2015, as a whole, was a relatively ordinary year for me. Little excitement was to be had, it was the last year that I didn’t have a driver’s license and I was growing tired of high school. However, there is one experience, albeit a relatively minor one, that stands out.

One day, I was riding in the passenger seat of my mom’s car (yeah, no license), and I spotted a sign in a strip mall near our house in Londonderry. It said “Bangkok Thai Food”.

I was thrilled. My experience with Thai cuisine was practically non-existent, but I had heard universally enthusiastic feedback from many, and I was eager to dive in. I peeked into the window like an eight year old outside a toy store every time we drove by.

About three months after that first sighting, I ran into the humble little eatery and dug into my first larb gai salad (ground chicken, raw red onion, Thai basil, lemongrass, scallion, cilantro, lime juice and chile pepper over a bed of lettuce). The vivid flavors and interesting textures got me hooked, and I’ve been a regular ever since.

Fast forward to last year; the folks at Bangkok Thai took a big step by adding another dimension to their business: Thai-style Hot Pot.

The excitement that I felt three years earlier reincarnated itself at this very moment. Hot Pot in Londonderry? Finding this style of restaurant, which involves cooking the food yourself in a steaming bowl of broth, in New Hampshire is about as common as finding snow in Hawaii. Yet one of the most ordinary towns in New Hampshire somehow welcomed this traditional Asian concept.

This new section of the restaurant was branded as Zapp Hot Pot. Despite living a short distance away, it took several months for me to make my hot pot debut.

Now, I’m in no position to offer a tutorial on how to eat hot pot, but I’ll do my best. First, you choose the broth; chicken, vegetable or spicy. Next comes the major decision: choosing the desired proteins, vegetables and noodles. The options are endless. Seafood aficionados can opt for shrimp, scallops, fish balls, squid balls and more. Meat eaters have steak, chicken pork belly and pork dumplings to name a few. Finally, choose sauces to dip the cooked product in.

Not long after ordering, you are presented with a container of hot broth that sits in a heating source that’s built into the table. You’ll be advised to turn the heat up so the broth is boiling. Then, containers filled with the items of your choosing are placed alongside the broth. Now it’s time to grab those chopsticks and cook your meal right at the table.

I ordered steak, sweet potato and broccoli, along with the chicken broth option and all three sauces. So how was my experience?

First, let me say that I absolutely suck terribly at using chopsticks. I have been taught the proper way to use them on numerous occasions, but my lack of dexterity is always put on full display whenever I use them. Add a scolding hot liquid and multiple sauces to the mix, and the result is not pretty. The fact that I was an amateur hot pot eater was made very obvious throughout my time here.

Despite my lack of skill, the experience of hot pot is just that: an experience. There is something undeniably satisfying about dropping a wedge of sweet potato in boiling liquid, checking it every thirty seconds like a concerned parent and dunking it in sauce.

The meat is cut very thinly, so undercooking it is nearly impossible. In fact, overcooking is the greater concern. Grasp the meat with you chopsticks (or a fork, if you must), plunge it in the broth, count to ten, dunk in sauce and eat.

For a complete experience, order all three sauces. One is moderately spicy, with a bright red hue and sesame seeds. The second is a garlicky soy sauce that compliments meat superlatively. The final sauce is a somewhat creamy sesame sauce that has a pleasant nutty flavor.

The broth itself is quite nice as well. Whilst eating, most choose to combine the cooked meat and vegetables with some of the broth and alternate between slurping the liquid and inhaling the solids.

The idea of paying to cook your own food may irk some individuals, but the very act of doing so makes for a uniquely interactive social experience. Experiencing hot pot with a small group of people practical guarantees a good time.

It’s also one of those activities where you learn as you go. For instance, I learned that broccoli cooked in a boiling liquid will be hot when it comes out, so it should not be eaten right away. Crazy, right?

Hot Pot is a type of cuisine that should be on everyone’s radar. It’s fun, approachable, interactive and flavorful. Don’t let the strip mall setting fool you, this is the real deal. Find Zapp Hot Pot/Bangkok Thai Food on Nashua Road in Londonderry.