An excellent variant on the classic hot pot. Instead of throwing all the meat in and letting it cook for long, the meat is “swished” until the pink is gone.

The main components are the thinly sliced meat, side plate, the dipping sauces, and, of course, the cooking apparatus.

The meat: Here is some beef, nicely marbled.

The pot: Traditional broth (dashi) of simply water with a piece of kelp.

The Kombu (昆布): The kelp is added for some flavor.

The veggie plate: The side plate can contain such items as veggies, tofu, mushrooms, noodles, etc.

Shabu Shabu tends to have at least two dipping sauces for your freshly cooked items, the sesame sauce and the citrus-soy sauce.

The goma sauce: The sesame sauce I like to use this one for my veggies~!

The ponzu (ポン酢): The citrus-soy sauce I like to mix in the condiments and dip pretty much anything.

There are also condiments that can be mixed into the dipping sauces. The combination creates different experiences in terms of bite and texture.

The garlic: Grated.

The daikon: Grated.

The green onion: Chopped.

The dipping sauce mix:

It’s time to start~!

Ready to Shabu~!

Swish away the pink:

Cooked and ready: Just dip and enjoy~!

Some Shabu Implements:

Tongs:

Ladle:

Skimmer:

What is the skimmer for? It’s not for collecting pieces of food you are intending to eat. Let me explain: After swishing enough meat, all lot of the oils and meat bits will have collected at the surface.

See all that the meat sweat off?

Just scoop.

Discard in the canister.

The water helps to rinse it off.

If you are a fan of soup, this part should be of interest.
You should receive a bowl near the end of the meal with some soup base.
Transfer all the uneaten bits from the hot pot to this bowl along with some the now-meaty broth.
Add some rice if there is any left and enjoy~!

Final soup base:

The broth from the pot:

Mix with all the remaining cooked items: