RECIPE: Japanese Mille-Feuille Nabe (Thousand Leaves Hot Pot) (2024)

  • March 07, 2020
  • 3 min read
  • Main dish

RECIPE: Japanese Mille-Feuille Nabe (Thousand Leaves Hot Pot) (1)


Japanese Mille-Feuille Nabe is a visually appealing hot pot dish made with just a few essential ingredients.Not to be confused with the traditional French pastry of the same name, the “thousand leaves'' in this case refers to the many layers of cabbage leaves and thinly-sliced pork.

Japanese Mille-Feuille Nabe consists of three main components: cabbage, pork belly, and dashi-miso broth. The simple broth complements the richness of the fatty meat, while the cabbage soaks up all the flavor. Compared to other hot pot dishes such as sukiyaki and shabu shabu, Mille-Feuille Nabe has far fewer ingredients, but is still just as satisfying, making it a great pick for busy weekday nights. In fact, it is among the most popular hot pots made at home in Japan.

The key to arranging this dish is packing the ingredients tightly. The cabbage will shrink as it cooks and create room for the ingredients to slide around, so you want to completely fill the pot. Work your way from the outside in to create a circular, flower-like design, and make sure to place the ingredients cut-side up so that the contrasting layers of vegetable and meat are visible. If you run out of cabbage before the pot is full, you can fill up the remaining space with enoki or shiitake mushrooms.

Enjoy your Mille-Feuille Nabe while it is still hot with a dash of soy sauce. Optional toppings include green onions or shichimi togarashi (Japanese chili flakes).

Servings: 4-5

Ingredients:

  • 300 ml of water
  • 2 tbspsoda bushi dashi powder*
  • 1½ tbsp miso
  • ½ napa cabbage
  • 400 g pork belly
  • 2 tbsp sake
  • ¼ tbsp white pepper
  • Dash ofsoy sauce*

* Available in ourCreative Beginnings: Redefining "Wa" Care Package of Japanese cooking essentials.

Instructions:

  1. Heat a small pot of 300 ml water with the dashi powder. Turn off the heat and add the miso until melted. Once ready set aside.
  2. Remove the leaves of the napa cabbage and wash under cold water until completely clean.
  3. Take the cabbage leaves and pork slices and place them one on top of the other to create layers (pressing each layer slightly with your hands). Continue until you have used all the cabbage leaves. Once completed, cut into three equal portions.
  4. Place the cabbage and pork layers into a large saucepan in a vertical position so you can see the layers from the top. (Choose a saucepan that allows you to fit the cabbage and pork layers without leaving any gaps.)
  5. Add the dashi from step 1and miso sauce, sake and white pepper to the saucepan.
  6. Cover the saucepan and place it on the stove. Cook until the cabbage is tender and the pork is fully cooked.

Serve your Mille-Feuille Nabe while it is still hot with a dash of soy sauce.

Recipes courtesy ofEleonora Badellino.You can find her at@everydayobento

Introduction courtesy ofBritney Budiman

RECIPE: Japanese Mille-Feuille Nabe (Thousand Leaves Hot Pot) (2)

Britney Budiman (@booritney) is a writer, minimalist, aspiring effective altruist, and runner-in-progress with a penchant for saying “yes.” Previously, she has worked in Cambodia at a traditional arts NGO, in Brazil as a social sciences researcher, and in San Francisco at a housing start-up. She currently lives in the countryside of Kagoshima, Japan, where she teaches English. Her favorite thing in the world is good conversation.

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FAQs

What is in a traditional Japanese hot pot? ›

Yose-nabe is the most common and basic hot pot dish, served at homes across Japan. Vegetables, mushrooms, meat and seafood are cooked in a pot of flavorful broth. The broth typically contains water, sake, soy sauce, mirin and dashi soup stock.

What's the difference between sukiyaki and nabe? ›

What is the difference between nabe and sukiyaki? There are many similar dishes to nabe, including sukiyaki. But what is the difference? Sukiyaki is very similar and can even be considered a type of nabe, but typically the ingredients are dipped in a dish of raw egg before eating them.

What are the ingredients in hot pot? ›

Generally, you'll want a variety of leafy green vegetables, mushrooms, meat & seafood (Cantonese hot pot is known for its seafood), some root vegetables, and some rice or noodles to go with it. Serious Eats has a great guide on hot pot that covers a lot individual options in each food category.

Where did mille feuille nabe come from? ›

Mille-Feuille Nabe is a Japanese hot pot that layers Napa cabbage interleaved with sliced pork belly. While it looks spectacular and tastes utterly delicious, it is very easy to make and can be prepared ahead of time and then cooked when ready.

What is the difference between hot pot and nabe? ›

“Nabe” is short for “nabemono,” which is a catch-all term for any Japanese hot pot dish. Hot pot is a communal meal similar to fondue in the West — everyone sits around the table and takes piping hot food straight from the pot. It's a great way to warm up during the cold winter months.

What is the difference between hotpot and shabu shabu? ›

The main difference between shabu shabu and other types of Japanese hot pot is that rather than simmering all of the ingredients together before serving, shabu shabu is cooked bite-by-bite over the course of the meal, similar to fondue.

What is Asuka nabe? ›

"Asuka Nabe" is a regional cuisine of Nara prefecture in which chicken and vegetables are simmered in a broth of milk and dashi.

What is a hotpot called in Japan? ›

Shabu-shabu (Japanese: しゃぶしゃぶ, romanized: shabushabu) is a Japanese nabemono hotpot dish of thinly sliced meat and vegetables boiled in water and served with dipping sauces. The term is onomatopoeic, derived from the sound – "swish swish" – emitted when the ingredients are stirred in the cooking pot.

Is hot pot actually healthy? ›

​​​​Hot pot can be healthy when you choose your ingredients, soup base and dipping sauces carefully. The Department of Endocrinology at Singapore General Hospital (SGH) explains. “Let's have steamboat!” This is often a clarion call for some festive, heart-warming get-together with family, friends or colleagues.

What is the best meat for hot pot? ›

The best meats to use for hot pot are thinly sliced beef, pork, or lamb. These meats cook quickly and evenly in the hot broth and have a good flavor. Other meats that can be used include chicken, shrimp, and tofu. The key is to have ingredients that are thinly sliced and able to cook quickly.

What are the best things to put in a hot pot? ›

Hot Pot Ingredient List. Hearty and leafy, look for greens that retain texture after cooking like bok choy, watercress, snow pea leaves, Napa cabbage, Chinese spinach, gai lan and green onions. Look for daikon, carrots, small potatoes and either cut into cubes or thinly sliced.

What is mille-feuille called in English? ›

A mille-feuille (French pronunciation: [mil fœj], "thousand-sheets"), also known by the names Napoleon in North America, vanilla slice in the United Kingdom, and custard slice, is a French dessert made of puff pastry layered with pastry cream.

Does mille-feuille mean a thousand leaves? ›

Mille-Feuille means “a thousand leaves.” This French dessert is a delicate tower of crisp puff pasty and luscious pastry cream.

How do you eat Japanese Nabe? ›

Japanese nabe is typically cooked at the dining table and not the kitchen. Once cooked, each member picks up the ingredients they want from the pot and eats them on their individual plates. It is usually eaten with the broth, 鍋だし・Nabedashi or with a dip. Further ingredients can also be successively added to the pot.

What is the difference between Japanese hot pot and shabu shabu? ›

The main difference between shabu shabu and other types of Japanese hot pot is that rather than simmering all of the ingredients together before serving, shabu shabu is cooked bite-by-bite over the course of the meal, similar to fondue.

What is the difference between hot pot and shabu shabu? ›

Traditional Chinese hot pot generally comes already loaded with meat, seafood, and vegetables, but with shabu shabu you'll be given plates of meat, vegetables and other items (dumplings and udon, for example) to cook in the broth.

Are Japanese hot pots healthy? ›

​​​​Hot pot can be healthy when you choose your ingredients, soup base and dipping sauces carefully. The Department of Endocrinology at Singapore General Hospital (SGH) explains. “Let's have steamboat!” This is often a clarion call for some festive, heart-warming get-together with family, friends or colleagues.

What are Japanese pots made of? ›

Japanese pottery, objects made in Japan from clay and hardened by fire: earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain.

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