Tomato Cream Nabe, as seen in Yama no Susume: Third Season Episode 12!
Mountains, friendship, and delicious food: what more could anyone ever want? While not always the most vocal person, for Aoi in the anime Yama no Susume, her care for her friends is always evident, spurring her on even in her moments of self doubt and timidity. In episode 12, she expresses her gratitude in a special meal made with the mountains and her best friend, Hinata, in mind: a pot of Hinata’s favourite tomato cream nabe!
When I saw this dish featured in Yama no Susume: Third Season, I just knew I had to try it out! With all the different vegetables and meats, I was really curious what kind of taste this soup stew would have, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.
This simple dish is a cross between a soup and a stew (a soupy stew?) that vaguely reminds me of seafood bouillabaisse. It’s fairly hearty, with plenty of different meats and vegetables, and the addition of the cream gives the soup a lot of body and richness. While it’s a cinch to whip up in the comforts of your home, it could be a fancy meal to cook while camping (provided you have a cooler to keep the meat cold!).
About the recipe:
Making Tomato Cream Nabe, as seen in Yama no Susume: Third Season Episode 12!
The cooking directions I’ve written up below are a bit different from what is shown in the anime. The recipe is basically the same, and all the changes I’ve made are just to help smooth out the cooking process so that the meats don’t come out overcooked – particularly the shrimp. I also added the cream at the end of the cooking process so as to prevent it from possibly separating.
In the anime, Aoi adds chicken, shrimp, and canned tuna to the pot, but I was thinking that other meats would be fun, such as oysters or clams (canned or otherwise), fake/real crab meat, or other canned fishes. There’s definitely room to play with in this recipe, so feel free to experiment!
About the ingredients:
Making Tomato Cream Nabe, as seen in Yama no Susume: Third Season Episode 12!
Canned tomato is an easy way to add already prepped tomatoes to the dish without having to fuss with peeling and chopping them yourself. I used plain diced tomatoes without any added seasoning (like basil or garlic), but you could use a seasoned can of tomato for extra flavour – it’s up to you! I recommend diced tomatoes so that you get some puree/tomato juice as well as tomato chunks, but you could also use whole canned tomatoes if you want to control how big the tomato chunks are, or pureed tomato for a creamier soup.
Canned tuna in water is preferred in this dish (rather than canned tuna in oil) so as to reduce the amount of oil in the dish. Drain well before adding to the pot.
Homemade tomato cream nabe!
The recipe:
Tomato Cream Nabe
Makes ~4 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 skinless chicken breast, cut in half lengthwise and into thin bite-sized pieces
- 1 onion, cut in wedges
- 1 large potato, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 cups cabbage, coarsely chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 14oz (~400ml) can of diced tomatoes
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 cup cream (or more, to suit your tastes)
- 6 large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and cut in quarters
- 1 170g (120g drained weight) can of tuna in water, drained well
- Salt and pepper
- Dried basil or finely chopped parsley as garnish
Directions:
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat until shimmering. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Generously salt and pepper the chicken. Add chicken to the garlic and olive oil, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the outside of the chicken has turned white.
- Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5-8 minutes. Add potato and cabbage, and cook until the vegetables begin to sweat, about 4 minutes.
- Add canned tomatoes, water (rinse the can of tomatoes out with the water), basil, and bay leaf. Stir to incorporate. Cover and bring to a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are soft, about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in cream. Add the shrimp and tuna, using a spoon to break the tuna into bite sized chunks. Bring back to a gentle simmer over medium heat, and cook until the shrimp is just cooked, about 5 minutes.
- Taste and adjust the amount of salt and pepper as needed.
Serve Yama no Susume-style sprinkled with a little dried basil, and with a side of butter rolls and hotdogs!
Source: Blue Variance, with inspiration from episode 12 of Yama no Susume: Third Season.
Tomato Cream Nabe, as seen in Yama no Susume: Third Season Episode 12!
Butter rolls and hotdogs to go with Tomato Cream Nabe, as seen in Yama no Susume: Third Season Episode 12!
Itadakimasu Anime! 