Angeli's Sichuan Hot Pot

Sometimes we'd make Sichuan hot pot at home, which is like the Chinese version of fondue where you cook veggies and thinly sliced meats in a boiling spiced broth. Traditionally, we use Sichuan hot pot base mixed that we buy at Asian supermarkets. But one day, we didn't have any, and Steve had thought some thinly slicked Wagyu beef and pork belly specially for hot pot. Since I didn't feel like going to Houston's Asiatown (which is waaay west in Houston), I decided to make my own mix since I did have some ground Szechuan peppercorns (if it doesn't have lip-numbing Szechuan peppercorns and chili pappers in it, it ain't Sichuan :-)  ). It turned out to be pretty decent and probably healthy since it doesn't contain so much fat like these Sichuan hot pot mixes. Here's the recipe that I made (note: since I couldn't find star anise at the neighborhood HEB store, I had to make do with fennel which kind of came close.) Also, the level of spiciness was on target -- just enough spiciness and lip-numbing but not TOO hot. (To be fair, we love spicy and have been known to devour things that would make a grown-up man cry quiet tears of desparation. But sometimes there is such a thing to being too spicy.)

 Note: you'l need to find Szechuan peppercorns at an Asian supermarket, along with star anise. Szechuan peppercorns is also called Szechuan prickly ash (since they come from the prickly ash bush).They usually come whole, as opposed to ground. You could use whole if you prefer, but I prefer ground as it's easier to integrate into dishes.

Serves 3-4

One 32 oz carton of beef stock
One tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon ground Szechuan peppercorns
1-2 teaspoons of red chili peppers (I used Aleppo peppers from Penzey)
1-2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns
1/2 tablespoon sugar (this is to take away the bitterness of Szechan peppercorn)
Several pods of whole star anise (or 1 teaspoon of ground feneel)
One or two peeled  one-lnch sticks of ginger root
Several peeled cloves of garlic (no need to chop them)
3-4 green onions chopped
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil

Dump all this in a dutch oven on the stove, and bring to a boil. Let me boil slowly for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to make flavors mesh.

Then it's ready to cook. Bon appetit.