Simple living is my goal for 2011. That include cooking. So how did I celebrate my New Year’s Eve Dinner?
I had Chinese Hot Pot with some friends and cooked more than ten different vegetables and six different types of seafood, dipped in four different sauces that you cook at your table. Yeah. That doesn’t spell s.i.m.p.l.e. but simply H.E.A.V.E.N.L.Y!!
Hot Pot has been around in China for more than 1000 years.
Is anything from China less than 1000 years old?
Anyway, Hot Pot was usually done in a clay pot on the table, over a flame. People would gather around the table and cook the items of their choice, in their own pace. What a great idea! Let people cook their own food, right?
It is fun to cook this way. Trust me. This takes no cooking skills and no training. Even if you don’t know how to boil water, I guarantee, you’ll wobble away from being full and happy.
My New Year’s Eve Hot Pot meal took more than two hours because we chose what we wanted to eat, told jokes and laughed while they were being cooked, and leisurely savored each bite, dipped in sauces of our choice. We ate for hours and practiced S-l-o-w Food Movement. We had sustainable seafood and fresh veggies that we could find at a local supermarket. We had homemade sauces and fresh condiments to dip in. It was the healthiest meal I ever had on a New Year’s Eve. What a great year to start the new year!
