Shabu Shabu

Shabu Shabu Lane Cove style...

You need:

• A little table top gas burner. We picked ours up from an Asian supermarket for about $30 including 3 gas cans.
• 1 piece of kombu seaweed which you will need to drop into the boiling water just before you start eating).
• Thinly sliced beef (bought pre-sliced from your local Asian food store - often frozen). You can also buy a beef fillet, put it in the freezer, then thinly slice when semi-frozen.
• Sliced chinese cabbage (otherwise known as wombok).
• Fresh whole shitake mushrooms
• Enoki mushrooms broken up into little bunches.
• Bean thread noodles. Look for the unrefrigerated, knotted version at your local Asian food store. They're cute little mouthfuls that you can easily drop in.
• Silken tofu cut into 1 inch squares
• Thinly sliced carrot
• Scallions - cut into 2 inch lengths.

If you have time it's always best to make your own dipping sauces (the bottled versions are expensive and not nearly as nice):

Ponzu Dipping Sauce (for about 4-6 people)

1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice (1 whole lemon)
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup dashi

Sesame Sauce (for about 4-6 people)
6 tbsp crushed white toasted sesame seeds or about 2 heaped tbsps of pre-made paste
3 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2.5 tbsps soy sauce
.5 tsp grated garlic
.5 cup dashi

 Just measure up the quanitites and mix - easy!

The proper way to eat shabu shabu...

Finish the beef first, dipping it into the sesame sauce, then drop in all the veges in and eat them with the ponzu. Traditionally, the noodles and tofu are eaten last.