Tabletop raclette grill
Each guest gets a little pan (coupelle) that slides under a heating element and melts their own slice. Suits a group around one table and a long, slow evening. Some models also have a hot plate on top for vegetables.
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GEAR GUIDE
Kit for
the table.
What you need depends on how you melt. A tabletop night needs a grill, a pot and a knife. A half-wheel needs a melter or a fire, and a proper scraper.
01
Grills & melters
Three ways to melt. Choose by group size and where you're eating.
Half-wheel melter (Swiss style)
A stand holds a half-wheel with a heater facing the cut side, and you scrape the melted layer straight onto each plate. You need a whole half-wheel, so it makes most sense for a crowd. The planner adds about 300 g for the part you can't scrape.
Traditional fire
The Valais original: a half-wheel set near a wood fire, cut face to the heat, scraped as it melts. You need a stand that holds the wheel steady, a safe place for the fire and someone to tend it. Check local fire rules before lighting anything outdoors.
Before you buyCount the pans against your usual number of guests. Make sure the cable reaches where the grill will stand. Find out whether the pans and plate go in the dishwasher. Decide where it lives the rest of the year.
02
Pans & coupelles
On a tabletop grill, the little pans do most of the work.
Spare and coated pans
A few spare pans let the next round melt while you eat. Coated pans release cheese easily but scratch, so use wooden or plastic spatulas with them. Uncoated pans take more scrubbing.
03
Knives & scrapers
One tool for cutting, another for scraping.
Cheese knife or wire cutter
Even slices melt at the same speed. A long, thin knife or a wire cutter makes that easier, especially with cheese straight from the fridge.
Raclette scraper
For a half-wheel: a broad, blunt blade with a straight edge that pushes the melted layer off in one stroke. Small wooden spatulas do the same job for the pans.
04
Potato pot or steamer
Potatoes come first and have to stay warm all evening.
Pot, steamer insert, warm basket
Any pot with a lid works. A steamer insert keeps small potatoes whole. At the table, a covered basket or a pot wrapped in a tea towel keeps them warm through several rounds.
05
Serving boards
Keep everything within arm's reach.
Board, bowls, pepper mill
A board for the cheese, small bowls for cornichons and pickled onions, a pepper mill. If you serve from a half-wheel, use plates that can take hot cheese.