Shabu Shabu!

Mmmmm, oishii (Japanese for "delicious") Shabu Shabu! Last night we enjoyed one of my fave Japanese meals at our apartment!! Oish-katta! ("It was delicious!") :-)

The centerpiece on our lovely bamboo table this evening was actually the meal itself! A portable stove supported a boiling pot of dashi ("flavored broth") for us to cook a gorgeous array of vegetables (Chinese cabbage, bean sprouts, carrots, large chives, etc.), tofu, and thinly sliced beef and pork. As the veggies cook, you use your hashi (chopsticks) to swish the meat back and forth in the dashi to cook it! When it's done, you take it out (along w/ some of the veggies and tofu) to dip in one of your two sauces: a DELISH sesame sauce and a tangy ponzu sauce. Enjoy. Repeat. Enjoy. Repeat. Enjoy- You get the point!!

This is a FABULOUS meal, perfect to enjoy with great friends and good drinks! Last night, the guys enjoyed some good ol' Asahi beer (so Asian!), while us ladies enjoyed the fabulously refreshing VCL and some sweet Ume-Shu (plum wine)!!!

Tanosh-katta! (It was fun!) :-)

Fun Little Fact: Shabu Shabu actually means "Swish Swish" for the sound the meat makes when you're cooking it!

XOXO