Sukiyaki is a Japanese meat and vegetable soup dish that is traditionally eaten in winter. In Japan, because meat is expensive and meat is only served for certain occasions, sukiyaki is one of the dishes eaten during special celebrations when people have just received their salary. Making sukiyaki is so much fun and it tastes delicious. Get friends and family together to enjoy this delightful meal.
Ingredients
Meat, Vegetables and Noodles
- 340 grams of beef tenderloin or similar, thinly sliced
- 56 grams of suet (meat fat around the beef kidney); a few tablespoons of vegetable oil or butter can also be used
- 226 grams of yaki tofu (grilled); or know any type can also be used
- 1 small chicory or large chicory
- 12 shiitake mushrooms and a pack of enoki mushrooms; if these two types of mushrooms are not available, can be replaced with portobello mushrooms
- 1 large spring onion (negi); half a bunch of small scallions can also be used
- 2 bunches of chrysanthemum leaves (shungiku); Watercress, spinach, or other green leafy vegetables can also be used
- 1 pack of taro noodles (shirataki); Any other kind of white rice noodles can also be used
- 1 raw egg for 1 person (optional)
- 1 pack frozen or fresh udon or udon noodles (optional)
Sukiyaki Sauce
- 125 ml cooking sake
- 125 ml mirin (Japanese rice wine similar to sake)
- 80 ml soy sauce
- 56 grams of brown sugar; Ordinary granulated sugar can also be used
Step
Part 1 of 3: Preparing the Ingredients
Step 1. Prepare the shirataki by putting it in a pot of cold water and then boiling it until it boils
When the water is boiling, turn off the stove and remove the noodles through a sieve. Soak the shirataki briefly in a bowl of cold water.
- Shirataki doesn't need to be cooked too long. Boil the shirataki briefly to remove some of the aroma. Shirataki will also absorb all the flavor of the sukiyaki sauce.
- If using other types of noodles, refer to the instructions for use on the package, boil briefly for a few minutes before becoming soft.
Step 2. Slice the meat as thinly as possible or ask a butcher to slice it up
Sukiyaki means very thin meat. Choose a cutlet that has white streaks and fat (or something similar) for good results.
Place the meat in the freezer for a few hours if you want to slice it yourself. If the meat is firm but not completely frozen, it will be easier to slice thinly
Step 3. Before slicing the chicory leaves, separate the stems
The stalks of chicory are slightly more fibrous and take longer to cook. Cut the chicory stalks in circles until they are separated from the leaves. Cut the stems into 2.5 cm (or smaller) pieces. Coarsely chop the leaves in large pieces.
Step 4. Prepare the mushrooms
If you don't have shiitake mushrooms, cut any mushrooms into bite-sized pieces. If shiitake mushrooms are available, here's how to prepare them traditionally:
- Remove the stems of the shitake mushrooms with a knife. Make a small asterisk or cross on the mushroom head with a knife. Imagine a straight line running down the middle of the mushroom head. Take a knife and make a 30° angle on this straight line, prying a little bit of the mushroom flesh, so that the white inside of the mushroom is quite visible. Position the knife in the opposite direction and make a 30° angle on the other side of the line. Repeat this process on the plumb line to make the cross and again to make the asterisk.
- For enoki mushrooms, wash the mushrooms and cut off the roots.
Step 5. Slice the scallion (negi) about 2.5 cm in oblique slices
Step 6. Tear the chrysanthemum leaves (shungiku) from the stems
If substituted for spinach or watercress, wash the vegetables and separate the leaves from the stems. Remove the stalk.
Step 7. Make the sukiyaki sauce
Put 125 ml of sake, 125 ml of mirin, 80 ml of soy sauce, and 56 grams of sugar into a saucepan, then bring to a boil over medium heat. When it boils, turn off the stove. The goal is to burn off the alcohol in the sake, and not reduce the sauce.
Part 2 of 3: Making Sukiyaki
Step 1. Heat a large hot pot over medium heat
The traditional way to make sukiyaki requires an earthenware or cast-iron hot pot with a paraffin burner underneath. That way, the chef can make sukiyaki on the table when it's meant to be served. Alternatively, an electric pan can also be used if you want to cook it on the table.
If you don't have a hot pot or an electric pot, you can of course cook sukiyaki on a regular stovetop. Be sure to use a large pot with a lid
Step 2. Place a small amount of suet, lard, or other healthy fat in a saucepan
Using suet is the traditional way, but lard or even vegetable oil can be used if the goal is to serve a healthier dish.
Step 3. Put the cutlets in the pot and cook until they are no longer pink
Don't overcook, as the meat will stay in the pan while the other ingredients are cooking. When the meat is no longer pink, move it to the side of the pan so it doesn't cook too quickly.
- Some cooks put a small amount of sukiyaki sauce in the pot when cooking the meat. The sukiyaki sauce will bubble and reduce quickly due to the soy sauce.
- Other chefs choose to sweeten the meat by adding sugar when cooking the meat with fat in the pan. There is no reason for you not to do both ways.
Step 4. Put the chicory stalks, yaki tofu, and mushrooms in a saucepan
Enter the food ingredients separately; Each ingredient must be gathered together in the pan.
Step 5. Place the drained shirataki in the pot and keep it away from the meat
Since shirataki contains compounds that can toughen the meat, separate it from the meat while the other ingredients are cooked.
Step 6. Put the remaining ingredients in a saucepan
Put the mustard greens, chrysanthemum leaves, and shallots into the pot.
Step 7. Add the sukiyaki sauce, cover the pot, and bring to a boil over low heat
Step 8. Simmer the sukiyaki in a covered saucepan for 3-5 minutes or until the meat is completely cooked and the chicory stalks are tender
Part 3 of 3: Serving Sukiyaki
Step 1. Prepare the dipping sauce by beating one egg for each person to serve the sukiyaki
According to the traditional way, a dipping sauce made from raw eggs is served with sukiyaki. This combination with raw eggs may seem unappetizing to some, but it is a delicious combination, even if you tend to dislike it.
If you're concerned about raw eggs containing salmonella bacteria or you don't like the taste, don't use these eggs. Maybe this information is useful to you: salmonella bacteria are very rarely found in raw eggs
Step 2. Dip the meat and vegetables in the raw egg mixture before eating
Take anything that looks appetizing from the hot pot and dip it in the eggs.
If you're not eating sukiyaki with family or close friends, use the thicker end of the chopsticks to scoop the food out of the pot. This method is considered polite
Step 3. Continue to add meat and vegetables to the hot pot while you are eating
If there are no ingredients left, cook them in the remaining broth. Meats and green leafy vegetables will cook faster than other vegetables.
Step 4. If there is any stock left, save it, and serve with the udon noodles for the next day
In Japan, using leftover sukiyaki broth as stock for udon noodles is a traditional way of doing things. If there isn't enough stock but you want to make more sukiyaki, use the sukiyaki sauce recipe above and mix with the remaining sauce. Bring the broth back to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. If the stock is too strong, add 80 ml of water and taste again.
Tips
- Japanese grocery stores sell the “Sukiyaki Set”, which consists of uncut ingredients except meat, tofu, and sauce. This will make it easier for you to prepare the sukiyaki, but it may not be the same as real sukiyaki.
- To make it look very much like the real thing, you can buy a paraffin stove so you can cook sukiyaki on the table.
- Sukiyaki is a very kid-friendly menu. They love the sweet taste and love to take the ingredients they like from the pot.
Warning
- If using a paraffin stove, make sure you are in a well-ventilated area and free of flammable objects.
- If you want to use raw eggs, then it is best to use organic eggs / eggs from chickens that are not caged to prevent the risk of exposure to salmonella bacteria.
- Keep children away from hot paraffin stoves and sukiyaki broth.
