By Bloomberg View
Don't you just love those
wide-open kitchens where you can cook while chatting with your
guests? It removes a lot of the stress of a dinner party; instead
of greeting your guests and then rushing back to the kitchen while
your spouse sits them down with a drink, everyone can be relaxed
and chatting while they wait for the main event. If dinner's 10
minutes late, who cares? Just pour a little more wine and keep
chatting.
Unfortunately, some of us
live in charming old houses with cramped kitchens with no room to
stash a few friends. There is a solution to this problem, however:
With a few gadgets, none of them expensive, you can bring the
cooking out to the table. Prep your ingredients ahead of time, and
when your guests arrive, proceed to the table in a leisurely
fashion, and catch up while you cook.
This used to be a staple of
mid-century restaurants, but this kind of tableside prep has fallen
out of style. Fortunately, however declasse, many of these old
favorites are still delicious, and worthy guest fare. Most of them
require only a hot plate or an electric skillet, both of which can
be picked up at a yard sale for under $10. And since many of them
get set on fire before you eat, you'll also enjoy some serious oohs
and ahs. Note: Do not use a nonstick pan for this, as I'm unsure of
what this will do to the nonstick coating. And, of course, always
have a fire extinguisher handy.
The secret to cooking
tableside is to set up your appliances ahead of time and have your
ingredients prepped on a tray. Then, when the time comes, you can
just carry in your tray and start cooking.
Saganaki: This is a Greek cheese called kasseri, which you
saute and then set on fire, preferably while shouting "Opa!" (If
you don't live near a Greek store or a fancy cheese distributor,
you can actually order it from Amazon.) Set up your hot plate and
frying pan ahead of time, and then when your guests sit down, you
dredge it, fry it, flame it, and then serve with pita and
olives.
Caesar salad: It used to be very common to prepare this
tableside, and some restaurants still do, because it's a nice,
dramatic presentation. I'm not going to belabor this, because you
know what Caesar salad is like. But preparing it at the table means
that you can have it absolutely fresh without disappearing into the
kitchen.
Shabu-shabu: This Japanese dish is thin-sliced raw meat and
vegetables, which are cooked by each diner at the table in boiling
broth. Like fondue, it's a fun, social activity that brings your
guests into the cooking process.
Make your own grilled cheese: This is one of those Sunday-type
dinners -- something cozy you do with close friends while wearing
your oldest jeans. You can do it in an electric skillet, but it's
faster and a little neater using an electric grill press like a
George Foreman or a Cuisinart Griddler. Set out some nice cheese, a
variety of breads and fillings -- pesto, ham, bacon, slices of
tomato, olive tapenade. Have soft butter for those who want it on
the outside of the sandwich. Serve with a simple side salad and
some raw vegetables so that you can fool yourself into thinking
you're not being too unhealthy.
Macaroni-and-cheese waffles: There is no excuse for this,
except that it is delicious and really fun. Make a jellyroll pan or
two of mac and cheese, but don't bake it -- instead, refrigerate or
freeze it. When your guests arrive, turn on the wafflemaker and
wallow in unhealthy decadence. If you want to be really fancy,
provide some of the fillings above for people to spread between
sheets of mac and cheese before waffling.
Steak Diane: Women of my mother's generation will groan;
apparently, bad versions of this, laden with ingredients like dried
onion soup mix, were de rigueur for dinners with young suburban
sophisticates circa 1960. But properly prepared, steak Diane is
delicious, impressive and fairly quick.
Fondue: There was a time when no wedding was complete without
the gift of a fondue pot. I'm sort of sad those times are gone.
There are actually two kinds of fondue: cheese fondue, into which
you dip vegetables and bread, or oil fondue, which is sort of like
deep- frying chunks of meat at the table. Both are delicious, and
neither actually requires a fondue pot -- a hot plate or an
electric skillet on low will keep your cheese molten just as well.
Most recipes call for making your fondue on the stove and then
transferring it to a fondue pot, but if you use a regular pan and a
hotplate, you can do it all tableside.
Bananas Foster: Want to serve a hot, delicious dessert without
running back and forth to the kitchen? Bananas Foster is a great
candidate. It's simple, its fanciest ingredient is cheap brandy,
and it makes a show when you set it on fire. Most recipes call for
banana liqueur, which I hate, loathe, abominate and despise, so I
leave it out, and have never gotten anything but raves. Serve the
caramelized bananas over ice cream, or crepes you've made ahead --
or, even better, both.
Cherries jubilee: Much like bananas Foster, but a little more
involved. You can make the sauce most of the way ahead, then heat
and flame at the table. Traditionally served on ice cream, but also
good on crepes, pound cake or cheesecake.
Crepes Suzette: Make the crepes ahead of time, or buy frozen
ones, then make your flaming sauce tableside.
Obviously, this is just a
partial list; anything that can be relatively quickly cooked in one
pan is a candidate for tableside preparation. So why not get out of
the kitchen and hang out with your guests?
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