Salmon and Miso Hotpot

Day 100/365

I recently received a gift from my sister -- Japanese Home Cooking with Master Chef Murata, bilingual version published 03/29/2011. The format of my version is slightly different from the link, but the recipes are the same.

It has been quite some time since I last had yellow miso. I grew up enjoying light miso in glazes on fish, as a marinade, salad dressing, and various other preparations.

This was Bug's first experience cooking with miso aside from [red] miso soup. At first, he didn't know what to think of the combination -- salmon in a light, slightly sweet broth. Partway through the meal, he proclaimed his fondness for this dish and looked forward to making it again. The inclusion of butter provides a rounded and richer flavor.

Salmon and Miso Hotpot by Chef Yoshihiro Murata
Ingredients:

7 oz (200 g) fresh salmon, skin removed

1/4 head cabbage

1 large all purpose potato

4 green beans

2 large fresh shiitake

1 oz (30 g) enoki mushrooms

1/2 c (120 ml) chicken broth

1-1/2 c (360 m) water

2 Tbsp yellow miso

1 Tbsp butter

Directions: 

1. Cut salmon, cabbage, and green beans into bite-sized pieces.
2. Peel the potato, cut into thick, bite-sized rounds, blanch, and then drain.
3. Remove shiitake stems. Trim the roots off the enoki mushrooms and rinse.
4. Pour chicken broth and water into a large pan and mix the miso. Add the salmon and vegetables to the pan, cover, and bring to a simmer.
5. Add butter and allow it to melt partway before serving.

We made a few minor changes to the recipe: 

1. Salmon was cooked skin-on, since I love eating salmon skin.
2. Red potatoes were used for its texture and color.
3. Dried shiitake were used instead of fresh, since we couldn't find fresh shiitake over the weekend.
4. We multiplied the ingredients! 

The next time we make this, I would like to try bean sprouts, bok choy, and spinach. I am sure carrots shaped into flowers would work well with this dish also.

- Cassaendra