The most exciting part of the Lunar New Year festivities is enjoying good food with great company. Even as hygiene becomes more important, there are creative ways to celebrate the festive occasion responsibly. Here are six tips for hosting an enjoyable reunion gathering with your loved ones!
Tip #1: Host a personalised steamboat session
Steamboats are the highlight of every reunion dinner, and there are plenty of tips on how to spice up the experience. For a more comfortable time dining with loved ones, try hosting smaller groups of people at the table. Recreate a restaurant experience by setting the table with individual sets of utensils, plates, sauce bowls and napkins. To make your guests feel extra special, prepare handwritten paper place cards for their names and seats!
Tip #2: Share your food with common serving utensils
Preserve the traditions of communal feasting by preparing common serving utensils such as ladles, chopsticks, spoons and tongs – one dedicated to each dish. Mark them with an indicator like a sticker so everyone knows which utensil to use. This way, guests can rest assured and fill their plates and stomachs with their favourite dishes.
Tip #3: Elevate the dining experience with canapés
Where common dining is not possible, consider switching up the experience canapé-style. Serve food in bite-sized portions, elegantly presented in cookie paper or on a canapé tray for convenient munching. Check out our festive recipes for reimagined versions of the traditional Assorted Canapes and Yam Ring to wow your guests.
Tip #4: Prepare goodie bags of snacks
While doing your Lunar New Year shopping, look out for individually wrapped snacks and goodies for easy sharing. Or go the extra mile and pack snacks such as Pineapple Tarts and Oven Baked Bak Kwa into individual goodie bags for your guests. Now, that’s a way to impress!
Tip #5: Clean up the easy way
Washing up after the party comes to a close can be a daunting task. What you might not know is that dishwashers can typically wash up to 12 sets of dining crockery and utensils at a time! Simply load all of your dining ware into your dishwasher to ensure they are thoroughly cleaned, while you save water, effort and time! What’s more, the HygienePlus option in Bosch dishwashers can reduce up to 99.9% of germs for your peace of mind.
Tip #6: Keep your linens and upholstery fresh
Cleaning couch covers, curtains and tablecloths on a daily basis is easier than you think! Simply wash them in a washing machine with Hygiene/AllergyPlus can remove most germs and odours. Once that’s done, all you have to do is pop them in the dryer, and they’ll be ready for use the very next day.
*Up to 99.99% reduction of E. coli, C. albicans, S. enterica, A. brasiliensis, S. aureus, bacteriophage MS2 in the washing programme “Hygiene Mix 20°C” with liquid laundry detergent at recommended dosage and a load size of 4 kg – investigation MB 1426/19 dated June 26th, 2019 conducted by wfk-Institut für Angewandte Forschung GmbH commissioned by BSH Hausgeräte GmbH.