Winter Cod Hot Pot (鱈ちり, Tara-chiri)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Donabe (Japanese clay pot), or a wide heavy pot
• •Portable tabletop burner, or a stovetop with the pot brought to the table
• •Small tori-zara plates and individual ponzu bowls
• •Fine skimmer or small ladle

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the konbu

   Wipe the konbu with a damp cloth, but don't wash it. That pale bloom on the surface is flavor, not dirt. Put the konbu in the cold water and let it soak for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight in the refrigerator. A slow soak gives the water body before any fish goes in, which is why tara-chiri can stay so plain and still taste complete.

2. 2

   Clean the cod

   Sprinkle the cod pieces lightly with the salt and leave them for 10 minutes. The salt draws out surface moisture and firms the flesh just enough to handle. Pour boiling water over the pieces, or dip them briefly in boiling water, only until the surface turns white. Rinse under cold water and rub away any blood, scales, or dark bits near the bone, then pat dry.

   This quick frost blanching is shimofuri, literally a frosted surface. It isn't meant to cook the fish. It keeps the broth clean, and with a dish this bare, clean is not a small matter.
3. 3

   Prepare the table

   Set the ponzu-shōyu in small dipping bowls. Mix the grated daikon with the ichimi tōgarashi to make momiji oroshi, a red-speckled grated daikon relish, and set the sliced scallion beside it. Cut the vegetables and tofu before the pot is hot, because once the cod goes in you should be watching the fish, not hunting for a mushroom.

4. 4

   Warm the stock

   Pour the konbu and its soaking water into a donabe, or a wide heavy pot. Bring it up slowly over medium-low heat and remove the konbu just before the water boils, when small bubbles climb the sides. Boil the kelp and the broth can turn slick and faintly bitter. Pulling it early protects the clear taste that this hot pot depends on.

5. 5

   Start the vegetables

   Add the napa cabbage stems, negi, tofu, shiitake, and shimeji to the konbu water. Keep the liquid at a quiet simmer, not a rolling boil. The firmer vegetables need a few minutes first, and the tofu should warm through without being knocked about. Let the pot stay calm.

6. 6

   Simmer the cod

   Nestle the cod pieces into the open spaces, skin-side up when there is skin. Simmer gently for 4 to 6 minutes, until the flesh turns opaque and just begins to flake near the bone. Don't stir. Cod is tender and breaks if you chase it around the pot, and a hard boil clouds the broth you worked to keep clean.

   The one detail that decides tara-chiri is timing. Pull each piece when it is opaque and moist, not when it has given everything it has to the water.
7. 7

   Finish and eat

   Add the shungiku or mizuna for the final minute, just long enough to soften the leaves and keep their green color. Each person lifts cod, tofu, and vegetables into a small tori-zara plate, then dips them in ponzu with a little momiji oroshi and scallion. The pot itself is barely seasoned. The ponzu seasons each bite after the fish has stayed clean.

Chef Tips

• •Ask the fishmonger what cod came in today, and ask plainly whether they'd cook it in a bare hot pot. The flesh should look moist and pearly, the skin should shine, and the smell should be clean. If it smells strongly fishy or ammoniac, change the dish.
• •Bone-in cod pieces make a better pot than neat boneless cubes. The bones lend sweetness to the broth and help the fish hold its shape. Fillets work, but add them later and touch them less.
• •Good bottled ponzu-shōyu is a sensible stand-in on a weeknight. Instant dashi in the pot is not. Here the broth is only konbu and fish, so powder brings salt and noise where you need clarity.
• •If you find very fresh shirako, cod milt, it belongs beautifully in tara-chiri. Rinse it gently, blanch it separately, and warm it in the pot at the end. If the source is uncertain, leave it out with no regret.
• •Do not crowd the donabe. Leave open water between the cod pieces so they cook evenly and can be lifted out whole. A hot pot with space looks calmer, and it eats better too.

Advance Preparation

• •The konbu can soak in the water overnight in the refrigerator. This gives a rounder stock and makes the actual cooking very quick.
• •The vegetables, tofu, ponzu, and condiments can be prepared several hours ahead and kept chilled. Keep the greens separate so they stay lively.
• •Salt and blanch the cod close to cooking, ideally within an hour. Keep it cold until it goes into the pot.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 615g)