Silken Tofu and Wakame Hot Pot

Silken Tofu and Wakame
Hot Pot
🍲 🥢 🍲

This simple Japanese-inspired hot pot pairs delicate silken tofu with a generous amount of wakame (seaweed) in a savory dashi broth. Hot sesame oil, ground sesame seeds, and shichimi togarashi (seven-spice blend) provide the finishing layers of flavor.

I love the balance in this dish—the soft tofu, the supple texture and subtle salinity of the wakame, and the measured heat of the chile-infused sesame oil and shichimi togarashi. The result is deeply satisfying without becoming heavy, with a layered interplay of texture, umami, and spice.

Hot Pot Recipe

Ingredients

3 1/2 c. filtered water
1 t. hondashi (instant dashi granules)
2 T. sake
1 T. mirin
1 1/2 T. soy sauce, plus more to taste
1/4 c. dried cut wakame
14 oz. silken tofu, sliced into slabs
hot sesame oil, for drizzling
surigoma (ground sesame seeds), for finishing
shichimi togarashi, for finishing

Method

Place the filtered water in an earthenware pot and stir in the hondashi. Bring to a boil.

Add the sake and simmer for two minutes. Stir in the mirin and soy sauce, then reduce the heat and simmer for a few more minutes.

Add the dried wakame and continue cooking until it has fully expanded and softened.

Carefully add the silken tofu. Maintain a gentle simmer until the tofu is heated through, taking care not to break the pieces. Taste the broth and add a little more soy sauce if needed.

Drizzle with hot sesame oil and sprinkle with ground sesame seeds and shichimi togarashi. Ladle the tofu, wakame, and broth into individual bowls.

Notes

Dashi can be prepared from scratch using kombu and katsuobushi. For a quick and reliable alternative, I use hondashi, an instant bonito soup stock. To use homemade dashi in this recipe, substitute 3 1/2 c. prepared dashi for the filtered water and hondashi.