Mizutaki (水炊き)

Mizutaki is Hakata's (Fukuoka's) celebrated chicken hotpot — a leisurely, multi-course weekend feast in which a milky-white collagen-rich broth is made by boiling bone-in chicken for hours, then vegetables, tofu, and glass noodles are cooked tableside and dipped in bright citrus ponzu.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the broth:

• 1 whole chicken (about 1.5 kg / 3.3 lb), backbone and carcass separated, meat cut into bone-in pieces
• 2.5 litres (10 cups) cold water
• 1 piece kombu (10cm / 4 inches)
• 1 tbsp sake

For the hotpot:

• 400g (14 oz) firm tofu, cut into cubes
• 1/4 head napa cabbage (hakusai), roughly chopped
• 200g (7 oz) shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
• 1 bunch enoki mushrooms, bases trimmed
• 200g (7 oz) harusame (glass noodles), soaked 10 minutes and drained
• 4 spring onions, cut into 5cm (2 inch) lengths
• 1 block silken tofu (300g / 10.5 oz) for finishing broth

Ponzu dipping sauce:

• 80ml (1/3 cup) soy sauce
• 60ml (1/4 cup) yuzu juice (or lemon + lime juice)
• 40ml (3 tbsp) mirin, briefly heated to burn off alcohol
• 10g (1/3 oz) katsuobushi (bonito flakes)
• Daikon oroshi (grated daikon) and sliced spring onion, to garnish

Instructions

1. Two hours before eating (broth): Place the chicken backbone, carcass, and skin in a pot with 2.5 litres cold water. Bring to a rapid boil and boil vigorously for 5 minutes, skimming grey foam thoroughly. Add sake and kombu.
2. Reduce heat to a lively simmer and cook uncovered for 1.5 hours until the broth turns opaque and milky white. Remove carcass pieces. Season lightly with salt.
3. Make ponzu: Combine soy sauce, yuzu juice, and mirin. Add bonito flakes and steep 30 minutes, then strain. Refrigerate until serving.
4. At the table, set the pot of milky broth on a portable burner over medium heat. Add the bone-in chicken pieces and simmer 12-15 minutes.
5. Add firm tofu, napa cabbage, shiitake, enoki, and spring onions. Cook 5-8 minutes until tender. Serve portions into individual bowls with ponzu dipping sauce garnished with grated daikon.
6. Add glass noodles to the pot in the final stage to soak up the rich broth.
7. Finish by ladling the reduced broth, now intensely rich, into bowls as a soup to close the meal.

Cook's Notes: The key to a truly white, milky broth is maintaining a vigorous boil in the first hour — low heat produces a clear broth. Prepare the broth the day before and refrigerate; skim the solidified fat before reheating.