Osaka Pufferfish Hot Pot (てっちり, Tecchiri)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Donabe (Japanese clay hot pot), or a wide heavy pot
• •Tabletop burner for serving at the table
• •Tori-zara (small individual serving bowls), or small shallow bowls
• •Chirirenge ceramic soup spoons, or soup spoons
• •Small ladle or fine mesh skimmer

Instructions

1. 1

   Source the fugu

   Buy only fugu that has been cleaned and portioned by a licensed fugu handler. Heat will not make an unsafe pufferfish safe, so this is the one rule with no clever stand-in. Keep the fish refrigerated until the broth is ready, then bring it to the table still cold so the pieces stay firm and clean-edged.

   Ask for fugu cut for nabe, with bone-in ara for flavor and some flesh pieces for eating. If licensed fugu is not available where you live, cook another winter hot pot. Monkfish or cod can be lovely, but they are not tecchiri.
2. 2

   Ready the table

   Set a small tori-zara, dipping bowl, and spoon for each person before the pot starts. Pour ponzu shōyu into the dipping bowls and set out momiji oroshi, sliced scallions, and yuzu peel. Nabemono moves at the pace of the pot, not the cook's convenience, so the table should be ready before the first piece of fish goes in.

3. 3

   Steep the konbu

   Wipe the konbu lightly with a damp cloth, but don't wash it. Put it in the cold water in a donabe or wide pot and let it sit for 30 minutes if you have the time. Warm it slowly over medium-low heat, then lift the konbu out just before the water boils, when small bubbles climb the sides. Boil the kelp and the broth turns bitter and a little slick, which is exactly the opposite of the clear base tecchiri wants.

   This is konbu dashi only. The fugu will season the broth as it cooks, so bonito would speak too loudly here.
4. 4

   Cut the vegetables

   Keep the hakusai stems separate from the leaves, and keep the shungiku or mizuna for the end. The firm stems need time in the broth; tender greens need only a brief dip or they turn limp and bitter. Arrange the vegetables, mushrooms, tofu, and fugu on platters with a little space between them. A crowded platter makes people rush, and this dish rewards patience.

5. 5

   Start the pot

   Add the sake to the konbu dashi and bring it to a quiet simmer. Add the bone-in fugu pieces, hakusai stems, shiitake, and negi. Cook gently for 5 to 7 minutes, skimming any foam that rises. The bones give the broth its body, but a hard boil breaks the fish, clouds the broth, and steals from the zōsui you are already making without seeing it.

   Skimming is not fussiness. Foam carries blood and rough flavors to the surface; remove it and the broth stays clean.
6. 6

   Add tender pieces

   Add the tofu, enoki if using, hakusai leaves, and the remaining fugu flesh in small rounds. Simmer just until the fish turns opaque and the flesh firms, usually 2 to 4 minutes depending on the cut. Add shungiku or mizuna at the last moment, pressing it briefly into the broth. Greens are there for their fragrance and color, not for a long soak.

7. 7

   Serve with ponzu

   Lift the cooked fish, tofu, and vegetables into each tori-zara, then dip each bite in ponzu with a little momiji oroshi and scallion. Keep the pot itself only lightly seasoned. It should taste almost restrained if you sip it straight, because the ponzu finishes each bite and the broth must remain clear enough for the rice at the end.

8. 8

   Make the zōsui

   When the solids are gone, skim the broth and taste it. Season with a few drops of usukuchi shōyu or a pinch of salt only if it needs help. Add the rinsed cooked rice and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, until the grains loosen and drink the broth. Rinsing the rice first washes away surface starch, so the porridge turns soft and clear rather than gluey. If using egg, drizzle it over the surface, cover for 30 seconds, then turn off the heat and scatter with scallion and yuzu peel.

Chef Tips

• •Sourcing first, always. For tecchiri, the correct question is not how sharp your knife is, but who prepared the fugu. Buy from a licensed handler, use it the same day, and keep it cold.
• •Winter is the season for this dish, especially late autumn through the cold months when torafugu has body and sweetness. Out of season, don't hide dull fish under ponzu. Cook what is actually at its prime.
• •Use a donabe if you have one. Clay holds a steady, gentle heat, which suits fugu. A wide heavy pot works at the stove, but bring it to the table carefully and keep the simmer quiet.
• •Do not pour ponzu into the pot. The salt and citrus belong in the dipping bowl, where they brighten each bite without turning the broth sharp.
• •The zōsui is not a way to use leftovers. It is the last course the whole pot has been building toward, rice cooked in broth that now tastes of fish, kelp, mushrooms, and patience.

Advance Preparation

• •Order the fugu ahead from a licensed supplier and plan to cook it the day you receive it. Keep it refrigerated and covered until the broth is ready.
• •The konbu can soak in the measured cold water for 1 to 4 hours in the refrigerator. Warm it gently and remove it before the boil.
• •Vegetables, tofu, condiments, and ponzu can be prepared a few hours ahead and kept chilled. Bring only the vegetables and tofu toward room temperature before cooking.
• •Cook the rice for zōsui ahead if needed. Rinse it under running water and drain it just before it goes into the pot.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 725g)