Hot Pot, Japanese Style

I have heard the term shabu-shabu before, but I never knew exactly what it was until my recent trip to Japan. I got to try this Japanese-style hot pot when I met my high school friend, Stevie, for dinner.

As far as I can tell, shabu-shabu is pretty similar to Chinese hot pot, in that you cook meat and vegetables yourself in a pot of hot soup. However, there seemed to be more 'real' ingredients in the Japanese version and fewer processed foods. I am sure that the soup bases are different, too.

Even better, however, is the dipping sauces in shabu-shabu, which I've never had at hot pot. On each table, there was a creamy sesame foie gras sauce and a citrus soy vinaigrette. I am not normally fond of citrus flavors, but I loved the latter!

We ate at an all-you-can-eat shabu-shabu restaurant, which not only included the soup ingredients but also countless appetizers and desserts. I tried sprouted peanuts, which were not bad at all, and a delicious cabbage salad dressed with sesame oil. 

Unfortunately, we ran out of time to have more than one dessert. However, my one dish of vanilla ice cream with salted caramel sauce was divine!