Nabe & Hot Pots

Italian Wine Pairings for Japanese Nabe and Hot Pots

Communal hot-pot cooking: sukiyaki sweet-savoury, shabu-shabu lean-and-clean, oden long-simmered dashi. Italian light reds with bright acid and mineral whites match the table's range.

Sukiyaki's mirin-soy reduction creates a sweet-savoury sauce that suits Cerasuolo di Vittoria and Etna Rosso; shabu-shabu's clean-water dipping cooking pairs cleaner with Vermentino di Sardegna and Verdicchio. Read more

Quick Facts

Grape colour mix

50% red 50% white

Rules of Engagement

The Do's

  1. 01

    Sukiyaki gets Sicilian light reds

    The mirin-soy reduction calls for Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG or Frappato di Vittoria. Etna Rosso also works.

The Do's

  • 01

    Sukiyaki gets Sicilian light reds

    The mirin-soy reduction calls for Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG or Frappato di Vittoria. Etna Rosso also works.

The Don'ts

  • 01

    No whites for offal hot pot

    Motsu nabe (beef intestine) demands light-tannin reds. Whites collapse against gamey offal.

Pairings for Japanese Nabe & Hot Pots

Search within this food-pairing guide.

Showing 1–2 of 2 dishes

Oden, plated

Oden

Oden is the long-simmered dashi-based hot pot: daikon, hard-boiled egg, fish cakes (chikuwa, hanpen), konnyaku, and beef tendon poached in light bonito-kombu broth for hours. The dish reads salt-clean and umami-driven. Italian Soave Superiore (Garganega) and Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi shadow the broth; Franciacorta Satèn (lower pressure) works for sparkling service.

Perfect grape varieties

Garganega

Also worth trying

Verdicchio Chardonnay

Appellations to explore

SoaveDOC Alta LangaDOCG Alto Adige/SüdtirolDOC Castelli di Jesi Verdicchio RiservaDOCG FranciacortaDOCG
Sukiyaki, plated

Sukiyaki

Sukiyaki is sweet-savoury hot pot: thinly sliced beef, tofu, shiitake, scallion, and shungiku simmered in warishita (soy-mirin-sugar-sake reduction), then dipped in beaten raw egg. The dish stacks fat (beef), sugar (mirin), umami (mushroom). Italian Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG (Frappato + Nero d'Avola) delivers light-tannin red with bright acid for the warishita; Etna Rosso also works.

Perfect grape varieties

Frappato

Also worth trying

Nerello Mascalese Nero d'Avola

Appellations to explore

SiciliaDOC Cerasuolo di VittoriaDOCG PalizziIGT BivongiDOC EtnaDOC

Why these Italian wine pairings work for Japanese Nabe & Hot Pots

Sukiyaki's mirin-soy reduction creates a sweet-savoury sauce that suits Cerasuolo di Vittoria and Etna Rosso; shabu-shabu's clean-water dipping cooking pairs cleaner with Vermentino di Sardegna and Verdicchio. Oden's long-simmered dashi-based broth wants Soave Superiore or a Trentodoc to balance the salt with bubble or acid.

Explore More Pairings

Japanese Nabe & Hot Pots wine pairing questions

Cerasuolo di Vittoria DOCG (Frappato + Nero d'Avola) and Frappato di Vittoria handle the sweet-savoury warishita and beef. Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) is the alternative.

Shabu shabu's clean-water cooking and ponzu dipping sauce suit Vermentino di Gallura, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, and Falanghina del Sannio. The acid matches citrus-soy.

Match the broth. Sukiyaki and chanko nabe carry weight, suiting medium-bodied light reds. Shabu and oden run cleaner, suiting acid-driven coastal whites.

Further Reading