Dinner party meal ideas - mostly cooked beforehand

[HolibobsinApril]

So, I have 8 friends coming for dinner in a few weeks.

I'm looking for some inspiration please of what to cook for a main meal.

I have 1 person with an egg allergy
1 have one person who isn't keen on tomatoes
Want to avoid chicken casserole style dishes as that's tends to be standard with our group.

I have a kitchen diner so I dont really want to still be cooking when everyone is here. So, something that I can cook just before they arrive would be perfect.

Any ideas please?

Chicken and chorizo paella is a crowd pleaser in my house.

Italian rice balls are good.

Cottage lie, if they like a hearty meal and it can be done in advance and popped in the oven when they arrive

Fajitas

All my favourites 😊

Cottage Pie, not lie.

Beef bourguignon or a lasagne using egg free pasta? Doesn't have to be a traditional lasagne recipe. Diana Henry has a salmon gratin recipe on BBC Good Food which is very good and a bit different.

Fish pie 😋

Do you have a slow cooker - I'd make a curry in the slow cooker to be ready for serving time then just cook some rice and naan bread and serve with chutneys.

Or make a slow cooker chilli then make some rice, garlic bread, nachos, sour cream and guacamole.

Lamb tagine? Prep beforehand and leave slow cooking, cous cous is easy to make at the last minute. I usually do Nigella's lamb tagine with caramelised onions and olives.

How fancy do you want to go? Mixed appetisers, a salad, bread and something like paella served family style and a dessert that's served cold or has a long cook time so is cooking before they arrive are my preferences. Instead of paella, baked couscous with a salmon side on top looks good on the table, a Tagine is also a great option and you can theme the starters too

Also with slow cooking you can have it also sorted and cleared up hours before guests arrive which is preferable with a kitchen diner. Keep it in the oven turned down low once cooked and just get it out of when everyone's ready to eat.

Chicken ams chorizo paella here too. I tend to do all the pre prep earlier then once everyone arrives, I add the rice and stock, cover and leave it to do its thing so we eat 25 minutes later.

Large roasting joints, often slow cooked but served with non traditional sides work well I find. Eg a big lamb shoulder casserole style served with greens and a nice dressing and some kind of easy or pre prepared potatoes.

Or rib of beef but served room temperature with salads (so aim to remove from oven as they arrive to rest) a good green salad, a potato salad and a tomato salad will add colour and variety. Add some nice bread.

Some amazing suggestions thank you. I like the idea of a lamb tagline!

One of our group often does chicken casserole and another often does beef bourginon. We have a lot of paella too.

Might look at Salmon too

A selection of tacos and tortillas wilth salad and guacamole and sour cream on the table.
Slow cooker Mexican chicken and a chilli.

Beef stroganoff? Easy to do in advance, especially if you have a rice cooker and can just bung that in and leave it till you’re ready to eat.

Duck legs
Green beans
Mash
Port gravy

Ginger shaking Beef from Jamie Oliver’s 5 ingredients book.

you can cook ahead and leave to rest the beef and sauce. Rice takes minutes and the veg you could cook ahead and then reheat.

really delicious.

Rick Stein's salmon en croute is a good recipe and can be done in advance. Serve with some green veg and garlic potatoes.

www.hub-uk.com/foodpages20/recip0995.htm

I’d do a few different curries, rice, bread.

In your situation, I tend to do a hot starter and a cold main course, so you can take the time to make it look beautiful. A rice mould with giant prawns , one mould each, looks pretty and is delicious. You can garnish it individually and serve a salad as well.

Hot starter could be cheese rolls made with filo pastry, parmigiana ( doesn’t have to have tomatoes) baked Camembert .

Syllabub for desert (doesn’t need eggs…) .

Pork loin in a creamy bacon & mushroom sauce with a hint of mustard. Served with tagliatelle and salad.

You can do the meat & sauce the day before- it will taste amazing!

This is a chicken traybake which is really good- it includes potatoes and then you just make a salad to go with it;
www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/succulent-honey-lemon-chicken

I second this option! Can’t beat a Nigella tagine. In her Christmas book, there’s a recipe for lamb and date tagine with a red onion and pomegranate relish. Everyone loves it. It’s all really quick and easy to throw together and will slow cook happily until you’re ready to eat.

A nice big lasagna served with garlic bread and salad. To start you can just have some antipasti nibbles and for desert tiramisu.

Another vote for a Chicken and chorizo Paella/Jambalaya!

Bouillabaisse. Can make the base in advance and just poach the fish/seafood in 10 mins. I serve with rouille (you can make with vegan Mayo and roasted red pepper in a jar) and crusty bread and butter.

Looks amazing, not that much effort and is a crowd pleaser.

I'd go lasagne cooked before they arrive. Just pop garlic bread in oven and serve with large green salad.

Tagine is a great idea and serve with flatbreads, rice and/or spiced potatoes.

Tapas dishes is a good one as most can be pre-prepared and cooked then heated through.

Tex mex too. Fajitas, vegetables, tacos, rice etc

I like stuff I can put out and everyone helps themselves.