Prepare foods to be cooked by slicing them thinly and arranging nicely on individual plates, or grouping like ingredients on large plates. Leave shrimp, scallops, meat balls and fish balls, etc., whole.
Gather condiments for dipping sauces. Mince garlic, scallions and cilantro if using. If using sesame paste, mix it with water to get a runny, mixable condiment.
Make the mild soup by pouring ingredients directly into cold hotpot on one side: 2 quarts stock, wine and scallions as well as tomato or jujubes if using. Return to your prepared spicy broth and use a large strainer or spoon to remove most of the sediment. Add the spicy broth to its side of the pot and top with a few whole chilies and 2 tablespoons whole green Sichuan peppercorns, or to taste.
Plug in your electric hotpot and turn it to high or ignite your portable gas burner and turn flame to high. It will take 5 to 10 minutes or so for the two soups to come to a gentle boil, so this is a good time for everyone to mix their dipping sauces.
Adjust the heat to keep a gentle boil and begin adding ingredients to the pot a few at a time. Keep an eye on steak and seafood, which will not take much time to cook. Cooking those ingredients in a ladle or special hotpot strainer is a good idea, or just hold them under the broth with your chopsticks so they don't get lost in the soup.
As the broths boil away, top them off with hot water.