Unless you’re Japanese or an expert on the topic of Japanese cuisine, chances are you wouldn’t be able to differentiate between Japanese sukiyaki and shabu-shabu. Believe us, not even die-hard foodies know the difference so it’s totally understandable that you don’t.

Quit making the mistake of thinking that both of them are the same because they’re worlds apart.

For one, sukiyaki is not hot pot, despite the fact that it is typically eaten out of a pot. Sure, it’s a one-pot-meal (essentially) but there is no soup nor stock involved—rather, a sauce. Shabu-Shabu, on the other hand, bears similar qualities of the conventional hot pot in that raw ingredients are cooked in a pot of boiling water or broth but still, there are some differences.

Sukiyaki is considerably more full-flavoured and robust. Commonly eaten during wintertime, this style of cooking involves raw ingredients, usually raw beef, vegetables and tofu cooked in a shallow base comprising soy sauce, mirin (Japanese rice wine) and sugar.

More of a sauce than a broth, the flavour of sukiyaki is sweeter and more pronounced. It is typically eaten with rice and meat is dipped into a raw beaten egg. The egg provides richness and also smoothens out the intense sweetness of the beef.

Shabu-Shabu, on the other hand, is much lighter and more savoury than sweet. Like conventional hot pot meals we’re used to, shabu-shabu involves cooking raw ingredients piece by piece in the centre of the table in a boiling pot of water or broth.

The broth is much lighter in flavour, sometimes flavoured with no more than bonito, kombu and a bit of salt to taste. The main difference between shabu-shabu and sukiyaki (besides its sweet and savoury rivalry) is that rather than just egg as a dip, shabu-shabu sees a variety of different dipping sauces—allowing diners to appreciate ingredients in more than one way.

From a diner’s point of view, the best way to understand the difference between the two is to know that sukiyaki is sweeter, tastier and heavily reliant on the quality of its base whereas shabu-shabu is milder, simpler yet places heavy emphasis on the quality of the ingredients.

When craving for Japanese food, one of my to-go places is Akashi Japanese Restaurant. It has reliable and pretty good Japanese food. And most importantly, a meal at Akashi is relatively affordable – if you go for their set meals. Most of the sets – served with salad/rice, soup and fruits – are priced below $20 during lunch (additional $3-4 for dinner).

The Sushi Tsuki ($16 lunch, $20 dinner), pictured above, comes with a beautiful assortment of nigiri sushi. Good value for the portion.

The Otsukuri set ($26 lunch, $29 dinner), served with an assortment of freshly-sliced sashimi, is a simple set of classic Japanese favourites for the ladies with smaller appetites.

Tenzaru Chasoba set ($15 lunch, $18 dinner) with gorgeous deep-fried tempura that is not too greasy. The chilled green tea noodle is also one of the better ones, and the tempura moriawase includes ebi, salmon and root vegetables coated with fragrant fresh batter.

The Sukiyaki ($16 lunch, $19 dinner) is also worth a try. Slices of beef and vegetable lightly cooked in a sweet and flavourful broth; so hearty, it is something that I can eat all the time.

If you are not going to Akashi for their omakase, you will still be served fresh sashimi and sushi. But, do not harbour high expectations of the ala carte items – at that price, the quality is decent, but certainly not the gastronomic level you would get when you pay at fine dining restaurants.

The sets are very decently-priced and it works out to be an enjoyable experience that is not too gruelling on the pocket. A meal at Akashi is probably slightly more expensive than your usual sushi chains, but I dare say they have much better Japanese food.

Akashi Japanese Restaurant
1 Harbourfront Walk
#B2-07-09 VivoCity
Tel: +65 6681 6719
Daily: 11.30am – 11pm

290 Orchard Road
#B1-01 Paragon
Tel: +65 6735 8887
Daily: 11am – 11pm

19 Tanglin Road
#01-01A Tanglin Shopping Centre
Tel: +65 6732 8662
Daily: 12pm – 10.30pm