Kitchen Essentials for Entertaining at Home
The kitchen. It’s the heart of the home and more often than not the heart of the party. No matter how hard you try, guests will always end up in the kitchen. With the right ingredients, a little time and (hopefully) a dash of culinary skill, you can easily pull off a party to remember. Here’s our list of kitchen entertaining tools that are essential for cooking up the perfect party.
Prepare, Prepare, Prepare
Whether you’re a rookie or a pro, it’s essential to prepare for guests. So having tools that’ll make life that little bit easier in the kitchen are must-haves. Rusted pans, blunt knives and broken utensils are a no-no. Get to grips in your kitchen with handy gadgets and gizmos that’ll make food prep a breeze. As the old saying goes, ‘fail to prepare, prepare to fail’…
Shake, Stir, Sip
Cocktail connoisseur? Show off your bar tending skills with barware essentials, from shakers and stirrers to the correct glasses (everyone knows how important it is to match the cocktail with the correct glass). If you’re blessed with space, use your countertop as a bar and to serve your favorite cocktails, chill the bubbles and pour a homemade punch. Or if you need to save space for nibbles then a drinks trolley is a great way to provide extra space and keep the juices flowing.
Sharing Is Caring
There’s no doubting that the best way to enjoy good food is together. So fill serving platters, baking trays, salad bowls and anything you can get your hands on with nibbles; it’ll encourage your guests to share and converse together over your hard work (and no one needs to know whether you made it all from scratch or bought it frozen). If it’s something a little more intimate you’re after, fondue sets are always a fun way to enjoy eating together. Who doesn’t love melted cheese?
Talking Tables
Kitchen entertaining usually means there’s not a lot of seating available, so ensure your countertops are multifunctional. By serving nibbles and ‘plateless’ food, your guests can enjoy your spread without having to balance their cocktails and flatware. It’ll also ensure you won’t have mountains of washing up to do post-party either.
Let's Go Outside
If the weather is on your side, why not take the party outside? You can easily bring your kitchen tools outside with you and food always tastes better in the sunshine. There’s also plenty of handy barbecue accessories that allow you to bring something fresh to the table, so if you want to stray away from classic burgers and hot dogs it’s never been easier.