Mongolian Hot Pot, Beijing-style

Ingredients

 * 1 lb lean boneless leg of lamb
 * lamb tail fat, sliced
 * ginger slices
 * scallion slices
 * soy sauce

For the dips

 * sesame paste
 * fermented bean curd
 * shrimp oil
 * soy sauce
 * vinegar
 * rice wine
 * preserved Chinese chive flowers
 * preserved sweet garlic
 * Chinese coriander (or cilantro), chopped
 * chile (chile oil)

Cooking utensil

 * a charcoal-burning fire pot for cooking at the table.

Directions

 * 1) Cut the mutton into paper-thin slices about 2½ inches by 1 inch. It will be easier to slice if partially frozen first. Spread them on individual serving dishes. Arrange the dips and side dishes in bowls.
 * 2) Half-fill the fire pot with boiling water. Add the sliced scallion and ginger, mutton tail fat, and a little soy sauce. Cover the pot lid tightly. Fill the chimney with burning charcoal and bring the stock to a boil.
 * 3) To eat, the diners mix their own sauces from the condiments and seasonings. Then they pick up the mutton slices and cook them in the boiling stock for a few seconds, until the meat turns pinkish-white. The meat is then dipped into the sauce. The best pastry to go with the meat is shaobing - the chinese baked sesame cakes.