Cooking For a Crowd

Lesson 1: Initial Considerations

Party Definitions

The first choice to make is whether you need to feed people a full meal. This choice is really driven by the time and nature of your party. A shorter afternoon event is the most flexible time of day. You do not have to offer a balanced meal; an all dessert offering is reasonable, or you can just serve salads and desserts. If you have people coming for a 1-2 hour cocktail party, you an also just offer basic hors d’eourves. For this kind of party consider serving only food that can be served at room temperature.

For an evening party without a specified ending time, people will come expecting to eat enough to avoid having to cook dinner at home. They will be disappointed otherwise. Also, regardless of the time of day, for major milestone occasions such as weddings, 40th birthdays, or 25th wedding anniversaries, people will also expect a full meal. Such occasions require a combination of both hot and cold dishes as well as a finishing dessert.

Having identified the meal type, you should make the following assumptions (unless you know your crowd extremely well):

• Somebody will be allergic to nuts or shellfish.
• Somebody will be a vegetarian
• Somebody will be on a diet or have special dietary limits, e.g. Kosher or salt free

Because of these factors, you will need to provide a sufficient number of different dishes so that anyone who falls in these categories will still have a choice.

Next, decide on the method of service. Realistically, if you are feeding more than 12 people, serving food on a plate to people seated at a table is above the skill level of most non-professionals.

That leaves two viable serving alternatives. First, you can put all the food out on a buffet and let people choose when to come to eat. Alternatively, you can initially place some dishes around the room for people to choose from, but also pass food during the course of the party. Should you choose this second alternative, the passed foods will be finger foods which must be bite size, lack a dripping sauce, and do not crumble.

Now, think of your invited crowd and try to categorize their approach to food. Are they an adventuresome or sophisticated group that would appreciate something out of the ordinary, or are they more comfortable with familiar food? The elderly and the young are generally not as adventurous in food choices. Or is it a mixed crowd?

Another reason to look at the age group is to get an initial feel for food quantity. You will need a lot more food for teenagers than an elderly gathering.

Finally, evaluate the season. It is always better to feed a crowd with seasonal food that is temperature appropriate. Not only will it taste better, but also the foodstuffs will be easier to find and generally less expensive. You wouldn’t choose large pots of stews and hot soups for a July party, just as a December event requires heartier foods than just a light salad and fruit.

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