Shio Chanko Nabe (Sumo Wrestler's Hot Pot)

Why It Works

Chanko is less a fixed recipe than a method: a big, well-seasoned broth that everything cooks in, so each ingredient flavors the pot and the pot flavors it back. The shio style leaves out shoyu and seasons with salt alone, which keeps the broth clear and lets the chicken, dashi, garlic, and ginger come through clean. Careful skimming matters more here because there's no shoyu to hide cloudiness. Chicken is the traditional protein in the sumo stables, since a bird stands on two legs like a wrestler who hasn't been knocked down. Hard vegetables go in first and delicate ones last so everything finishes at the same time, and potato starch gives the tsukune a springy, juicy bite. By the end, the broth has taken on everything in the pot, which is why the shime is often the best part.

Pairings

• Cold Japanese lager (Asahi, Sapporo, Kirin)
• Warm or room-temp junmai sake
• Steamed rice and tsukemono (pickles)

Yield

4 portions

Time

1 hour

Equipment

• Donabe (clay pot) or wide Dutch oven
• Tabletop burner (optional, for cooking at the table)
• Mixing bowl for the meatballs
• Two spoons (for shaping tsukune)
• Ladle + small serving bowls
• Cutting board + chef knife

Ingredients

• Shio broth
• 1 L chicken stock
• 500 ml dashi
• 60 g sake
• 15 g mirin
• 12–15 g salt, to taste
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 thumb ginger, sliced
• 5 g toasted sesame oil
• Tsukune (chicken meatballs)
• 300 g ground chicken
• 1 egg
• 1 scallion, minced
• 10 g ginger, grated
• 10 g potato starch
• 5 g sake
• 2 g salt
• Pot
• 300 g boneless chicken thigh, bite-size pieces
• Optional: 200 g cod or shrimp
• 1/4 head napa cabbage, cut into 2" pieces (stems and leaves separated)
• 150 g daikon, 1/4" half-moons
• 1 carrot, sliced on the bias
• 1 negi (or 2 thick scallions), sliced on the bias
• 6 shiitake, stems removed and tops scored
• 1 pack enoki, root end trimmed
• 1 block firm tofu, cubed
• 1 aburaage (fried tofu pouch), sliced
• Handful of mizuna or shungiku
• Shime (finish)
• 2 portions udon, or 2 cups cooked rice + 2 eggs
• Yuzu kosho or shichimi togarashi, black pepper, lemon wedges, for serving

Instructions

• Make the broth: combine the chicken stock, dashi, sake, mirin, garlic, and ginger in the pot and bring to a simmer. Season with salt a little at a time. It should taste well-salted and drinkable on its own, as the vegetables will dilute it. Finish with the sesame oil.
• Make the tsukune: mix ground chicken, egg, scallion, grated ginger, potato starch, sake, and salt vigorously until sticky, about 1 minute.
• Add the hard vegetables to the simmering broth first: daikon, carrot, and napa stems. Simmer 8–10 minutes until the daikon is starting to turn translucent.
• Shape the tsukune into quenelles with two spoons and drop them into the broth along with the chicken thigh. Simmer 6–8 minutes until cooked through. Skim the foam carefully to keep the broth clear.
• Arrange tofu, aburaage, shiitake, negi, napa leaves, and enoki in sections around the pot. Add fish or shrimp now if using. Simmer 5 minutes more.
• Add the mizuna or shungiku last, just to wilt. Taste the broth and re-season with salt. Bring the pot to the table and let everyone serve themselves with broth.
• Shime: once the pot is mostly eaten, add udon to the remaining broth and simmer until hot. Alternatively, add rice, simmer 3–4 minutes, drizzle in beaten eggs, cover, and turn off the heat for zosui. Finish with black pepper and a squeeze of lemon.
• Serve with yuzu kosho or shichimi togarashi.