Hot Pot

Have you ever had "Hot Pot"? The one we had this past week was with a couple we've met through our curriculum director here in Mongolia, an American who has lived here for 13 years. She and this couple are like "family" to one another.


The couple is a Mongolian woman who teaches language and her Laotian husband who has been a doctor in the past and does other business here in Mongolia. They have a 20 year old daughter who studies in the U.S., but she's home for the summer.




"Hot Pot" is a soup broth base in an electric-wok-type of container in the middle of the table. We selected the meat we wanted (beef) and put it in a "sieve" type of ladle that allowed the meat to sit down in the boiling broth.


Then we added all kinds of veggies after the meat was cooked (greens, onions, celery, cilantro), and then boiled it for a few minutes then transferred it to our bowl. It's the Asian style of fondu, I think! After the meat and vegetables have been put in your individual soup bowl, you add some broth into your bowl and add some Asian "glass" noodles and peanut sauce and you have a bowl of yumminess!

Besides the great food, we had great conversation and encouragement as we spent time with these friends.



Here's some ground up peanut sauce that, at first glance, looks like raw ground beef. Be not deceived! It's tofu, peanuts, and some spicy sauce; float this in your bowl of soup and you've got extra flavor going on! I think Rachael Ray would say "Yum-O". I know I did! And, I got my week's supply of vegetables in this one meal!