Hot pot is delicious and loved by many, but eating it often leads to adverse symptoms like "heatiness." How can you avoid harming your body? The following are some precautions to take when eating hot pot.
1. Don't eat food as soon as it's cooked. Some items in a hot pot can be eaten after being cooked for a few minutes, but the temperature of the boiling broth usually exceeds what the mouth and tongue can tolerate. Coupled with the spicy seasonings, this can easily irritate the mouth and lead to health problems over time. Therefore, you should try to lift the food out of the pot and let it cool down before eating.
2. Don't put in too many ingredients. When eating hot pot, people often put a large amount of food into the pot at once. This can cause the ingredients to挤压 (jǐ yā - press/crowd) against each other, and delicate foods will be crushed and sink to the bottom, forming a paste. When this paste accumulates, it affects the flavor of the hot pot and may also produce substances that are unhealthy for the body. Therefore, when eating hot pot, try to put in fewer ingredients to ensure there is enough space in the pot.
3. Don't cook meat for too short a time. Meat contains a large amount of bacteria and parasite eggs, and if it's not cooked for long enough, these harmful substances will not be killed. Generally, thin slices of meat only need to be cooked for about a minute, until the color changes from bright red to grayish-white. For thicker slices of meat, cook for a longer time to ensure they are thoroughly cooked before eating.
4. Don't drink the hot pot broth. Many people enjoy drinking the savory hot pot broth, but the base broth contains a large amount of animal fat and spicy seasonings. Drinking a lot of it can damage the gastrointestinal tract and may contribute to high blood pressure. If you want to taste the broth, try to drink it as soon as it begins to boil, but drink it in moderation.