This Japanese hotpot recipe is so simple, and turns out so well, even with myriad variations. It also takes kindly to all sorts of supplemental bolsters, such as noodles and rice – making it as filling and substantial as you want it to be. It’s the ideal fall and winter dish – lasting for several days, lending itself to all kinds of transformations – a good thing to prepare when a stretch of snow is expected.
Comfort food is a way of making it through the winter, a way to lean into the colder season and make something cozy for it. Like candles and yeasty-baked goods, heavy blankets and endless scarves, and the stark beauty of winter dangling like icicles waiting to fall.
