1. Miso Donabe:
"This pot is perfect for making delicious miso soup, but great for any type of slow-cooked meal like stews, braising meat or roasting (I put this pot directly into the oven). My kitchen is small, so this smaller size donabe is perfect for my space. The rounded shape and color is really pleasing."
Shown: Miso Donabe
2. Steamer Donabe:
"This pot is heavy - in the literal sense - but also in that it's 'heavy-duty'. I use it for so many things. Whether I'm fixing dumplings, custards, vegetables or fish, I prefer steaming because it's healthier than frying. When I'm not using it to steam, I remove the inner lid and have a Shabu Shabu night or cook a large risotto or paella with it - you can put this directly in the oven. After cooking a dish, I'll bring it straight to the table - no extra serving bowls needed."
Shown: Steamer Donabe in White. We also have the Steamer Donabe in Black!
3. Toban Skillet:
"I admittedly use several donabes in my kitchen, but this skillet is my current favorite. It's super versatile, even microwave safe! I'll stir-fry a small piece of steak and asparagus on it (izakaya style). Lately I've been hooked on using it to bake a spicy seafood dynamite as a pre-dinner appetizer with drinks. Even though it's ceramic, it looks like a cast iron skillet, so I'll pull it out as a serving dish. Food looks really great on it."
Shown: Toban Skillet
4. Yaki Yaki Grill:
"For everyone rediscovering BBQ during quarantine, this Yaki Yaki grill lets you do some indoor grilling without the smoke and hassle of an outdoor grill. The trick to keeping it smokeless is the ceramic moat that supports the grill top. Filling the moat with water before you begin cooking keeps the grill at a fixed temperature so your ingredients cook with very little smoke. I recommend grilling your vegetables first (they take a big longer), and then adding your meat second. The way the grill surface is sloped allows the excess meat fat to drip off into the moat - a big bonus for your health!"
Shown: Yaki Yaki Smokeless Grill
5. Kamado Donabe:
"While electric rice cookers are convenient, I can't stress enough the joy and pure ease of cooking rice in a ceramic donabe rice cooker. It takes me 13 minutes to cook the rice (I don't even use a timer anymore, I just wait to see the steam start to poof from the lid), then 20 minutes to rest the rice. Your whole kitchen smells like rice while cooking, which is pretty heavenly. Also, this donabe has allowed me to make a lot of mixed rice - where I add chicken, fish and vegetables, cooking everything together for a very flavorful main dish."
Shown: Kamado Rice Cooker
6. Tagine Donabe:
"I love my Tagine. It's beautiful to look at - but just as important, it's really versatile. Tagines let you cook things quickly, so they're great for quick and easy weeknight dishes. The cone shape lid acts like a mini-oven, circulating the concentrated heat trapped inside to cook the food inside in 5-10 minutes. I'll stir-fry noodles with whatever I have left in my kitchen. The other day I cooked cut-up apples in grape seed oil with a tiny bit of butter. I added some maple syrup, cinnamon, lemon juice and some water around the side to steam (like Japanese gyoza). This was a totally made-up recipe, but it was SO good. Great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream too!"
Shown: Tagine Fuukurasan
