Hoto
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb lean, thinly sliced pork
- 3/4 lb kabocha, Japanese pumpkin (leave skin on), washed, seeded, and thinly sliced into half-moon shapes
- 1 package enoki mushrooms, washed and stemmed
- 1 Japanese leek (white part only), well-washed and coarsely chopped
- 2 tbsp butter (may replace with a neutral oil)
- 5 cups homemade dashi (fish) stock or water
- 4 tbsp miso paste (2 tablespoons red and 2 tablespoons white), or to taste
- 10-1/2 ounces fresh udon noodles
Garnish
- 2-3 tbsp peeled fresh ginger, cut into slivers
Instructions
- Briefly saute the pork, pumpkin, mushrooms, and leek in butter in a deep medium-sized pot. Add dashi or water. Bring to a boil and add miso (for best consistency, first combine the misos and some broth in a small bowl), then add into the pot. Turn heat down to a high simmer, and cook for about 15 minutes or until all the vegetables can be easily pierced with a fork.
- Add in the udon and continue to cook for 5 minutes, or until the udon has reached desired doneness: It should still be slightly chewy.
- Serve immediately in large soup bowls, garnished with fresh ginger.
Notes
You can really add in a wide variety of complimentary vegetables that you may have around in your kitchen. What would complement your hoto? Onions, potatoes are just a few, etc.
Some other options to try:
Aburaage (fried tofu pockets): Pour boiling water over first to get rid of excess oil. Slice thickly into fours.
Your favorite mushrooms: I used shimeji, shiitake and enoki, but any mushroom will work.
Satoimo (Taro): Peel, rinse, cut into halves or quarters and add with the other ingredients when sauteeing.
Burdock Root (Gobo): My friend, Naomi, suggested it. Peel the gobo, and slice on the bias into thin slices. I sauteed the gobo in a little oil in the deep pot until it browned and released its sweetness. Then I continued with the rest of the recipe as noted above. Delicious!