Mizutaki with Yuzu Shio Koji

Mizutaki is a type of nabe that was originally popular in the western part of Japan. In Kansai, where I grew up, it is usually prepared with pork and chicken, but we’ve made it with pork for simplicity - and include a vegan modification in our recipe below.

Ingredients

• one 6 cm square of kombu

• ½ lb sliced pork (substitute with a 1 lb mix of enoki, shimeji, and shiitake mushrooms if vegan)

• 2 Tbsp Yuzu Shio Koji

• daikon radish

• watercress

• ponzu to taste

Directions

1. Soak kombu in a large pot (a donabe pot works best if you have one) with 4 c water. Leave for about 15 minutes.

2. In a separate pot, blanch pork in boiling water. After 30 seconds, transfer the pork to a bowl of cold ice water to cool down. Then drain the water.

3. Bring the water with the kombu to a boil. As soon as the water starts to boil, remove kombu.

4. Add Yuzu Shio Koji to the boiling water and turn the heat down to medium-low.

5. Add blanched pork, sliced daikon radish, and as much watercress as you like to the pot, and bring it back to a boil.

6. Add a little ponzu at the end if you prefer a stronger flavor.