Asian Hot Pot Redux

About a year or so ago I made a very tasty Asian hotpot using not-so-Asian ingredients (green beans, for example).

Yesterday I revisited the idea, with a few twists. My main inspiration was the pound of firm tofu sitting in the fridge.

Asian Hot Pot Redux

3 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I actually used a mish-mosh of open vegetable and chicken broth)
6 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup rice-wine vinegar
1/4 cup mirin
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 pound angel hair pasta (could also use cellophane noodles)
3/4 pound Chinese cabbage, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1/2 pound firm tofu, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/8-inch slices about 1/2 inch wide and 1 1/2 inches long
3 scallions including green tops, sliced

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. Return to pot.

While pasta is cooking, in a medium stainless-steel saucepan, combine the broth, soy sauce, vinegar, mirin, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, sugar, and salt. Bring just to a simmer, stirring occasionally.

Add the hot ginger broth to the pasta along with the cabbage, tofu, mushrooms and scallions. Bring back to a simmer and cook. While broth is coming to a simmer, sautee chicken in a separate pan. When cooked thru, add to broth and stir to combine. Remove from the heat and let sit about 1 minute. Serve hot.

p.s. I added a dash of chili sauce to give it a kick. Yum.
p.p.s. This is obviously easily made vegan/vegetarian by removing the chicken and substituting in vegetable broth for the chicken broth

Wine Pairing: I pulled out a bottle of Alsatian Pinot Blanc. It paired beautifully, I think. Another option would be a Viogner.