Hotpot finds sweet spot

Haidilao Hotpot, the restaurant chain that leads the hotpot catering market in China, launched an instant variety of its famous offering last quarter. The new variety cooks in 15 minutes and is priced 35.90 yuan ($5.42).

At Haidilao restaurants, a traditional hotpot meal is served for about 150 yuan on average and takes at least 30 minutes to materialize on the table after a customer places the order.

The instant variety pack contains hotpot sauce, soup, and other ingredients. A consumer merely needs to add near-boiling water to the stuff.