Most of us can relate to when we go home to our parents or visit our grandparents, their food often is much better than our own. Both the recipes and the way they cook it. Some dishes are easier to cook and recreate than others, for example, pasta dishes or just simple tacos (Delicious tho). But one thing that I missed for a looooong time as a student was the classic winter/autumn hotpot. Because we have it quite often at home or at least when my parents have friends over.

It’s such an iconic vibe when you see the pot and the mashed potatoes/cooked potatoes (or whatever u want beside). Last week I actually gave it a try, and since I was so surprised at how easy (?) it was, I wanted to share it with you in case anybody else wants to try it. My choice of side was potato gratin and my protein was pork tenderloin filet.

So I started by cutting up the filet into small long pieces and then I put them in my cast iron pot with some butter to coat them (Read my last article for the difference between Teflon and cast iron). In the meantime, I cut up some onions and some mushrooms. Then I took out the filet pieces and put in the mushrooms and onions with some butter to cook them as well. When they were soft and cooked, I put some tomato puree (An important ingredient since tomato puree contains a substance that enhances flavors).

Then I let that cook together for maybe 1 minute before I added back the filet. Immediately after, I put in some meat broth, cream, milk, and red wine and let that simmer for 10-15 minutes. During these minutes, you can do the dishes and dance some. When that step was done, I put in some Japanese soy sauce, salt, pepper, calf fund, rosemary, mustard, and even more tomato puree. I thought it needed some more, but it’s totally based on the preference of course.

When those steps are done, the next thing is just based on how you want it. If you want it to be thinner you can add more milk or red wine, depending on the taste. If you want it to be thicker, you can let it simmer for longer or mix flour and water in a separate container until a thick paste and add it slowly to the pot while stirring. You can add some parsley on top when you serve it or if you want in the pot as well, add other ingredients or vegetables.

The hot pot is a perfectly simple dish if you just miss something hot and more of a “Winter-dish” to get cozy with. There is a similar recipe on Ica which you can find down here in Swedish. Just to add my preference, I had more butter, more tomato puree, switched the hen broth to meat broth, less mustard, no “Majsstärkelse” and maybe 1 glass of red (!) wine. Both in the pot and beside ;).