Why Hot Pot Is The Best Meal in China

By Bing Fu Huang

There are few meals in this world as amazing as hot pot. A hot pot is a communal meal where diners cook their own ingredients in a boiling broth. Chinese hot pot is especially becoming popular around the world, with restaurants like Haidilao. The hot pot is very convenient and popular in China and around the world for various reasons.

REASON #1 Convenience 

The hot pot is very convenient. In China, there are many places where you can eat hot pot. For example, when shopping or in some store beside the street, you’ll find hot pot restaurants everywhere. Also, it’s convenient because when we eat the hot pot, people can put in the pot what they feel like and eat what is tasty food for them. The restaurant provides not only the hot pot seasoning but also the main ingredients. The soup base is also convenient. The key to a good hot pot is the soup base, and there are usually at least two flavors to choose from: plain and spicy. But the options are endless. 

REASON #2 Taste

Hot pot can have many different tastes because of the endless combinations.  Some diners might use a divider to section the hot pot in half. That means one hot pot can provide two tastes. If you can’t decide, you can have both spicy and original flavors. There might be other flavors for the soup such as spicy, sour, and salty. Since there are many people who don’t like one flavor or another, having a divided hot pot can give people more choices.  There are many different ingredients that you can choose. In addition, the sauces also have many different types. For example, there are sauce options like sesame soy, chili oil vinegar, creamy dashi garlic, and spicy peanut. You can also mix your own from the available ingredients.

REASON #3 Social

Chinese hot pot also can help people socialize. The Chinese style of eating hot pot usually consists of a pot of simmering broth that sits in the middle of the table with raw ingredients placed all around it. Some people particularly like to eat circular hot pots because of their shape. A hot pot’s shape is usually a circle.  In China, most people eat hot pot at a circular table. The circular table is the best type of table to encourage people to socialize because everyone is facing everyone else. This can help people relax, speak freely, and connect with each other. During these times, people can not only talk about any topics but they also can share hot pot ingredients, seasonings, and cooking techniques.

REASON #4 Affordable

Finally, hot pots are affordable compared to other tasty foods. People can put in whatever tasty food they feel like eating in the hot pot, so ingredients can vary from very expensive to very affordable. In modern fast-paced life, hot pot does not require cooking skills and too much preparation time, so it can quickly meet people’s needs, reduce people’s cooking time burden, and make people more relaxed and comfortable.

Hot pot is the best food in China because this meal can have many different tastes, encourages people to socialize, and is affordable compared to other tasty and healthy foods. With its growing popularity, it’s no wonder more and more hot pot restaurants are popping up in a neighborhood near you.