Cambodian Hot Pot (Yah Hawn)

One of the dishes that always reminds me of home and brings me so much comfort is the hot pot dish my mom always makes! Every time I go down to visit, I always ask her to make it. I just assumed it was this really labor intensive and tedious process and just figured I'd never be able to master it. But lo and behold, once I got my hands on the recipe, I realized pretty quickly it's an easy meal that I can whip up in no time!

This dish is perfect for a big group and is served fondue style -- you can have an array of veggies, meats, and seafood to add in and the broth goes really well with rice or noodles, so whatever you have handy. The most important aspect to this dish is getting the broth just perfect and since most of the ingredients are pre-made sauces, it's super quick and easy! But imagine to my horror though when what I had always pictured was my mom slaving in the kitchen mixing the perfect spices and sauces to the broth, when in all actuality it just ended up being pre made stuff off the store counter. It's ok, I still love this dish nonetheless and am super excited to share!

Broth Ingredients:

8 heaping tbsp of Asian style BBQ Sauce -- can be found at the Asian store, I prefer using the one in the silver labeled jar with red chinese letters and make sure to drain out the oil layer sitting at the top of the BBQ sauce

3 tbsp of Thai chili garlic sauce -- add more if you want it to be spicier

2 14oz cans chicken stock

8 cups of water

1 cup of Coco Rico soda

3 tsp of fish sauce

salt and pepper to taste

Additional ingredients:

1/2 lb of beef sirloin, thinly sliced

1/2 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 bunches of watercress

baby bok choy

fish balls -- can be found in the frozen section of the Asian store

white button mushrooms, sliced

crushed peanuts

In a large pot, add the BBQ Sauce and chili garlic sauce and saute for a few minutes over medium heat to break down. Add in the chicken stock, water and Coco Rico soda. Reduce heat and let the broth simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the fish sauce and add salt and pepper to taste. The broth should be a combination of spicy and savory.

When you are ready to serve, transfer the broth to a hot pot and bring to a boil. Add your meats and veggies to the hot pot to cook fondue style and then ladle them along with the broth into a bowl of rice or noodles and sprinkle with peanuts.