Steamin' with the New Steam Pot at Huat Pot

You've tried hot pot before, but have you tried steam pot?

Huat Pot Restaurant adds a new spin to your dining experience with their new Steam Pot style of cooking, using the freshest ingredients right on your table. The latest trend in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, steam pot comes to the metro at Huat Pot...

Chef Jonas Ng continues to innovate with the introduction of steam pot table-top cooking at Huat Pot (for more on Huat Pot, see my previous posts, Hot Pot? Make That Huat Pot! and Huat Pot Redux: A Few Tips to Enjoy Your Huat Pot Experience). A healthy cooking method, diners can experience pure and fresh notes with the steam pot for a new flavor experience.

At the special tables, one can't miss the unique table-top steam pot with its glass lid. Once you go for Huat Pot's new Steam Pot (P 688), the staff then prepare the congee at the base of the steam pot. The congee slowly cooks as you steam the fresh ingredients, with its juices slowly dripping to the congee for even more flavor.

For the broth of the congee, simply choose from Huat Pot's signature soup stocks, like the Huat Pot Special, a clear soup; the Sate Soup with its bold BBQ notes, the Chicken Soup, a mild and delicate broth; the Laksa Soup, a rich red curry seafood broth, and the Szechuan Soup, a spicy number with a refreshingly soothing heat. As the congee starts to simmer, the staff then place a special steamer over the congee, topping it fresh vegetables and choice beef and pork before covering it with the glass lid. The steaming process just takes a few minutes, but it's always a good idea to have an ice-cold bottle of beer...

Cooking your own meal right on your table is part of the fun at Huat Pot. And just like their hot pot, the new steam pot has that added element of interactive fun, steaming away to gently cook the thin slices of meat. Lifting the glass lid releases the steam with its mildly fragrant aroma, as the colors of the beef slowly transform...

And it's ready. The freshly steamed beef, along with the vegetables, delivers a mild yet rich savory flavor. Try it first with salt and pepper to taste the pure flavors of the beef, followed by the special sauce of Huat Pot. Each bite of the beef releases light and delicate savory notes. It's all about real flavors with the steam pot. Then, it's time to steam the other ingredients...

...like the thin slices of pork and a variety of tasty cheese, seafood and crab balls, the same flavorful add-ons from Huat Pot's signature hot pot. As you lay the different ingredients on the steamer, the congee at the base is enriched with the flavors of the beef, pork, and seafood balls.  

Just like the beef, the tender slices of pork delivers delicate savory notes with a subtle sweetness, perfect with just salt and pepper. It's the fresh, pure, and clean notes that make the steam pot a refreshingly new dining experience at Huat Pot.

The perfectly steamed seafood balls are soft with just the right snap with every bite, best paired with Huat Pot's signature sauce.

Huat Pot also serves a variety of fresh seafood for the steam pot, including Crab (P 300-100g), Shrimps (P 150-100g), Cream Dory (P 120-100g), Sea Cucumber (P 120-50g), Salmon Head (P 100-100g), and Squid (P 100-100g), adding to your steam pot feast at Huat Pot.

And in just a few minutes, the freshly steamed seafood is ready. Steaming seafood preserves its briny sweetness, allowing you to enjoy real flavors.

Infused with all the flavors of the steamed ingredients, cap your steam pot dining experience at Huat Pot with a bowl of congee for that perfect finish. Chef Jonas Ng definitely has a steaming hot idea here, but he's got even more tasty surprises... 

Chef Jonas Ng then shared Huat Pot's new dishes from the A La Carte menu, dishes he grew up with drawing inspiration from his mom's recipes. These tasty and comforting dishes included homestyle staples like the Salted Fish Fried Rice (P 275) with its distinctly sharp and bold notes...

...followed by a pair of simple egg dishes, starting with the Egg with Mayo (P 190), with its blend of textural contrasts and flavors...

...and the traditional Egg with Tomatoes, with the tart notes of the tomatoes weaving its own vibrant flavors to the dish. It's a taste of simple yet real food, and Chef Jonas Ng returns to his roots with his ala carte dishes inspired by his mom's family recipes. 

A pair of stir-fried vegetables were then served, with the Stir-Fry Kuchay (P 160) and the Stir-Fry Kangkong (P 150), tasty palate cleansing dishes with fresh flavors...

...followed by the traditional Braised Beef Sate Chami (P 240), a hearty noodle dish with the savory richness of fork-tender braised beef. Sometimes, the simplest dishes are often the most satisfying, triggering childhood memories with every bite taking you back to simpler times.

Save some of the Salted Fish Fried Rice for the savory Braised Beef Tendon with Radish (P 250), with melt-in-your-mouth beef tendon in a rich sauce...

...and the unique stewed pork dish, Braised Pork with Preserved Vegetables (P 220), what Chef Jonas Ng described as their family's version of "adobo." The richness of the pork is perfectly tempered by the salty notes of the preserved vegetables, and you'll want some extra Salted Fish Fried Rice with this one. Steam pot and comforting homestyle ala carte dishes, Chef Jonas Ng is definitely steaming up with fresh and inventive flavors, enough reasons to go back again at Huat Pot.

Huat Pot Hot Pot Restaurant is located at Unit 2F, Metropoint Center, P. Guevarra corner Averilla Streets, San Juan City or call 650-3091 for inquiries and reservations.

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