Large family dinners

[IsThisOneFree]

Family of six, half of which are teen boys. What are your go-to buckets of slop that can be ladled out, let them come back for seconds and are protein-dense?
I’m growing weary of chilli, spag Bol, burritos, fish pie and chicken curry rotation.

Inspiration welcome, please!

and pizza
how could I forget pizza

Chicken pie
Beef stew - you can make it with lots of onions and carrots and mushrooms to make the beef go further.
Chicken quickly fried and then cooked with peppers and served with rice or boiled potatoes
Lamb curry
Homemade pizza - not exactly a bucket of slop, but it's easy to make a bread dough and a tomato sauce, and add loads of toppings.
Lasagne, if you can face making the béchamel sauce

And as PP have said, desserts - various crumbles and tarts with custard.

Oh, and a big roasting tin of roast whatever, flavoured with tomato puree/soy sauce/ Worcestershire sauce/ whatever - chuck in chicken pieces or small lamb or pork chops, parboiled potatoes, halved large tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots - whatever you think will work and they'll eat.

I used to also make a big pork casserole with leeks, topped with sliced cooking apple.

Could you post the meatball recipe please.

Easy chicken & chickpea tagine recipe | Good Food https://share.google/nyBBnTVtyFT2XxogR

Oven baked chicken, chorizo and rice. Kind of a jambalaya. Only limited by the size of your pot.

Paella is easy and filling. Also oven baked risottos.

I have 5 sons, grown up now ☺️ lost count of the amount of giant cottage pies, lasagnes and pasta bakes that I've served up 😂 also curries, chillis and casseroles! Always serve lots of rice, noodles and jacket spuds on the side to fill them up or a big plate of dinner rolls!

A big pot of belgian carbonnades. It’s an amazing beef stew. Cook it the day before. Heat on the day and have with chips or crusty bread.

Carbonara with salad and garlic bread
chicken tray bakes

bottom layer. Potatoes, red onions and courgettes, add beans like butter cannellini
the add spice/fflavouring- Lemon, fennel and garlic, chorizo and tomatoes, peppers and fajita seasonings. You get the drift. Cook for about 30 mins

layered on top- chicken thighs. Cook for additional 30 mins. Serve with crusty bread, salad, more veg, slaw or whatever else.

Chicken quarters brushed with barbecue sauce, baked potatoes, with coleslaw, corn on the cob and barbecue beans. Same thing with ribs.
Toad in the hole. Greens, mash, gravy.
Brazilian black bean stew
kedgeree
fajitas: just plonk the wok in the middle of the table with a couple of sets of tongs and let them make their own.
Eggs: all forms: shakshuka with crusty bread, giant frittata etc.
tagine with couscous.
marry me chicken/ mushrooms/ butterbeans/ chickpeas with rice or mash or even pasta.

Sausage casserole

Braising Steak casserole

Paella

Risotto

And daal…vats of daal that they can dip into and heat up individual bowls of at all hours of the day and night.

I do a roast chicken, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings and a variety of vegetables. Or a shoulder of pork. A big piece of pork can make left over pulled pork, wraps, or crispy pork with onions, mushrooms peppers and chilli noodles.

Toad in the hole with really good, big butcher's sausages (at least 98% meat), big tray thereof. Onion gravy, selection of veg - mashed swede and carrot, kale (with garlic butter), celeriac and potato mash, roasted onions done at the same time as the toad.
Steamed puddings, sweet or savoury. Sweet with custard.
Liver and bacon in a tomato and red wine sauce, potato gratin, peas and carrots.
Fruit cobbler made with stewed, frozen fruit and served with full-fat Greek yoghurt.
Slow-cooked spiced should of lamb, can either be "pulled" and served with flatbreads, tzatziki, salad or as a take on a traditional roast with roast potatoes and ratatouille or roasted root vegetables.
Bread and butter pudding with raisins and bread spread with marmalade or jam with yoghurt or ice-cream.
Spanish tortillas done as a huge tray bake in the oven.
Large pot of dhal with rice, raita and an onion, tomato and cucumber salad.
Pancakes - sweet or savoury.
Copious amounts of cauliflower cheese with bacon and tomatoes. Served with courgettes of varying colours for interest.
Stuffed peppers.
Lentil loaf with mushroom sauce.
"Swedish" meatballs.
Fish fingers, mash and peas with tartar sauce.
Cornish pasties (make your own).
Rice pudding - again home-made.
Stuffed portobello mushrooms (can be vegetarian) with baked potatoes.
Any casserole with potato dumplings.
Jerusalem artichokes are useful, too, can be made into soup, mashed with potato and/or celeriac or as a gratin and make a seasonal change.
Pork chops.
Mapu tofu.
Fishcakes (baked in the oven).
I am assuming that you are a competent cook and could make everything from scratch.
Brownies made with grated beetroot.
Anything that requires a good amount of chewing is important to get that "full" feeling.
Crumbles are always acceptable, add oats to the topping for extra interest and to provide a more filling mouthful.
French onion soup with cheese croutons.
As a PP mentioned, a good, hearty soup as a first course can be very helpful.
Chickpeas are also useful in soups, stews and curries.
Shepherd's pie made with the leftovers from the lamb shoulder and bulked out with green lentils.
Stuffed cabbage leaves.

Its not my recipe....its a tub you buy from Asda. Cheap and delicious . About £2,00
- ASDA Groceries

Moroccan Meatball Potato Bake Recipe | HelloFresh

Could you kindly give me your rice pudding recipe? I need one for at least six people and even looking online I can’t find one! Just basic rice pudding.

We do a lot of either whole chicken or chicken legs (marinade or seasoning of your choice) with baguettes (2 pack of part baked baguettes is 80p, so I can do an oven full). With salad or veg.

Lentil soup with bread and butter.

Meatballs in tomato sauce with spaghetti. Mix it up from spaghetti bolognaise.

These nachos, very easy and filling

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/nachos_92445

@ThatshallotBaby

I always use Simon Hopkinson’s rice pudding recipe on BBC. I find mine takes a bit longer to cook than he allows (I tend to give it nearly 2 hours), though of course when it comes out of the oven it can look a bit liquid but usually firms up after resting for 15-20 mins. We are a family of 5 and I find this recipe stretches to 5. For 6 people I’d be inclined to double the recipe or maybe 1.5.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/rice_pudding_85172

@MotherofPearl
Thank you so much, I’ll give it a whirl 😀

That's a really good rice pudding recipe.

My first job they always served double carbs, so spag bol with spaghetti and chips, moussaka with chips, etc. It was very effective!

This isn’t cost effective… for 6 people many being teen boys she’d need 4-5 halloumi blocks. That’s about £15 minimum just on the cheese

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