Dickson’s Wukong Hotpot serves traditional Sichuan dishes. Photo: Shawn Wang.
Wukong Hotpot, in Dickson, is one of the few places in Canberra where traditional Sichuan hotpot is served.
Not to be confused with the rising trend of Malatang, where the food you select is cooked for you and served in a bowl, hotpot is the do-it-yourself variety of spicy Sichuan cooking.
Why hotpot never really took off in Canberra has always been a mystery to me. Originating in China’s Sichuan province, it has all the hallmarks of more popular DIY styles of cooking, such as Korean barbecue or Japanese sukiyaki. It’s communal, it’s incredibly tasty and it’s reasonably affordable, yet it appears to be relegated to a niche interest primarily among Chinese expats in Canberra.
A recent visit to Wukong Hotpot gave me an inkling that the issue may lie in the presentation, which doesn’t cater well to the uninitiated hotpot participant.
The monkey king Sun Wukong presides over the hotpot restaurant. Photo: Tenele Conway.
As you walk through the doors of Wukong Hotpot, the Chinese monkey king, Sun Wukong, is awaiting your arrival. His presence is in the form of statues and paintings adorning the walls. Much like his journey leading a band of monkeys seeking eternal life, let me be your guide on the journey of hotpot.
Also awaiting your arrival is a tablet containing the menu. It has a mix of Chinese characters, some images and a little English translation, and this is where your journey begins.
With no explanation given on how hotpot works, this could be a roadblock for many diners.
The first step in your journey to hotpot heaven is choosing your broth. This is the soupy base that will be placed in a large bowl on the burner embedded in your table in which you will cook your chosen array of ingredients.
The broths come in a choice of single flavour, double flavour or triple flavour. I strongly recommend choosing two broths that will come in a vessel that is split down the middle.
You’ll then be presented with a choice of 12 flavours of broth, including spicy hotpots like black pepper, mala (Sichuan peppers), green chilli or signature spicy, along with less-heat-focused options like lamb bone, chicken, beef and king mushroom.
If you’re inclined to a little punishment, go ahead and choose two spicy options. I personally find one spicy and one bone broth is the ideal balance of flavours.
Once your broth is chosen, it’s time to select the raw ingredients that you will cook in your cauldron.
Ordering a mixed platter of vegetables helps achieve a good mix of ingredients. Photo: Tenele Conway.
The tablet organises these into categories for easy searching through the extensive options.
If this is your first hotpot experience, the choices can be overwhelming, so I’ll let you in on my go-to ingredients as a cheat sheet.
Two varieties of thinly sliced meats are a great way to start; I always go for beef and lamb, and the quality of the meat at Wukong is commendable, packed with flavour and paper thin. I then grab a mixed set of vegetables; ours came with cabbage, wood ear fungus, shiitake mushrooms, lotus root, enoki mushrooms, carrot and potato.
I then throw in an additional bowl of thinly sliced potatoes and some noodles, which are the perfect carriers for getting the most out of your broth. For good measure, we tossed in a plate of lap chung (Chinese sausage), which was new for me in hotpot and a worthy addition to my repertoire.
The tablet adds up your order as you go so you can keep track of your bill. When we were ready to place our order, we stumbled due to the lack of translation on the submit buttons. Our server was more than willing to help, and luckily for us, she pointed out that we had not added on the dipping sauces, which are essential to hotpot.
Using all the tools provided makes for an essential hotpot experience. Photo: Tenele Conway.
Hotpot is a vigorous activity and while the kitchen prepares your broths, it’s time to start thinking about your dipping sauces. Wukong has cleverly thought this through and next to the station of dipping sauce ingredients is a blackboard of suggestions of popular ingredient combinations from around China.
My favourite is a sesame oil-based combination I first had in the city of Chongqing in China. It goes like this: a little sesame paste, a little more sesame oil, a smidge of coriander, a sprinkle of shallots and a spoonful of crushed garlic. A little later, I came back and added some chicken extract and a touch of salt as it was falling a little flat.
The broth arrives quite quickly, but ensure you allow time for it to get up to a rolling boil and for the tallow in the spicy broth to melt, and then you are ready to cook.
There’s a little art to the cooking you should know: for things that take longer, like lotus root, carrot and potato, throw them in the broth and fish them back out after 10 minutes or so.
For things that cook fast, like the meats and leafy greens that cook in seconds, grab them with your chopsticks, lower them into the broth and hold onto them until ready.
Upon retrieval of cooked ingredients, dunk them directly into your dipping sauce and you’re ready to eat.
The staff at Wukong help with broth management and refill when needed. Photo: Tenele Conway.
For ease of cooking, make use of the tools given, which include a slotted spoon and ladle, as these can help in retrieving rogue food from the depths of the broth or for holding things that need a little longer to cook. Our server also offered a small basket that attaches to the divider of the pot, which was perfect for cooking the fresh noodles in.
The staff are also on the lookout to help with management of your broth. If it’s boiling too fast, they will turn it down, and when the broth gets low, they will top it up with water.
Although in this circumstance you’re the chef and have full control as to how you have your food, it is still best to start with quality ingredients and Wukong is dishing up fresh produce, quality meats and broths that have deep flavour and are cooked from real bones and tallow.
A word of warning on wearing your best clothes or anything white: maybe don’t; this can get a little messy, so be prepared. And when you think you’re full, take a word of advice from my dining partner, who remarked late in the meal as stomachs were distended and breathing was laboured: “You know what they say, you’re never too full for lap chung, it’s like dessert, it goes to a separate stomach.”
Wukong Hotpot is at G5/6 Cape Street, Dickson, and is open for lunch and dinner seven days a week.
Original Article published by Tenele Conway on Riotact.
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