BROTH

The cooking medium will depend on the region. The hugely popular spicy Chongqing style broth from Sichuan tradition has a chicken, beef or fish base, seasoned with punchy flavours like garlic, star anise, ginger, soy and, of course, Sichuan peppercorns and a tonne of chilli. Japan’s shabu shabu on the other hand, has a much subtler kombu-based broth, Korea’s jeongol combines a Japanesestyle broth with the heat of chilli, Thailand’s suki is flavoured with a sauce made from chilli, garlic, lime and coriander, while Vietnamese hotpots often feature lau, a light, clear broth.