The latest dinner party trend? Make your guests do the cooking
From a fondue with a twist to a high-tech slab for roasting steaks. . .
GONe are the days when hosting a dinner party meant worrying about ironing tablecloths, using the best china, and slaving away for hours to create a three-course culinary masterpiece. Now, thanks to the latest trend, your guests can simply cook all the food themselves.
Dubbed ‘social dining’, the meal is cooked as everyone is at the table, with the aid of a portable heated gadget in the centre.
It started with the return of retro cheese fondue parties, but now there’s a feast of tasty options; from melting cheese on a Swiss-style raclette heater or cooking in a Chinese hot pot (a huge simmering bowl of broth), to searing or grilling meat, fish and veg on a hot lava stone, Japanese-style teppanyaki grill, or even an indoor smokeless barbecue — no sunshine required.
While this all sounds like a clever excuse for a lazy chef, the idea is that cooking together ‘family style’ is less stressful than a formal dinner party. It gets everyone talking, means food can be cooked according to personal preferences and, most importantly, allows the host to escape the kitchen.
‘Social dining is as much about the experience as the food,’ says Danielle Bliss, from cheesemongers Paxton & Whitfield, which has seen a big rise in customers buying melting Alpine cheeses for raclette parties.
‘It used to be a specialist thing, but all ages are doing it. People are holding social dinner parties not only to entertain and impress their friends, but to show off on social media, too — a big spread is all very Instagrammable.’
As well as the fun factor, the other big draw is the lack of preparation required — just chopping a variety of ‘bits’ (meat, fish, vegetables, cheese or bread) to cook at the table.
‘These days, people are less interested in trying to imitate silver-service dining at home,’ says Nick Metcalf, of hot lava stone makers SteakStones ( steakstones.
co.uk). ‘Cooking like this means they can deliver a fun, memorable meal that doesn’t take an age to prepare, and provides a great talking point.’
It’s often healthy, too. Many social dining methods, such as grills and hot stones, don’t require oils or fats; and, if you choose, everything can be vegetarian or vegan- friendly. There’s one drawback — you may get through more food than at a traditional dinner party as people pick their way through the options.
‘ Definitely over cater,’ says Danielle. ‘Be generous and fill the table, as you’ll be surprised how much food people eat.’
So, are the new social dining gadgets that easy to use, or do they just make a meal of things? Jenny Wood found out . . .
WHIP UP A FAMILY FEAST IN A HOT POT
Table Top Chinese Hot Pot, £59.50, souschef.co.uk
HOT pot or ‘ steamboat’ is a traditional Chinese way of eating, where guests cook pieces of raw food in a steadily boiling broth. This set includes a plug- in heater and a 33cm steel cooking pot which sits on top. There’s a partition down the middle of the pot, to allow for two different broths; a glass lid, cool-touch handles and two heat settings. However, the instructions are sparse. It’s assumed you know what you’re doing. I didn’t, so I had to search the internet for recipes and advice. Preparing the broths, sauces and raw ingredients is time- consuming, but cooking and eating it is a fun experience.
EASE OF USE: 2/5 FUN FACTOR: 4/5
MELT YOURSELF A NO-FRILLS DISH
Boska Raclette Quattro Concrete, £135, hartsofstur.com
IT MAy look like an instrument of torture, but the idea behind this gadget is simple — spear a segment of cheese on the swivelling copper spikes and position it under the heat lamp. Once the top layer starts to melt, scrape off the runny cheese on to a hunk of bread. The concrete base is reassuringly heavy to stop it toppling over, and the copper tones look classy. It’s best to use cheese with a rind, to stop it turning into a melty mess.
EASE OF USE: 4/5 FUN FACTOR: 3/5
MIX-AND-MATCH RACLETTE SET
Paxton & Whitfield Raclette Set, £30, paxtonandwhitfield. co.uk and John Lewis
A SWeeT little set that serves two, you can line up several of these on the table if you have more guests.
Setting it up couldn’t be easier — place the eight supplied tealight candles on the stand; then melt chunks of cheese in the trowel- like pans on top. Once the cheese is runny, there are two plastic spatulas to help pour the cheese over potatoes, cold meats or vegetables. Simple, quick and fun, with hardly any prep, it’s far less fuss than a full fondue.
EASE OF USE: 5/5 FUN FACTOR: 5/5
MAKE BIG DINNERS GO WITH A SIZZLE
MisterChef XL Teppanyaki Grill, £43.99, amazon.co.uk
NOT for those with scant kitchen storage, this huge, flat, rectangular pan is 68cm long by almost 30cm wide and can serve up to six guests all cooking food — such as meat, stir- fries or fajitas — at the same time. The one-metre cord is annoyingly short, so you may need an extension lead, but once it’s
Delicious: Chinese hot pot plugged in, turn up the heat and you’re ready to cook on the nonstick surface using the bamboo spatulas provided. It also comes with a handy ideas booklet.
However, while it’s easy and fun to use, it’s less enjoyable to clean, as it can’t go in the dishwasher and the non-stick coating needs to be handled with care.
EASE OF USE: 4/5 FUN FACTOR: 4/5
FOOD THAT’S FUN AND GOOD FOR YOU
Philips Smokeless Indoor Grill, £166, amazon.co.uk
BArBeCue fans rejoice! Now you can sizzle away indoors to your heart’s content — even in winter. Once plugged in, the grill’s bright, infrared lamps take a few minutes to heat up, and then it works like a normal barbecue. The grid leaves charred lines across your food; while any fat drips into a removable tray, allowing for healthier cooking.
It’s bulky, and without any charcoal and very little smoke, you don’t get that smoky outdoor flavour; but it’s big enough to cook eight burgers at a time and, when finished, the grid can be popped in the dishwasher.
EASE OF USE: 3/5 FUN FACTOR: 2/5
TURN UP THE HEAT WITH A LAVA STONE
The SteakStones Sizzling Steak Set (SS001), £75, steakstones.co.uk
THIS professional way of cooking steak, fish or vegetables involves flat stones made from the lava of an Italian volcano. each guest has their own stone; or you can place a larger, communal stone in the middle of the table.
Heating up the stones is slightly nerve-wracking — they need to reach 280 c to 350 c, which takes 20 to 40 minutes in an oven or directly on a hob (special gloves to handle them cost £30 extra).
The hot stone then sits in a steel tray on a bamboo base, and guests place steaks on top. Dinky little sauce bowls and a side platter for chips or salad are included in the set, and it’s all a doddle to wash.
This method delivers delicious food, but it’s not for small children as the stones are sizzling hot.
EASE OF USE: 3/5 FUN FACTOR: 5/5