Cold Shabu-Shabu Salad (Reishabu) — Chilled Pork Salad with Sesame Dressing

When it’s too hot to think about a heavy dinner — and here in Kyushu the summer really is that hot — this cold shabu-shabu salad is what we make. Thin slices of pork are gently poached until just cooked, cooled down, and piled over a heap of crisp lettuce, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes, then finished with a nutty sesame-soy dressing. It’s light, refreshing, and full of protein, but it still feels like a proper meal.

Reishabu (cold shabu-shabu) is one of those honest, no-fuss summer dishes that Japanese families lean on when the weather turns. There’s nothing fancy here — supermarket shabu-shabu pork, whatever salad vegetables are in the fridge, and a dressing whisked together from pantry staples (I used our usual Kyushu sweet soy sauce and a pinch of Okinawan sea salt). This is exactly how we eat it at home on a sweltering evening.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Light but satisfying. A pile of cool vegetables and tender pork — refreshing without leaving you hungry.
• Perfect for hot days. The stove is on for just a few minutes, and the dish is served chilled.
• Simple homemade dressing. Sesame oil, soy, vinegar, and sugar — no bottled dressing needed.
• A real everyday summer dish. The kind of unfussy plate Japanese families actually make when it’s too hot to cook.

What is Cold Shabu-Shabu Salad?

Shabu-shabu is the Japanese hot pot where you swish thin slices of meat through simmering broth. Reishabu (冷しゃぶ), literally “cold shabu,” takes that same gently-poached pork, cools it, and serves it cold — usually over salad vegetables with a light dressing. It’s a summer staple all over Japan: the poaching keeps the pork tender and renders out some of the fat, so it’s lighter than fried or grilled meat, and it’s genuinely delicious eaten cold.

If you like these cool, crisp Japanese sides and salads, you might also enjoy my daikon tuna salad or tataki ume kyuri (smashed cucumber).

Ingredients (Serves 2)

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Pork (shabu-shabu slices)	200 g	Thinly sliced pork loin or belly
Water	1 liter	For poaching
Salt	1 tsp	For the poaching water
Cooking sake	2 tbsp	For the poaching water
Lettuce	2–3 leaves (about 50 g)	Shredded
Cucumber	1/2	Cut into ribbons or thin strips
Cherry tomatoes	5	Halved
Sesame dressing
Sugar	1 tsp
Salt	A pinch
Rice vinegar	1 tbsp
Soy sauce	1 tbsp	Kyushu sweet soy sauce here
Sesame oil	1 tbsp
Toasted sesame seeds	To taste	My addition — stir into the dressing

The dressing is what makes this dish, and it comes together from staples: a good toasted sesame oil for aroma and a Japanese soy sauce for depth — a sweeter Kyushu-style one is lovely here. I also stir a spoonful of toasted sesame seeds into the dressing, which isn’t strictly traditional but adds great texture. Use whatever salad vegetables you have; this is a forgiving, fridge-clearing kind of dish.

How to Make Cold Shabu-Shabu Salad

Step 1: Make the Dressing

In a bowl, combine the sugar, a pinch of salt, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil, and stir until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the toasted sesame seeds. Making it first lets the flavors meld while you cook the pork.

Step 2: Prepare the Poaching Water

Bring the water to a boil in a pot, then add the salt and cooking sake and turn the heat down to low. The sake takes the edge off any porkiness and keeps the meat tender. You want the water hot but not at a rolling boil — a hard boil makes the thin pork tough and stringy.

Step 3: Poach the Pork

Lay the pork slices in one at a time, spreading each one out, and swish gently with chopsticks until it just turns from pink to pale — only a few seconds each. Cooking the slices a few at a time keeps them from clumping together.

Step 4: Cool the Pork

As each piece is cooked, lift it out into a strainer to drain and cool. You can also dip the pork briefly in cold water to cool it faster, but don’t leave it soaking or it turns watery and the fat firms up too much. Let it come down to room temperature (or pop it in the fridge for a bit).

Step 5: Assemble the Salad

Spread the shredded lettuce and cucumber ribbons over your plates, then arrange the cooled pork on top and scatter the cherry tomatoes around. I made two plates here — one each.

Step 6: Dress and Serve

Give the dressing a final stir and spoon it generously over the pork and vegetables right before serving. Serve immediately, while everything is still cool and crisp.

Tips and Variations

• Don’t boil hard. Poach the pork in gently simmering (not rolling) water so it stays soft — hard boiling makes thin pork tough.
• Don’t over-cool in water. A quick dip is fine, but soaking makes the pork watery and firms up the fat. Draining and air-cooling keeps it silkier.
• Use any salad vegetables. Onion slices, daikon, carrot, myoga, or shiso all work — whatever you have.
• Try a creamy sesame version. Swap the vinaigrette for a goma (sesame paste) dressing for a richer take.
• Add ponzu. A splash of ponzu instead of the vinegar-and-soy gives a brighter, citrusy finish.

What to Serve It With

Cold shabu salad is light enough to pair with almost anything on a summer table:

• With rice and a bowl of miso soup for a light set meal.
• Alongside cold noodles like somen or udon.
• With another quick veg side like green pepper namul.

Storing

This is best assembled and eaten fresh, but the parts keep well separately. Store the cooled poached pork in a sealed container in the fridge for 1–2 days, and keep the dressing separate so the vegetables don’t go soggy. Assemble and dress just before serving. The pork is also great the next day tucked into a rice bowl or a cold noodle dish.