Many years ago, I took a Christian "spiritual gift" test which involved taking a survey and tallying up your answers. The score would give you an indication of your spiritual gift. I thought I had the gift of "prophecy". I was so excited and told my husband, because that seemed like a pretty extraordinary gift to have eventhough I exhibited none of those qualities. He immediately told me to recalculate and when I did, I had the mundane gift of "hospitality". Needless to say, I love sharing food and life with people. Through the years, I've enjoyed hosting college student meals, women's teas, neighborhood block parties, neighbor dinners, different ethnic cooking lessons, supper club events and bringing meals over to people.
To me, being a hospitable host doesn't mean having it all put together when the guests arrive. That, to me, is just stressful! One of the ways I enjoy having people over is what I call a "DIY meal" (do it yourself) like pizza, dumpling and Vietnamese spring roll making dinners etc.
DIY meals are a good bonding experience as well, because everyone needs to work towards a very motivating goal....a meal!
Indian cooking 101!
Dumpling making dinner
Chinese Cooking 101. Cooking for Couples!
Why a DIY Meal?
From my experience, I have found two types of guests. Guests who just want to be "entertained" and those who enjoy participating with meal prep and meal cleanup! In my opinion, guests who are willing to help prep or cleanup and have a DIY meal type dinner, end up having more fun.
DIY meal entertaining is not for everyone. It is important to know your guests and determine whether this is even something that they would enjoy doing. You also need to be cognizant of the reason for the get-together. If you are hosting a meal to discuss something serious, constant instructions and distraction will detract from the conversation. However, if it's a meal just to socialize, get-to-know-them better, shoot the breeze or for no particular reason, the DIY meal is great, especially for the kids. I remember hosting a pizza making dinner where the youngest guest was very shy and hardly spoke a word at the beginning of the evening. At the end, he was smiling, talkative and rambunctious. What a change a little bit of pizza can do!
Pizza Making 101!
Advantages of a DIY Meal.
- It is more casual.
- You don't have to be a good cook!
- It immediately lowers the expectation for perfection for the host.
- Everyone gets involved, even the most shy person!
- Guests can eat what they like so it's great for picky eaters.
- You MAY end up with a spotless kitchen at the end of the evening.
- Anything goes
- If guests offer to bring something, you can make it simple and just have them bring an ingredient like their favorite pizza topping.
Challenges of a DIY Meal.
- Extra planning is needed. All the necessary ingredients and utensils need to be available. You may even need to purchase additional tools for efficiency. (I have 3 pizza peels and 2 steels just for pizza making gatherings!)
- If you have a small kitchen, managing space may be an issue.
- It requires extra preparation because it's challenging getting everyone "organized".
- You need to "manage" your guests and be willing to give instructions and directions. Think of yourself as head chef with many sous chefs!
- Give people several options.
- You probably will end up with a messier kitchen at the end of the evening.
- Unexpected things happen!
Tips for a DIY meal.
Appropriateness.
Ask your guests ahead of time if they would be interested in having a DIY meal. If they absolutely hate cooking, perhaps this is not the best kind of meal for them. I did invite my pastor over for a pizza-making dinner. Pastor Seth claims he's a disaster in the kitchen. However, after making his pepperoni pizza, he was quite impressed at his cooking skills. I actually pulled this picture off HIS facebook page!
Preparation and Planning
Be prepared. Have your guests dress appropriately for cooking and provide plenty of aprons. One evening, a guest showed up in his "Brooks Brothers" suit. Needless to say, he was just an observer. Another evening, we had a couple who even brought their slippers! I guess if you're going to be comfortable, you might as well go all the way!
Try to have all your ingredients ready for your guests so you are not running around looking for them. For some meals, guests can wash and cut the ingredients so you can leave them in the bags. For other meals, like pizza making, it is better to have toppings cut up and ready for use in containers. Plastic takeout containers are free and work perfectly well for all the toppings so start saving them!
Learning to cut with a Chinese cleaver!
Learning how to stir fry!
Timing.
How long do you want the evening to last? The more you have your guests do, the longer the meal! Plan to meet earlier and factor in extra time if your evening includes cutting the ingredients. It is better to eat an earlier meal than have "hangry" guests! I have also found that appetizers during the cooking prep helps alleviate the hunger pangs.
Some meals such as pizza making are not conducive to a sit down dinner since guests will make and bake their pizzas at different times and who wants to eat cold pizza?! My suggestion is to eat the pizzas as they come out of the oven and later sit down together for salad and dessert.
Here are some ideas for DIY meals.
Taco Bar
Pasta Bar
Korean Bibimpap
If you have other ideas and comments, respond in the comment section.