the Japanese brand most serious Asian cooks reach for — pure, fragrant, and consis...
Pure Sesame Oil 芝麻油 — Essential Hotpot Finishing Oil
Not all vinegar is created equal and Chinkiang is in a category of its own. Dark, complex, slightly smoky — it cuts through the richness of hotpot broth and dipping sauce in a way nothing else does. Add a splash to your dipping bowl, drizzle over dum...
Gold Plum Chinkiang Vinegar 镇江香醋 — The Best Black Vinegar for Hotpot
Microplane your ginger and garlic for this sauce for bold flavors and smooth texture
Microplane Home Series Fine Cheese Grater
Essentials proteins and veggies
Love the chewiness of potato noodles — there is nothing else like them in hotpot. They're thick, chewy, and they hold their texture in the broth longer than any other noodle. The Sichuan style ones have a slight earthiness that makes them pair perfec...
Sichuan Hotpot Potato Noodles 土豆粉 — Chewy Glass Noodle Essential
Grass carp is the fish that converts people who think they don't like fish in hotpot. The slices are thin enough to cook in seconds but firm enough to hold their shape in the broth — no falling apart, no fishy aftertaste, just clean mild flavor that ...
Crispy Grass Carp Slices 草魚片 — The Hotpot Fish You Didn't Know You Needed
Mushrooms are the soul of a great hotpot — they absorb broth like nothing else and add an umami depth that makes the whole pot taste more complex. I use a mix of shiitake, enoki, and king oyster. Dried shiitake in particular adds a concentrated flavo...
Shiitake & Asian Mushroom Mix 香菇 — Hotpot Mushroom Essentials
Tong hao is the green that serious hotpot people always have at the table. Slightly bitter, slightly herbal, and it cooks in about 30 seconds in the broth. If you can't find it fresh at your Asian grocery store, grow your own — it's surprisingly easy...
Chrysanthemum Greens Seeds 茼蒿 Tong Hao
Baby bok choy is the vegetable that looks the most beautiful in the pot and tastes the best coming out of it. The leaves cook fast, the stems stay slightly crisp, and the whole thing absorbs broth in a way that makes every bite taste like the soup it...
Baby Bok Choy 白菜 — Hotpot Vegetable Essential
The vegetable that makes your hotpot broth sweeter the longer it sits in the pot. Napa cabbage is non-negotiable — it's mild enough to not overpower anything, sturdy enough to hold up in broth, and it naturally sweetens the soup base as it cooks down...
Napa Cabbage 大白菜 — Must Have Hotpot Vegetable
The fattier the cut the more flavor. For hotpot you want paper thin slices of ribeye or wagyu that cook in literally 10 seconds in the broth — swish and eat, that's it. If you can't find pre-sliced at your Asian market, freeze your beef for 30 minute...
Japanese Mandoline Slicer for Hotpot & Shabu
Proteins to add on top of the meats. Fish balls, fish cakes, and fish paste are the hotpot additions that most non-Asian households don't know about and every Asian household considers non-negotiable. They absorb broth beautifully, add a chewy textur...
Asian Fish Balls & Fish Cakes 魚丸 — Hotpot Protein Essentials
Tofu and tofu puffs are doing two completely different jobs at your hotpot table. Firm tofu holds its shape in the broth and absorbs flavor slowly — silky and satisfying. Tofu puffs are little flavor bombs that soak up broth like sponges and deliver ...
Firm Tofu & Tofu Puffs 豆腐 — Essential Hotpot Additions
The fastest cooking green at your hotpot table — spinach is done in 15 seconds flat. It wilts beautifully, soaks up broth, and provides the iron and nutrients that balance out all the meat. I add a big handful at the end of every hotpot session. Simp...
Fresh Spinach 菠菜 — Quick Cook Hotpot Green