I’ll bet you ¥5 that you’ve never eaten a from a pot like that before.
Hot pot is no stranger to most Singaporeans. But have you had hot pot with a “mountain” jutting out from the soup base, as shown in the photo?
This is the traditional way of eating hot pot in Beijing, and for the best experience, we recommend heading down to Dong Lai Shun, one of the leading hotpot chains in Beijing.
What is “traditional” hot pot even?
Dong Lai Shun uses a cloisonne pot, which is a type of enameling technique that solders metal decorations onto the pot.
But, the real “traditional” part about this hot pot comes from the central chimney jutting out of the pot. Without a temperature-adjusting stove in the past, opening and covering the chimney was how people used to regulate the size of the fire. Opening up the air hole introduces more oxygen to the fire, allowing the water to boil more vigorously, vice versa.
What we ate at Dong Lai Shun
If you’re not sure what to eat at Dong Lai Shun, here’s what we recommend.
Water as the soup base…?
We’re probably used to choosing chicken broth, tomato soup or mala as our hotpot broth. But take a guess at what their signature is?
Drumroll please… water!
We’re not kidding! Donglaishun uses Laoshan Mineral Water (¥48, S$9).
Hot pot with water may sound a little unappetising. But it allowed the ingredients’ natural flavours to be in the limelight. Especially in the case of Dong Lai Shun, which uses high quality ingredients.
At the end of the meal, you’ll also get a flavourful pot of soup which is flavoured by the ingredients you’ve order, kinda like mookata, when the oil of the meats would seep into the soup at the bottom.
However, those who prefer more robust flavours can upgrade to the Mala Pot (¥68, S$13) and Mushroom Pot (¥78, S$15).
Hot pot ingredients we ordered
Now, onto the traditional aspect of the food.
Donglaishun’s lambs’ diets consist of only mineral water and a wild onion native to Mongolia (Allium mongolicum Regel). Moreover, only the best parts of the cattle are optimised. We ordered several lamb dishes with that in mind.
For starters, we had a plate of Principal Filter Grill (炙子烤肉) (¥68; $13). The meat by itself had a pungent ‘goaty’ flavor. But the assortment of scallions and onions serrates the pungence with a sweet and spicy note.
For the hotpot ingredients, we ordered the Traditional Hand-cut Lamb Neck Meat. It was more tender than expected, with a milder ‘goaty’ taste.
Dong Lai Shun at Beijing APM Mall
Being one of the leading hotpot chains in Beijing, it is no surprise that there are multiple outlets branched across the city. Out of convenience for our itinerary, we selected the one at APM Mall found along Wangfujing Shopping Street.
It was spacious and had good ventilation, which is one of my indicators for a good hot pot restaurant. But, overall, the restaurant was still too warm for an enjoyable meal.
Our verdict
In my opinion, the anchor of the restaurant was mainly the traditional aspects of the cloisonne pot.
The ingredients were decent, but not mind-blowing. The only thing that exceeded our expectations was the Principal Filter Grill, which wasn’t a hotpot dish.
Location: China, Beijing, Dongcheng, Jinbao St, 88号金宝汇购物中心5层
Tel: +86 10 8522 1234
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