Ultimate Comfort Food: Asian Hot Pots

The Hot Pot, also known as huo guo, Mongolian Hot Pot, Chinese Fondue, or shabu-shabu in Japanese, boasts a history of over 1000 years (!) With a simmering pot of stock in the center of the table and an array of hot pot healthy and fresh ingredients -- sliced meat, leafy vegetables, tofu, fish balls, dumplings, noodles “ plus savory dipping sauces, the hotpot is a popular tradition across Asia.

Bring friends and get your soupy hot pot fix at J's Mini Hot Pot (Buford Hwy and Duluth). Canton House (Buford Hwy) has a delicious variety of "dry" braised hot pots filled with eggplant, tofu or meat. Korean restaurants like So Kong Dong Tofu House specialize in bubbling spicy or mild hotpots that have seafood, dumplings or tofu and are amazing over steaming rice like a spicy rice porridge. It's delicious, warming, healthy and a lot of fun! The ultimate comfort food.

Cultural funny: Whenever my dad comes back from a visit to Taiwan or China during hotpot season, all his old friends there treat him to bottomless hotpots and he gets "hot-potted out." He comes back to the U.S. craving a BK Whopper or Steak 'n' Shake! I guess there can be too much of a good thing...