I love hot pot soups, so I was excited to check out Amy Kimoto-Kahn's newest cookbook. I like how she has various different soup bases at the start. Some only need a few ingredients and while others are a little longer. I know Amy is keeping things authentic in her recipes, but some of the ingredients are not easy to find. You will definitely need a trip or two to the Asian market. And listing Kobe wagyu beef and various pricey mushrooms in her recipes is kind of a bummer for those who are on a budget. What it comes down to is this book is great for people who are comfortable and knowledgeable towards Asian cuisine and they don't mind shelling some cash for pricey ingredients.

The author delivered an exceptional presentation of traditional, Japanese, hot-pot cooking. Its well-organized  pages were filled with colorful illustrations, many that carried a personal touch. Not to miss a beat, Amy clearly displayed  ingredients, recommended cooking strategies and completed meals. The simple ingredients and easy-to-follow instructions made for a complete cookbook that would be an asset in any kitchen.

The appeal of one-pot cooking is in its simplicity, variety and, especially, the ease of clean-up. For a pleasant change, there's never a smell of burning oil or burnt food permeating the kitchen. Undercooked or overcooked meals become a thing of the past. If you're a huge fan of one-pot meals, such as I am, then this is the book for you.

I extend my thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group - Race Point Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

I found this book a fascinating read with lots of beautiful pictures of food that look amazing. Even the vegetarian recipes look tasty as often I find these quite disappointing. I’m quite excited to try some of these delicious dishes out. Also the deserts at the back of the book look amazing.

Although I'd heard of hot pots before picking up this cookbook, I honestly had little idea what they actually were.  Which, is a good part of why this book attracted my attention.  That and I love to cook - and eat - different kinds of food.  Besides, get a load of that cover.  Doesn't it make you hungry just looking at it?

So, what is a hot pot exactly?  It's a healthy, affordable meal that is also quick and easy to prepare.  Starting with a steaming hot broth, you build upon it by adding proteins, vegetables, rice or noodles, sauce, and garnishes.  A good-for-you dinner that will fill your belly and not break the bank at the same time.  

Simply Hot Pots covers all the bases giving you recipes for twelve different broths, a handful of sauces, and hot pots to fit every taste, diet, and need.  There are plenty of meat-based, seafood-based, and vegetarian recipes to choose from as well as a special section for spicy hot pots in case that's your jam.  Truth be told, I love spicy stir fries, so I'm definitely all in with these spicy hot pots.  

This is an exceptionally comprehensive cookbook.  You're not only given a ton of recipes (including desserts!) and instructions on how to build the perfect hot pot, but you're also blessed with a ton of additional information as well.  There's a list of traditional equipment as well as substitutions that you probably already have lurking in your cupboards.  You get a glossary of ingredients plus more common replacements in case you're unable to locate some of the more unique ingredients.  In addtion, the photos of the food - and the author's family - are beautifully done, making you want to pull up a chair and grab your chopsticks.

This book has the most delicious looking food! I’m so glad there is a glossary at the back because I don’t know what some of these ingredients. Can’t wait to start making some of these dishes for my family! Big thank you to NetGalley for the free download and to the author and publisher of this wonderful book!

Well-written and very well produced but there is a 'degree of commitment required.

You see each hot pot dish has as its base one of 12 homemade broths, some of which have a prerequisite homemade stock or require dashi. For pork dishes, the pork bone broth calls for a quantity of pigs trotters bashed with a mallet to release their marrow, and a commercial sized 29l pressure cooker. To be fair, the author does suggest making in 2 batches in a smaller cooker, though the largest domestic pressure cooker is an 8l.

Unsurprisingly, most dishes require Japanese ingredients, though the author proposes substitutes for the hard to obtain, e.g. watercress for chrysanthemum leaves.

I experimented by making the slow cooked beef brisket tomato nabe. This required a vegetable stock which went towards a tomato broth. Both were simple to make but required a bit of time and effort. The result was worth it, absolutely delicious with a depth of flavour. (I halved the quantities of all but the meat and had enough for 6 with lots of leftover broth and vegetables).

So, I feel that the quality of writing and production, and the results, merit 5 stars but I must also highlight the commitment required to produce a high quality result. It almost calls for a lifestyle choice, making up and freezing batches of broth. Once done, making up the recipes is indeed a simple one pot affair.

This is an excellent recipe book that im looking forward to adding to my collection and using. It takes you through the basics; from equipment to broths before showing a number of different meats and vegtable recipes.
Each recipe gives a skill level, prep and cook time along with home many it feeds.

Beautiful photography and delicious recipes that will be a family favorite are just the beginning of this cookbook. Well organized and thought out, home chefs will not be left in the cold looking for ingredients. Amy explains the back ground and flavors of all the broths and sauces and what foods they pair well with, giving the reader a base to create their own dishes from. The dishes are described with care and attention to detail but leave open the ability to play with the combinations to your own taste and location. Substitutions are explained with each recipe that includes a difficult to find ingredient. No matter if your town does not have an Asian market you can make any dish in this book. Such a wonderful chef, Amy Kimoto-Kahn has brought Asian home cooking to the American masses and continues to dazzle us. I can not wait to make my own hot-pot. Thank you for creating such a lovely book.

Simply Hot Pots breaks down these Japanese dishes in an easy to understand way. Amy Kimoto-Kahn walks you through the equipment and proper presentation. She then breaks down the recopies into section such as broths which is the first layer in a Hot Pot. As I Have a sweet tooth, my favorite section was the desserts and the yummy pictures.

The food look really delicious and beautifully presented. They look really healthy too. I might just dig that old crock pot out of the back of the cupboard and dust it off. All the reciepts look easy to follow and the ingredients are all known to me and readily available. No stone milled organic sumartran flax seeds. Just fresh meat and vegatables. yummy!

I love hot pots and love Japanese food more. This is one of the easiest recipe books I have ever read and understood the method of preparing and making hot pots of all kinds. Thank you for taking the time to put this book together. It is going to be a hit.