Cooking your own food: Spicy hot pot anyone?

While Te Kanahananui members were entertaining patrons with Polynesian fire dances outside, a different kind of hot was simmering in the second floor of the Majestic Building along Coral Tree Avenue in Garapan last Thursday night.

Hot No. 1 & Spicy Pot opened its Saipan branch, giving local residents and tourists alike a taste of Szechuan—Sichuan or Szechwan—cuisine famous for its sharp, spicy, and unique flavors with the use of garlic and chili peppers.

Hot No. 1 has 12 branches in China, eight in Beijing alone with two each in Tianjin and Shanghai. Chinese celebrities Li Bingbing, He Jun, Huang Bo, Huang Xiao Ming, Jing Bo Ran, and Ren Quan are the investors and partners of the business venture.

Li is best known for her Hollywood movie roles in Transformers 4: Age of Extinction opposite Mark Wahlberg in 2014, the 2012 film Resident Evil: Retribution alongside Milla Jovovich, and joined Jackie Chan and Jet Li in the 2008 blockbuster Forbidden Kingdom.

Hot No. 1 is the latest addition to a number of restaurants in the Garapan tourist district. Its concept is different from other food establishments on the island being the first Chinese hot pot restaurant.

Just like any other hot pot restaurant in Asia, a simmering metal pot filled with three types of broth—spicy, mild, and coconut water—await customers including the ingredients and other condiments for them to stew and enjoy eating.

Mushrooms, sliced pork, shrimp, crab meat, rice noodle sticks, tofu, crushed garlic in oil, chili sauce, chopped chives, lettuce, taro, and sliced ham, pork, and beef are some of the ingredients laid out on the table with the metal pot at the center.

Customers can also avail of other dishes made from locally bought fish, vegetables, and the well-known coconut crab. They would also introduce specialty food every week promising a lot of surprises to its customers as they work on a marketing program.

People behind resto

Hot No. 1 boasts of a staff—kitchen and dining—of 60 led by chef Richard Santos, who trained and learned Szechuan style of cooking and technique in presentation of food. The Northern Marianas Trades Institute provided the space for their month-long training.

Santos, who arrived on Saipan in 2005, was a fast learner and in a span of two weeks managed to familiarize himself with the recipes of Szechwan dishes and how to prepare them. He said that he did not study culinary arts and graduated with a degree in Information Technology in the Philippines.

His passion for food and the hunger to learn how to cook guided him as he shifted his career path. His first job on Saipan was a steward and he later became friends with Austrian-German chef, who slowly taught him the basics and from there he worked his way by learning online.

Michelin Star pastry chef Su Shuang also trained Santos. “It helped a lot learning from other chefs. Though I have little experience in pastries, just the basics, it still widened my technique. I’m just one of the select few, so I grabbed the opportunity.”

“I’m enthusiastic with my work and I love what I’m doing. Plus, a great staff is supporting me. I’m just their pilot and my job is directing them.”

For reservations, call 233-8301.