Cooking for 20 adults

[Chilledout11]

Have funciton coming up where we will be out for two hours so need to come back to food prepped.
Other than calling in caterers what could I cook?

I have six rings (normal cooked and portable) so could do steaks. Everyone is a fairly plain eater. Or curry (mild) in slow cooker.

Or soup in slow cooker to give me a chance to cook something when we get in? Thank You for any ideas

Soup ,is easy.

I’d do a big gammon, a couple of quiches, baked potatoes and several lovely salads. Maybe a side of salmon too or a cauliflower cheese. Alternatively a couple of varieties of lasagne with salad.

Cold pudding and some cheese. Most things can be done well ahead.

Shepherds pie or lasagna can be prepared in advance and heated up when you need to.
Other than that a nice stew or curry in the slow cooker.

A giant pot of chilli prepared in advance with baked potatoes, sour cream, salads and breads.
Or a vat of soup made in advance and heated when we got home, with a choice of breads.
Traybakes or fruits for puddings, if you want them.

Apologies for typo
Lasagne for that many would it take long to reheat?

I think soup would be great to give me a chance to prep something- dh could sort that and have breads all ready to go. Cheeseboard ?

Homemade Jamie Oliver quiche/tart
Selection of cold meats
Coronation chicken (but old fashioned but hoes down well,
Green salad
Tomato and mozzarella
New potatoes

All served cold

Forget steaks, it will be a nightmare getting them all done how people like them and ready at anywhere near the same time.

Combination of hot and cold sounds like a good idea as you can prep the cold stuff earlier in the day - if you have space, I'd prep it just before you go out and leave it out of the fridge so you can serve at room temperature as it's so much nicer than fridge cold food.

Then soup or chilli and nice bread or tortillas etc. Either borrow 2 or 3 large slow cookers or cook it and leave it in the oven on low - about 70-90 C is about right, as long as it's above 63 C, it's perfectly safe, as is leaving things like meat, cheese, salad etc out of the fridge for a couple of hours.

Anything that needs close supervision when you return is a bad idea.
I would borrow a couple of slow cookers for the following:
Chilli a meat and a veggie one
Lamb curry (chicken can dry out in a slow cooker)
Rice
Have a stack of wraps to warm through in the oven, plus sides of soured cream, raita, mango chutney, grated cheese.
Big bowls of salad
For dessert keep it simple with a selection of small cup cakes and a big cheeseboard.

Chilli m, pre cook so 10 mins to warm through. Rice (my rice cooker has a timer but doesn't take long if you wash and soak whilst you are out) nachos using shop bought chips, dips and grated cheese

I did this recently, cooked for 20 plus a few kids. Did as pp said, borrowed a couple of slow cookers and did two curries and a jambalaya - just the rice to sort on the night. Also did a couple of cold desserts.

Thanks so much. Great ideas. I might practise a bit to see what works. I have a good warmer that's quite s good size and my slow cooker has z 'keep warm' setting. Most of these guests are plain meat and potatoes people (older Irish generation) but maybe braised steak could work. Good few like curry

Just an update. I went to Lidl last night at they have packets of few cooked salmon fillets and falafel and nice cheeses and bread. There is a good chicken and brocolli bake I make so I will do that. A curry in slow cooker and rice salad pasta salad and baby potatoes (will borrow a friends slow cooker to keep warm)
Then I will cook plenty of chicken breasts (butchers do a nice one in breadcrumb)
Coleslaw. Bean salad etc desserts

How about a couple of lamb legs roasting while you’re out? Lots of flatbreads, salad, salsa, roasted peppers and red onion round the lamb. Shred lamb into a big bowl and let people make their own wraps - delish

Sorry didn’t read last post - that sounds lovely too!

OP just to add please DONT leave anything out for two hours as others have suggested other than really low-risk items like salad, fruit and hard cheese (cheddar type cheese for instance). Anything with creamy dressings, quiches, meats/ chicken soft cheeses absolutely need to be kept in the fridge.

Two hours is the "danger zone" for having food at room temperature, and if you are away for two hours, and are then coming back to finish putting everything together, it will easily be over two or even three hours before people start eating. I'm a trained chef so I'm not making this up!

I think you're making it harder for yourself OP, I would prep 2 or 3 homemade lasagnes/pasta bakes (at least 1 vegetarian one) and then you can pop them in the oven & prep a nice big salad and some french bread whilst they cook.

Easy!

Also agree with @Daisydoesnt don't leave food out the fridge!!
@BarbaraofSevillle everyone must love coming to your house then feeling sick as you have such bad food hygiene.

Oh course all will be left in the fridge I have a good warmer that keeps food hot and slow cooker with a keep warm function also

All salads etc

nighttime how long would it take to reheat lasagne

From turning on the oven OP it's going to be about 45 minutes.

You are going to be heating a lot of very dense food from fridge cold, and I'm guessing you've just got an ordinary domestic oven?

When you are cooking for large numbers of people it is much easier to cook one or two things but just in bigger quantities - when you start getting into a chicken dish, a traybake, a curry, and potatoes, two different sorts of salads, falafel, and cold salmon, you are making things very complicated. You've also got to keep all the various different options chilled and unless you have two fridges you are going to struggle.

Cook how you would if it were just family - only on a bigger scale. You have already got your hands full with not being there in the two hours before guests arriving, which makes it more difficult. Keep it really simple!!!

As it's older people who like "traditional" food I would do a couple of big casseroles the day before, possibly a chicken one and a red meat one, with a choice of jacket potatoes or rice, and have 2-3 plain veg options possibly just peas, sweet corn, carrots.
Have everything prepped, all plates and cutlery organised, and jackets precooked so you can just re-heat when you get back. Have a couple of people nominated to get drinks for everyone while you do the last minute reheating.
I would buy a selection of good quality ready made puddings which can just be laid out and served such as apple pie, chocolate cake and make a fruit salad.

I would do salad, a couple of quiches, a potatoe salad, egg salad and a large impressive salmon to look fancy (rather than small filets). All prepared the day before, all cold. Add fresh bread, olives tomatoes and cheese. Celery in a vase and a dip, artichoke is nice. 70s style.

I have a tendency to over complicate things so appreciate this advice. Didn't thing of fridge storage either. Just normal fridge 3 shelves and standard oven. Dh would have a chance to nip home to turn on oven 46 mins before so that might open a few more options

45