Cooking for a Crowd: Getting Prepared
For people who are planning on cooking for a crowd, it is very important that you get yourself completely prepared. After all you want to be sure you make enough food so that no one goes hungry, and also that the presentation is as good as it can be. Cooking for a crowd may seem like an intimidating task but it does have to be, as long as you get prepared.
The First Step
The first thing you should do if you are going to be cooking for a crowd is determining just how many mouths you are going to be feeding. Count and then count again, and then add on to this a bit just to make sure that you will have enough, especially in case some people are extra hungry.
Recipes
You will then have to come up with some large quantity recipes. Keep in mind that many of the standard recipes can be multiplied in order to feed larger crowds, whereas some are meant to be prepared for a smaller number of people. Also remember that not all ingredients need to be multiplied. If the recipe calls for fat for sautéing for instance you will not need to multiply this, and rather just use exactly what is called for in the original recipe.
Preparation
The preparation process is incredibly important when cooking for a crowd. First you should make a list of all the dishes that you are planning to prepare, and even make a menu if you can so that the guests will be aware of what to expect. Some of the kitchen work can be done ahead of time in order to save you time when the day actually comes, and this includes chopping vegetables, and making stews and sandwiches.
The presentation is going to be very important here so make sure that you have enough dishes and silverware and that it all matches or at least goes with a certain theme. You really want to tie everything in together and not only the dishes but the food as well. Each different course should be separate and have its own look and taste but they should all tie in together in some way.
Cooking for a crowd can really be quite an enjoyable experience as long as you take the time to prepare and follow the right steps to make sure that you make enough food and that your guests are pleased.
