Fred McGriff Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 i'm hosting 12 people for dinner next week, haven't cooked on a scale like that before. any tips from people who have experience with this sort of thing, like how to keep all the food warm because there are a few things i'll be doing in batches (starting off the dinner with pan seared scallops), would be appreciated. i'm doing five courses: a seared scallop over a curried apple and carrot puree, braised pork belly, a salad of some sort, beef short rib ragu over hand made fettucine, and then some sort of dessert involving nutella. ideas welcome cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Yegg Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 A toasty oven should work for keeping the food warm, is that what you mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred McGriff Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 would that overcook the food though if you keep it in the oven? maybe i could keep the plates in the oven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SR4 Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 here's some advice: stop making that fucking awful ragu and come up with a new idea you cunt *kidding, im an 'orrible cook* i would say it depends on how you are serving it i would attempt it very restaurant style-prep absolutely everything in a way that it can be put together rather quickly. if time is lacking, unfortunately youd probably have to stay in the kitchen to make sure everything is ship shape, other wise, your guests should be happy enough to wait 20 minutes each course for your delicious feastings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred McGriff Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 oh yeah, would it be rude not to join them for dinner and let my wife do all the socializing while i run the kitchen? and would it be "weird" to hire a chimpanzee to chop vegetables? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SR4 Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 oh yeah, would it be rude not to join them for dinner and let my wife do all the socializing while i run the kitchen? and would it be "weird" to hire a chimpanzee to chop vegetables? i would say not, especially if its a small kitchen, its not like they cant shout from across the room or peer in from the entryway...if you really, i mean really want it to move quickly, youd pretty much have to stay in the kitchen unless you have others helping. maybe your wife can handle the wine/ social part, you take care of the chef part. plus i think a chimpanzee would be a fresh amazonian avant-garde take on prepping veggies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred McGriff Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 good ideas, good ideas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velazquez Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 wear only an apron and oven mitts. I can't cook so I have no other useful tips. sounds like a good menu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SR4 Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 im thinkin you might actually be able to socialize briefly sometime between the first and second course....all youd really have to do is watch the oven for the pork belly and watch the pot warming the puree....or am i missing something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Coalbucket PI Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 do as much of it in advance as possible, I don't know how you feel about microwaves but I think you can do a lot of your veg in advance and microwave it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Etch Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 A practice run always helps, obviously not on that scale but it helps to highlight potential problems. Also, make sure the meal is more than managable so that if there are (allah forbid) any bumps in the road the whole spead doesn't go to shit. ribs are ideal for pre-cooking. I don't see why the mains couldn't work. Belly Pork can be truly spectacular but you dont want that fat too moist nor do you want the meat too dry. Scoring and airing the meat can help. In terms of keeping the food warm, scallops need to be served FAST, those little bastards lose heat rapidly so you want hot plates and you want them on the table asap. Nutella makes an incredible stuffed french toast, pretty easy to cook/prepare, cheap and cheerful served with a dollop of decent vanilla icecream. Garnish with chopped mint. Hot plates are usually essential on an oparation of this scale, if the oven is too full fill the sink with hot water and keep them in there. Have someone (wife/chimp) on hand to dry those bad boys thoroghly before serving. Hope that helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YEK Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 8 packs of ramen noodles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenton Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 You only get to socialize a bit but afterward you are the cook and it's fucking great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred McGriff Posted December 9, 2009 Author Share Posted December 9, 2009 A practice run always helps, obviously not on that scale but it helps to highlight potential problems. Also, make sure the meal is more than managable so that if there are (allah forbid) any bumps in the road the whole spead doesn't go to shit. ribs are ideal for pre-cooking. I don't see why the mains couldn't work. Belly Pork can be truly spectacular but you dont want that fat too moist nor do you want the meat too dry. Scoring and airing the meat can help. In terms of keeping the food warm, scallops need to be served FAST, those little bastards lose heat rapidly so you want hot plates and you want them on the table asap. Nutella makes an incredible stuffed french toast, pretty easy to cook/prepare, cheap and cheerful served with a dollop of decent vanilla icecream. Garnish with chopped mint. Hot plates are usually essential on an oparation of this scale, if the oven is too full fill the sink with hot water and keep them in there. Have someone (wife/chimp) on hand to dry those bad boys thoroghly before serving. Hope that helps. fucking great tips. gonna look into that nutella thing. i've practiced the short rib ragu twice before so i'm ready for that i think. this whole meal is actually a practice run for the throwdown my brother and I are having over christmas. gonna try to do as much of this shit as possible before hand. word on the scallops being served immediately. i want to have every thing done for the most part before I put those in the scallops in the pans. the rest will simply involve plating, boiling the pasta, and more plating. that sink idea is brilliant. i have a big ass farmhouse sink so that will be perfect, i wouldn't have thought of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Etch Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Glad to help. One more thing, go for a pudding tha is almost completely preped. During the meal you want to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labour, have a few glasses of wine and kick back like you do this all the time etc. The last thing you want to do is get up from the table and launch into something complicated. Go forsomething that you whip out of the fridge/freezer, maybe make some custard/choclolate sauce or something but ideally you want the prep to be as simple as possible. I can't think of anything else. I reckon you'll nail it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patternoverlap Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I want some photos of your guests eating round the table with their faces photoshopped blank (a la BOC). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kakapo Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 You probably know this already, but don't be tempted to overload one pan at the same time, particularly with the scallops. It just sucks the heat out of the pan, and you end up stewing rather than searing things. Also, mise en place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Drahken Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 If you put some foil over dishes before putting them in a warmed oven it should keep it from drying out too much depending on the dish. My oven is kinda whacked and the back right burner gets quite warm if the oven is on so I often use that to keep pots warm. Hope you take some pictures man, your cooking is often an inspiration for my own culinary battles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyrex Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I'd consider getting a catering company's quote on how much the dinner will cost you and compare that to your time plus the cost of materials to you and say 'fuck it' to the cooking part, and entertain your guests with burlap drawings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokoon Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 fred, you're my hero. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encey Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 i'm hosting 12 people for dinner next week, haven't cooked on a scale like that before. any tips from people who have experience with this sort of thing, like how to keep all the food warm because there are a few things i'll be doing in batches (starting off the dinner with pan seared scallops), would be appreciated. i'm doing five courses: a seared scallop over a curried apple and carrot puree, braised pork belly, a salad of some sort, beef short rib ragu over hand made fettucine, and then some sort of dessert involving nutella. ideas welcome cheers Man, we usually cook for two, and even when we have only two other people over, it's like cooking an entirely different dish. Cooking for more is so fuckin hard! My amateur ideas: - The puree you should be able to make ahead of time and warm up in a pan or the oven while you're doing the scallops. - The salad should be arranged ahead of time in a big bowl with tongs, and you can put any dressing or wet extras you might use on the side and let people dress & toss their own salad (while I toss your mom's). - The fettucine can also be made and dried early, boiled for like 30 seconds, and then stirred into the ragu to heat up just before you plate (since the ragu can cook all fuckin day as far as it's concerned). - One of the most elegant nutella desserts would be crepes with fresh strawberries. If you do this, you can pre-make the batter the day before and fridge it (better anyway, to let it fluff up on its own), and keep the made crepes warm, covered in aluminum foil in a 200- to 225-degree oven. Another option is to assemble a crepe gateau by stacking them with nutella spread in between, warm all that in the oven briefly once it's assembled and then throw the strawberries on top just before dessert time. Please let us know how it turns out! I could use the dinner party tips -- I really want to be able to throw one but find it intimidating. I didn't know you had 12 friends! en<3y Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ivan Lennovitz Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I'd consider getting a catering company's quote on how much the dinner will cost you and compare that to your time plus the cost of materials to you and say 'fuck it' to the cooking part, and entertain your guests with burlap drawings. No, no, it’s about actually doing everything yourself (hence the homemade fettuccine), rocking it, then earning everybody’s fucking respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Braintree Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Just set your oven to warm and keep the finished dishes in there. If you're going to go the route which requires you to be in the kitchen most of the night, just make everything one at a time, and keep it in the oven if your guests aren't ready for the next course. Depends on the dish, but you could time it perfectly if you start cooking another course when you serve one. Actually, fuck it. Just serve hot dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keltoi Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 i love tits covered in nutella. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encey Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 *jots tits down* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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