Fall into Autumn Bliss with Our Sukiyaki Recipe!

Embrace the cozy flavors of fall with our Sukiyaki recipe, a warm and hearty Japanese hot pot. Dive into a savory blend of thinly sliced beef, vegetables, and tofu simmered in a flavorful soy-based broth. Experience the comfort of autumn with this soul-warming dish, perfect for chilly evenings.

PREP TIMES:

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

For the Kombu Dashi (for diluting the cooking sauce; as needed)

• 2 cups water
• 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (2 x 2 inches, 5 x 5 cm; 5 g per piece)

For the Sauce (yields roughly 1⅓ cups)

• ½ cup sake
• ½ cup mirin
• 3 Tbsp sugar
• ½ cup soy sauce

For the Sukiyaki

• 4 leaves napa cabbage (12 oz, 340 g)
• ¼ bunch shungiku (chrysanthemum greens) (3.5 oz, 100 g)
• 1 Tokyo negi (naga negi; long green onion) (white part only; or 1 leek/4 green onions)
• 6 inches gobo (burdock root) (1.6 oz, 45 g)
• ½ onion (3.5 oz, 100 g)
• ½ package enoki mushrooms (1.75 oz, 50 g; skip or use other mushrooms)
• ½ package maitake mushrooms (1.75 oz, 50 g; skip or use other mushrooms)
• 2 shiitake mushrooms (1.75 oz, 50 g; skip or use other mushrooms)
• ½ package broiled tofu (yaki dofu) (one package is 9 oz, 255 g; or use medium-firm (momen) tofu)
• 1½ inches carrot (optional, for decoration and color)
• ½ package shirataki noodles (3.5 oz, 100 g; or cellophane/yam noodles)
• ½ lb thinly sliced beef (chuck or ribeye) (or slice your own meat; skip for vegan/vegetarian and use more tofu, mushrooms, and vegetables)
• 1 Tbsp neutral oil (or 1 small piece of suet (raw beef fat))

For Serving

• 2 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) (optional, for dipping; for safety, buy pasteurized eggs or make sous vide eggs; skip for vegan)

For the Shime Finishing Course

• 1 serving udon noodles (cooked and drained)

Directions

• Gather all the dashi and sauce ingredients. Tip: You‘ll use the dashi and sauce to adjust the seasoning of the broth as you cook. This recipe makes more dashi than you need for this dish and you‘ll likely have leftovers.
• To make the cold brew Kombu Dashi, put 2 cups water and 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) in a measuring cup or pitcher. Set it aside to steep for a minimum of 30 minutes, or make it ahead up to overnight.
• To make the sukiyaki sauce, combine ½ cup sake and ½ cup mirin in a small saucepan. Bring it to a boil and reduce the heat to simmer and let the alcohol evaporate for a minute or so.
• Add 3 Tbsp sugar and ½ cup soy sauce and mix together. Bring it back to a boil. Once the sugar is completely dissolved, turn off the heat and set it aside.
• Transfer the sauce to a pitcher and bring both the dashi and the sauce to the table. Tip: You can make the sukiyaki sauce ahead and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a month.

To Prepare the Sukiyaki Ingredients

• Gather all the sukiyaki ingredients. Feel free to customize the portions to suit your personal preference. Here, I used the entire package of grilled tofu (twice as much) since we love tofu.
• Cut 4 leaves napa cabbage into pieces 2 inches (5 cm) wide.
• Cut the pieces in half or thirds down along the thick white center of the leaves.
• Cut ¼ bunch shungiku (chrysanthemum greens) 2 inches (5 cm) wide.
• Slice the white part of 1 Tokyo negi (naga negi; long green onion) diagonally into ½-inch (1.3 cm) pieces.
• Scrape off the outer skin of 6 inches gobo (burdock root) with the back of a knife. The gobo‘s flavor is just under the skin, so don‘t use a vegetable peeler and peel that flavor away. Once you scrape off the skin, shave the gobo into superthin strips using a vegetable peeler.
• Soak the gobo strips in water for 5 minutes, changing the water once. Drain well.
• Cut ½ onion into ½-inch (1.3 cm) slices widthwise. Next, discard the bottom part of ½ package enoki mushrooms and tear it into smaller clusters.
• Cut off and discard the root ends of ½ package maitake mushrooms and separate the maitake bunch into 2 small clusters.
• Cut off and discard the stems of 2 shiitake mushrooms. Optionally, you can cut a flower pattern on the shiitake mushroom caps: First, cut a sliver off the top of the mushroom cap by making 2 incisions in the shape of a “V”. Bevel these cuts toward each other by inserting the knife at an angle.
• Make a second cutout in the same manner to form an “X” with the first cutout. You can keep this “X” pattern or add one or two more cutouts. Watch my video on “shiitake hanagiri” that demonstrates this Japanese cutting technique.
• Cut ½ package broiled tofu (yaki dofu) into smaller pieces. We usually double the tofu portion and cut one block into 6–8 pieces.
• If you‘d like to make flower-shaped carrots (optional), first slice 1½ inches carrot into ¼-inch (6 mm) rounds.
• Here, I stamp the carrot coins with a vegetable cutter into a floral shape for decoration.
• Rinse and drain ½ package shirataki noodles. Cut the noodles in half. Add the shirataki noodles to boiling water to remove any odor. Once the water is boiling again, cook for 2 minutes, drain, and set aside.
• Place ½ lb thinly sliced beef (chuck or ribeye) and suet (if using) on a plate. Put all the ingredients on a big platter or bamboo tray for the dining table. I prepared my eggs sous vide (read the blog post) for dipping the cooked sukiyaki ingredients. I also cooked and drained 1 serving udon noodles and set them aside for the final course.

To Cook the Beef

• Set a portable gas cooktop at the dining table. I use this cast-iron sukiyaki pot that I got from MTC Kitchen (use JOC10 for 10% off) and an Iwatani portable butane stove. Give each person a medium-sized bowl to put the cooked food from the pot.
• Heat the cast-iron sukiyaki pot (or any pot) on medium heat. When it’s hot, add 1 Tbsp neutral oil (or the suet). Then, pour in barely enough sukiyaki sauce to cover the bottom of the pot, about ⅛–¼ inch of sauce.
• Place a few slices of well-marbled beef in the pot. When the bottom side of the meat is cooked, flip and cook the other side. Enjoy some (or all) of the sweet and caramelized meat now to consume this good-quality beef at its best. You can eat a few rounds of meat first or leave the meat in the pot and continue to the next step.