A week more to Chinese New Year in Singapore. Everyone is looking forward to a better year ahead – so am I.
We’ve never had much of a chance to indulge in hotpots at our own house, because there are only three of us here so there will either be an inevitable waste of food or an unavoidable overindulgence and overeating – more the latter. Usually, this is done at our parents’ place where everyone else gathers together at the same house. This year, I thought to try something a little different. I used my wok and placed all my ingredients inside it, covered them up with chicken stock and boiled everything together. And then we ate while everything was still hot.
Tada! That’s the hotpot!
It was a nice little indulgence with all of our favourite ingredients in it – fishballs, instant noodles, lettuce leaves, hot dogs, enoki mushrooms, shabu shabu. I also decided to make a nice little dip to go along with this makeshift hotpot – a light-hearted sesame peanut dip with loads of sesame paste and a nice tangy flavour from the vinegar. The mixture kind of helps to make this meal a lot more delicious and less heavy. All of us enjoyed the meal thorougly, especially with the dip!
And with the new lunar year coming along in a couple of days, Hungry Peepor would like to wish everyone a healthier, happier year ahead. May we stay happy and healthy, and always have nice food to look forward to. Simple as that. 🙂
Ingredients:
- Sesame paste: 3 tbsp
- Chicken stock: 2 tbsp (I got mine from the hot pot that I was preparing during the meal)
- White rice vinegar: 1 tbsp
- Light soy sauce/fish sauce: 3 tbsp
- Ginger: 1 tsp, grated
- Garlic: 2 cloves, finely chopped
- Sesame oil: 3 tbsp
- Salt: a pinch
- Coriander: 1 stalk, finely chopped
- Spring onion: 1 stalk, finely chopped
- Sesame seeds (optional): 1/2 tsp, toasted
Method:
- Mix together sesame paste, chicken stock, white rice vinegar, light soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame oil and salt.
- Garnish with coriander, spring onion and sesame seeds to serve.
Serving:
Enough to serve a meal for 3 – 4 persons
