Vegan Japanese Hot Pot (Nabemono)

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A classic Japanese Hot Pot dish made completely vegan and gluten-free. This Nabemono is nourishing, hearty, and so easy to make! The perfect dish for gatherings large or small.

an overhead shot of a Japanese hot pot filled with tofu and veggies.

What is Nabemono or Japanese Hot Pot

Japanese hot pot, known as nabe, is a communal winter dish. It involves cooking various ingredients in a simmering broth at the table with everyone gathered around.  

Ingredients like meat, seafood, tofu, vegetables, and noodles are cooked in a flavorful broth. It’s a social and interactive dining experience, and is commonly served with condiments such as ponzu sauce, sesame sauce, miso sauce, raw egg, green onions, and grated daikon radish. Rice or noodles are often served as well. 

In true Veggiekins fashion, we’re making a vegan version of this popular dish that is delish and easy to make!

What Makes This Recipe Great

This Vegan Hot Pot or Nabemono is a simple and easy dish to make! It’s very customizable, nourishing, and perfect for chilly evenings. It can be enjoyed solo or with friends and family as a social meal. Often, hot pot is served atop a portable/tabletop burner in the center of a table so that it stays warm and can be added to throughout the meal. The beauty of hot pot is that the base recipe is fairly straightforward, and everyone enjoying can add their own seasonings then. The broth is often very mild, and you enjoy it by serving it in your own bowl with your seasoning of choice.

While a traditional Japanese Hot Pot often involves some kind of beef or meat, it’s very easy to make vegan by simply swapping it for tofu. Again, what goes into the hot pot is completely your decision, so it’s very easy to make both vegan and gluten-free with dashi and soy sauce alternatives.

One of the best things about making a vegan nabemono is that you don’t have to worry about skimming the hot pot. When cooking with animal proteins, the boiling usually results in fat that bubbles and forms around the edges of the pot. You would usually need to skim the fat while enjoying the hot pot, but when using just plants, you don’t have to worry about it at all!

This cozy Vegan Hot Pot is vegan, gluten-free, and nut free. Depending on the ingredients used, you can make it paleo and grain free as well. As a bonus, the hands-on preparation time is very minimal!

Ingredient Notes

I’ve based my vegan hot pot ingredients on a more traditional Japanese hot pot. However, I’ll also include additional ingredients that are used often.

recipe ingredients on a pink cutting board.
  • Soup base/dashi → Instead of fish-based dashi, we’ll use kombu or seaweed to provide depth of flavour. You can also find a Japanese vegetable soup stock to use.
  • Napa cabbage → Present in most hot pots, napa cabbage becomes so buttery soft in a hot pot and really delicious. You can find napa cabbage at any Asian grocery store.
  • Asian leek → These are larger than scallions but smaller than conventional leeks. We use the white base part of the leek, which contributes a lot to the stock flavour as it cooks.
  • Carrots → They add a bit of sweetness to the hot pot and can be cut into fun shapes. Traditionally, they are cut into flower shapes for presentation.
  • Konnyaku → This ingredient is hard to describe, but it’s a cake made from yam flour. It has a springy, almost squeaky texture and no real flavour of its own, however, it absorbs sauces and seasonings quite well. My grandma taught me that it’s known to assist digestion, and it’s really a unique texture! 
  • Mushrooms → The most common mushrooms include shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, and shimeji mushrooms, but you can use any or all of them. I love to use a mix of at least 2-3 types of mushrooms.
  • Tofu → A great plant protein to add to the hot pot, and commonly present even in non-vegan hot pots. You can use silken or firm, but I prefer firm as it holds its shape much better. 
a close up photo of Nabemono in a white bowl with chopsticks resting on top.

How to Make a Vegan Japanese Hot Pot

  1. Begin by preparing your ingredients and slicing them into bite-sized pieces.
  2. Prepare your stock using water and dashi kombu or dashi stock.
  3. Arrange ingredients inside of the nabe, then pour your liquid over the ingredients and fill the pot.
  4. Cover, bring to a low boil, and enjoy once veggies are tender! Season to taste.

Secrets to Success!

  • Make it hearty → If you’d really like to take your vegan hot pot to the next level, you might consider adding some vegan seafood substitutes like vegan shrimp or even fishcake if you can find it. All of the ingredients you add to the pot will add flavour to the base stock, but don’t be afraid to season the base soup itself too! 
  • Boost the nutrition → Add a plant protein, serve with some starch like rice or noodles, and load up on the veg to make this a balanced meal. 
  • Equipment modifications → You can make this in just about any pot, and you can skip the tabletop burner by just preparing this stovetop. The stovetop set-up is ideal for entertaining, however, it’s not a necessary investment to make a delicious meal. You can find most of the equipment and ingredients at Japanese or Asian grocery stores or online.

Serving Tips

  • To serve, you may choose to dip into sesame sauce, ponzu sauce, sesame oil, chili oil, togarashi, soymilk, etc. Other delicious add-ins include mochi, beansprouts, yuba, daikon, and various noodles such as udon noodles, ramen, soba, or shirataki noodles, etc.
vegetables cooking in a hot pot.

Recipe FAQs

What is a Japanese hot pot called?

The Japanese hot pot is commonly called “nabe” in Japan.

What is shabu vs. hot pot?

Shabu-shabu is a Japanese hot pot that features thinly sliced meat cooked by swishing it in hot broth. Hot pot is a broader Asian cooking style with various ingredients cooked in a shared simmering broth. Both offer an interactive dining experience.

What do you put in a Japanese hot pot?

A Japanese hot pot, or “nabe,” typically includes thinly sliced meat, seafood, tofu, vegetables, noodles, and a flavorful broth.

If you like this recipe, try…

Healthy Miso Mushroom Ramen

Sautéed Lotus Root

Obachan’s Mushroom Mixed Rice (Kamameshi)

Zenzai – Japanese Sweet Red Bean Soup with Mochi

Mitarashi Dango  – Rice Cake Dessert

Zaru Soba 

If you try this recipe out, tag me on Instagram @veggiekins so I can see your delicious re-creations and feature them! As always, I love when you share your reviews in the comments below, and if you make any fun substitutions, let me know how it worked out below too.

Vegan Japanese Hot Pot (Nabemono)

Servings: 2 -3 servings
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
A classic Japanese Hot Pot dish made completely vegan and gluten-free. This Nabemono is nourishing, hearty, and so easy to make! The perfect dish for gatherings large or small.

Ingredients 

  • Donabe or pot
  • Stovetop burner optional
  • Soup base
  • 1 piece dashi kombu roughly a 3x3” piece
  • 4-5 cups water or, use 4-5 cups kombu dashi or vegetable stock
  • 3 tbsp gluten free soy sauce more to taste
  • optional sake to taste
  • optional mirin a splash
  • Ingredients
  • 4-5 napa cabbage leaves chopped
  • 1 japanese leek white base only, chopped into large pieces
  • 1/2 pack of enoji mushrooms
  • 1/2 pack shimeji mushroom
  • handful shitake mushrooms stems removed
  • 1/2 large carrot sliced
  • 8 oz extra firm tofu
  • 1/2 pack konnyaku drained, rinsed and sliced
  • To serve
  • steamed white rice
  • scallions sliced
  • shichimi togarashi
  • sesame sauce
  • sesame oil
  • chili oil
  • ponzu

Instructions 

  • Begin by preparing your ingredients and slicing into bite sized pieces.
  • Prepare your stock, using water and dashi kombu or dashi stock.
  • Arrange ingredients inside of the nabe then pour your liquid over the ingredients and fill the pot.
  • Cover, bring to a low boil and enjoy once veggies are tender! Season to taste.

Notes

Secrets to Success!

  • Make it hearty → If you'd really like to take your vegan hot pot to the next level, you might consider adding some vegan seafood substitutes like vegan shrimp or even fishcake if you can find it. All of the ingredients you add to the pot will add flavour to the base stock, but don't be afraid to season the base soup itself too! 
  • Boost the nutrition → Add a plant protein, serve with some starch like rice or noodles, and load up on the veg to make this a balanced meal. 
  • Equipment modifications → You can make this in just about any pot, and you can skip the tabletop burner by just preparing this stovetop. The stovetop set-up is ideal for entertaining, however, it’s not a necessary investment to make a delicious meal. You can find most of the equipment and ingredients at Japanese or Asian grocery stores or online.

Serving Tips

  • To serve, you may choose to dip into sesame sauce, ponzu sauce, sesame oil, chili oil, togarashi, soymilk, etc. Other delicious add-ins include mochi, beansprouts, yuba, daikon, and various noodles such as udon noodles, ramen, soba, or shirataki noodles, etc.

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this recipe?Tag @veggiekins on Instagram and hashtag it with #veggiekins

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About Remy

Hi there, I’m Remy! Welcome to Veggiekins Blog, home to nourishing vegan + gluten-free recipes and tips to live your best balanced and holistic life. I’m a human on a mission to empower you to be well and be kind to your mind, body and soul with the healing power of plants.

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