Ishikari Nabe Hokkaido Salmon Miso Hot Pot

Ingredients

• 1 salmon head, split, gills removed, rinsed
• 400 g salmon belly and loin pieces, cut into large chunks, skin on
• 1.2 litres dashi, kombu-and-bonito or kombu only
• 80 g Hokkaido miso, slightly sweet variety; dissolve in broth before serving
• 30 ml sake
• 1 ear corn, kernels cut from cob
• 300 g Hokkaido potato, peeled, cut into large chunks
• 1 medium onion, cut into wedges
• 1 stalk burdock (gobo), shaved or cut on the diagonal, soaked in cold water
• 300 g firm tofu, cut into large cubes
• 40 g Hokkaido butter, cold, in one piece, floated on surface at table
• Optional at service
• 60 g ikura (salmon roe), spooned into individual bowls
• Optional shime
• 2 portions instant ramen noodles, cooked in remaining broth after the pot is finished

Method

1. 1
   Place the split salmon head in the dashi with the sake. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, skimming any foam that rises. The broth is ready at this stage when it carries a faint milky opacity and a clean salmon-collagen scent — not a sharp fish smell.
2. 2
   Add the potato, onion, and burdock to the simmering broth. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes until the potato yields to a skewer but holds its shape. The corn kernels go in during the final two minutes of this stage. Test by pressing a potato chunk against the side of the pot with a spoon — it should give without crumbling.
3. 3
   Dissolve the miso into a ladleful of hot broth, then stir it back into the pot. Add the tofu. Taste the broth: it should be assertive but not dominant — the salmon's own salt and richness will add to it in the next step. Adjust miso only at this point; adding more later risks an overwhelming salty-miso broth.
4. 4
   Add the salmon belly and loin pieces to the simmering broth. This is where the dish lives or dies: the salmon cooks in 3 to 4 minutes and must be removed from heat the moment the flesh turns from translucent to just opaque at its thickest point. Overcooked salmon — pale, flaking to mush — cannot be recovered. Watch the cut edge of each piece; as soon as no raw colour remains at the centre, the pot is done.
5. 5
   Bring the nabe to the table over a portable burner set to its lowest setting. Float the cold butter on the surface of the broth. It will melt slowly as the meal proceeds, enriching each bowl drawn from the pot. Serve immediately, ladling broth, vegetables, and salmon into individual bowls. Add ikura to each bowl at the moment of serving if using.