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easy cheap meals for 8?

15 replies

fluffydoglover27 · 28/07/2022 00:27

im a completely crap cook and while I'm perfectly comfy frying myself up some rice / cooking pasta etc I have 7 friends coming to stay with me for a week (I live alone by the seaside) and I have no idea what to feed them!

I am gluten free and I have two veggie and one pescatarian coming to stay

I would really appreciate some suggestions xx

OP posts:
Leeds2 · 28/07/2022 00:33

Veggie lasagne, with gluten free pasta.

Gluten free pizza bases with whatever toppings.

What do you usually eat?

fluffydoglover27 · 28/07/2022 00:38

very similar - main concern is cooking for so many...

OP posts:

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lastminutedotcom22 · 28/07/2022 00:45

Things like veggie lasagne can be made before and frozen which is good

Jacket potatoes with roast veg/ home made ratatouille

Gluten free fajitas with chicken/ quorn

Veggie curry

A slow cooker would be great too

Have any of the guests offered to cook one night/ bring something? I would have offered if it was me visiting you

AuntTwacky · 28/07/2022 01:20

Nice big veggie curry with sides

carefullycourageous · 28/07/2022 01:57

I would also suggest vegetarian lasagne (use gf pasta) or a really great soup with fresh bread, fruit, cheeseboard. Or a range of cold salads with fresh bread and cheese board.

AdaColeman · 28/07/2022 02:03

Keep it simple by focusing on vegetarian meals for all, that will help keep costs down also. Though I do think your guests should contribute, perhaps by paying for supermarket shops, buying wine etc.

Pasta bake with a tomato Mediterranean sauce is easy. A vegetable curry with side dishes of potatoes, dahl, yoghurt & mint dip etc usually goes well. Other ideas are lentil cottage pie, vegetable paella, vegetable moussaka, mixed bean & vegetable casserole.

Get the guests all helping with the cooking and clearing up, make a rota if necessary, or you will be run ragged and need a holiday yourself when they leave! They can treat you to a restaurant meal on the last night. 🍷 🍷 🍷

Rainbowqueeen · 28/07/2022 02:25

BBC good food sweet potato and spinach Dahl. Really easy and you can make ahead of time then just add the spinach when you reheat.
Vege chili serve with sour cream, avocado and rice
Oven roasted veges (like eggplant, red pepper and corgettes). Make a lemon dressing. Mix with couscous and 2 cans of drained and rinsed chickpeas. Serve cold.

Soup is also a good shout.
I’d also stick to vege meals for all.

sashh · 28/07/2022 03:06

There is another thread with a voucher code for a free Guosto box - it might be worth signing up, it won't feed all of you but will give you the ingredients and instructions for some meals.

I'd be tempted to do a buffet every day with the addition of one or two hot dishes.

Do you have a slow cooker?

Buffet
Salad(s)
dips - humus, baba ganoush, bread sticks and veg to dip
quiche
pickles
nice bread

You get the idea.

Then in the slow cooker make a vegi chilli and a load of baked potatoes.

I make a simple fish stew - you need a quite 'meaty' fish, cod, fresh tuna, hake, mackerel - or a couple of them

Put in the slow cooker with a pack or two of passatta, salt and pepper and any herbs you like, serve with rice. If your slow cooker is big enough you can put rice and water (1/3 rice, 2/3 water) in a zip lock bag and put that in the slow cooker.

Foil parcels - if you do individual ones you can cook vegi, meat and fish.

I would use quorn for the vegi other wise chicken (skinless thigh or breast) and salmon. Garlic puree, 1/2 a lemon per person and dried oregano.

Get squares of foil, put a bit of spray oil on each one. Start with the quorn so you don't cross contaminate.

Put the protein in the centre of the foil, squeeze garlic puree out onto the protein and use a knife to 'better' it so it is covered - it looks too much but don't worry. Cover with the dried oregano to make a sort of crust then cut the lemon in half. Cut a slice of lemon and put it on top of the 'crust' and squeeze the rest of the lemon juice over it. You could use lemon juice from a bottle and just use the lemons for slices.

old the foil until you have parcels, I normally cook them for 20 mins in the oven put if you have 8 parcels it might take longer.

Serve with new potatoes and green beans.

SpiderinaWingMirror · 28/07/2022 03:12

Jacket spuds
Veggie chilli.

HauntingScream · 28/07/2022 09:42

Jacket potatoes
Veg curry, chick pea curry, paneer or Dahl with rice
Mushroom stroganoff with rice

Bigwetdog · 28/07/2022 09:47

Eight people, seven days... Can each person so one dinner each - they bring the ingredients and cook?

Will you not be going out for food?

You get in breakfast bits.

Have none of them offered to shop or cook?

AtleastitsnotMonday · 28/07/2022 16:03

A cauliflower and chickpea curry with rice
Mixed bean chilli with jackets, coleslaw, cheese.
Fritata with salad
Field mushrooms stuffed with Stilton and rice, peppers stuffed with herbs cous cous and topped with mozzarella
Ploughman's (if you can get decent gf baguette do if not sub with potato salad.
Shakshuka (I'd do it in 2 pans though) with sourdough
Stir fry with cashews and rice noodles.
Haloumi burgers with salad

AffIt · 28/07/2022 16:10

The first thing I would suggest is communicating with the group and deciding when / where you're going to eat out, a takeaway night, if anybody else would like to cook one evening etc.

Don't get me wrong, I love to host and cook - but feeding seven people two or three times a day for seven days is going to be both very costly and time-consuming.

FatAgainItsLettuceTime · 28/07/2022 16:13

Definitely enlist the 7 friends to do some of the cooking, you're providing them a place to stay not running an all inclusive hotel!

Loads of good ideas above.

I'd probably throw at least one day of salads and deli stuff in there to reduce the cooking need. Just a load of veg, dips/hummus, deli meats and cheeses, fruit, rotisserie chicken for the non-veggie/pescatarians.

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