lifestyle

7 Easy Ways To Level Up Basic Dinners Into Fun Nights The Whole Family Will Enjoy

Turn ordinary family dinners into memorable occasions!

Cover image via @ihsanlikestoeat (Instagram)

Subscribe to our Telegram channel for our latest stories and breaking news.

1. Take turns hosting special movie-themed dinners

Each family member probably has their own favourite movie, right? Let them share their excitement for their best-loved flick with a movie-themed dinner that the whole family can join in on.

And we don't just mean getting the family together to watch the movie while makan-ing, no no! We mean going all out!

Get everyone to dress up as different characters, decorate the dining table or living room with items that suit the theme, and of course, cook dishes from the movie to complete the vibe. If the movie doesn't feature food, get creative and come up with stuff inspired by the characters or the setting.

2. Teach a cooking class or have a friendly cooking competition

Does your grandma have a famous rendang recipe that you've been dying to get your hands on? Or maybe your dad makes the best fried rice you've ever had? Now's your chance to get them to share their expertise. Have the usual chefs of the family teach a TV-show style cooking class, sharing their signature recipes, before everyone tucks into a meal together.

Alternatively, you could also get the family in on a friendly cooking competition. Get those who usually do all the masak-ing a break by letting them serve as judges, while the amateurs step into the kitchen and try to whip up dishes that fit the theme of your competition.

3. Set up a DIY station and let people come up with their own combinations

This is an especially great way to make sure that everyone ends up with a plate of food that's justtttt the way they like it. This way, you don't have to stress about catering to everyone's preferences, 'cause they can just assemble their dish according to their likes. Just load up the station with various options that people can pile onto a standard base, and you're good to go!

The options are endless, it all depends on what time of the day you want to have the meal.

Here are some suggestions:
- Breakfast: Pancake, waffle, or oatmeal station
- Lunch: Sushi or baked potato station
- Dinner: Bibimbap or taco station
- Dessert: Ice cream sundae station

4. Play a tweaked version of Who Am I?, and keep up the act throughout the night

Image via Pinterest

In case you haven't heard of it, Who Am I? is a fun, simple game, in which everyone gets assigned a famous person or fictional character. Players usually have a card with the name of whoever they are stuck to their head, and they have to ask the other players yes/no questions to figure out their own identity.

However, in this tweaked version, instead of guessing your own identity, everyone else has to guess who you are! Pick someone to portray, then dress up like them, and make sure to speak and act like them throughout the night. You can even bring along whoever you are's favourite food or drinks if you know it.

For extra fun, offer incentives such as a prize for the most correct guesses or for the last person left standing without anyone guessing their identity correctly. Try not to be too obvious and give who you are away, hehe! ;)

5. Have an around-the-world-themed potluck

Normal potlucks are already fun, with everyone bringing all kinds of dishes, making for a varied spread of yummy food. Take your family potlucks to the next level by making it a global-themed one, to enjoy delicacies from all around the world!

Assign a different country to each family member, and task them to cook up something from that country. That way, your whole family can tuck into food from Japan, Korea, India, Thailand, Greece, Italy, Spain, and more, all at one table!

Make sure there's enough variety by assigning people to categories like appetisers, mains, desserts, and drinks. You could even get everyone to share fun facts about whatever dish they choose to bring, so that everyone can learn more about global cuisine.

6. Enjoy a family picnic right in the comfort of your own home

Who says you have to go out to have a picnic? You could totally have one at home too! If you have a garden or balcony, picnic out there to feel like you're still outdoors in a way. If not, just do it wherever you have enough floor space at home.

Oh and, you know what the perks of a home picnic are? Got air cond and no mosquitoes, hehe!

All you need to do is spread a blanket out on the floor, and get everyone to sit on the floor together. For extra picnic feels, store the food in baskets and tupperwares, and decorate with faux flowers/plants. Make sure to use disposable plates, cups, and cutlery too, like you would on a real picnic.

7. Turn dinner into a game with a foodie trivia night

There's nothing like a little friendly family competition to turn a normal dinner into a fun, memorable night.

If you've watched Korean variety shows like New Journey To The West, you'll know how this works. The premise is simple — answer a question correctly to earn yourself a dish. The harder the question, the more coveted the dish you could win should be.

The topics you could use for the game are endless, from questions about each other to general knowledge, or even food-related trivia.

Of course, no matter what you're doing for dinner, the heart of ensuring everyone has a good time is making sure that there's lots of yummy food to enjoy together

Bringing you the natural goodness of Mother Earth and the freshness of jasmine, Jasmine Food Corporation has been producing Malaysians' favourite food — rice — for 61 years.

Offering a range of various rice products, including fragrant rice, basmathi rice, white rice (imported and local), brown rice, glutinous rice, rice vermicelli, and more, Jasmine will ensure that any meal you have is a tasty one. Whether you're cooking up nasi lemak, fried rice, seafood paella, or bibimbap, you can count on Jasmine to provide the high quality rice your dish needs.

And if you prefer short-grain rice, you should definitely give the Jasmine Calfresh rice a try

Perfect for taking your home-cooked meals to the next level, the rice has a great texture. The key is to soak your Calfresh rice according to a 1:1.1 ratio, and add an extra 10% of water when cooking.

This is because short-grain rice always requires more moisture to give it a head start, so that more water can be absorbed to the rice kernel's core, resulting in perfectly-cooked rice for your meals.

To find out more about the Calfresh rice and Jasmine's other products, check out their Facebook page

For more yummy eats, take a look at our other #makan stories: