Food recommendations - cooking for a crowd

[anothernameagain000]

Looking for some inspiration really. Am doing a big family Christmas gathering (not on the day - a few weeks before). It’s a traditional thing and usually the host does something like a bit of a cold buffet but with then say a lasagna and chicken dish. Am trying to think of what to do so it’s a little different (but average guest age is probably about 70 so not sure I can go too experimental). For about 20 people - what would you do??

Oh and without being stressed on the day!

Are there any particular food needs / allergies to take into consideration?

I would serve a cheese board and a cold meat platter, garlic bread, mixed salads, saute potatoes, quiches, a hot chicken dish and a roasted vegetable lasagne.

For dessert probably a fresh fruit salad, a trifle and a chocolate bread and butter pudding.

tea / coffee with posh chocolates.

@chottie quite a few gluten free - though an amiable bunch who won’t mind if one of the “mains” doesn’t suit.

Ottolenghi's lamb shawarma with flat breads and interesting salads.
Plus the cold buffet for ease and because I love vol au vents.

@just oh a shawarma is a great idea! Don’t have the Ottelengi book but can pick it up (always wanted it).

Saying that - is it easy to scale?

Moussaka
Beef stew/stogonoff/ - with dumplings
Lamb tangine
Large joint of gammon, jacket potato, plus salads
Different curries etc

I'd maybe go middle eastern
Hummus
Baba ganoush
Yoghurty dips
Cous cous
Turkish style lamb pizza
And then one or two main dishes like lamb meatballs or lamb tagine, chicken with preserved lemon etc.

The salad bits you can do in advance and buy the hummus and the meat you can cook in advance and freeze and reheat.

Slow cooker pulled pork with crusty rolls and coleslaw is easy to do for a large scale and minimal fuss.

I recently cooked a chicken cattiatore dish, it went down a treat.
It’s GF and can be served with Pasta , Rice or even potatoes.
I did garlic bread and a big green salad on the side.

If the average age is about 70 why not do a dish that would have been served when they were younger? Maybe an Irish stew with lamb, or a big beef casserole with lots of meltingly tender carrots and celery - stick some dumplings on top of it 15 mins before you serve it.
Or a big pie cooked in a big tray - steak and ale, chicken and mushroom, savoury minced beef..........ohhhh my mouths watering already!
What about a selection of sausages?? Pork and apple, Cumberland rings, chipolatas for kids, Lincolnshire...........big dish of mash, some gravy and buns and everybody will be happy! You could also do some pigs in blankets as it’s christmas. You can get a massive variety of great sausages - many of them GF - so appeal to everybody - you can get spicy ones, chicken ones, lamb ones —— I’ve seen soooo many types.
Or a nice big piece of gammon - great recipes about so you can have gammon crackling, or a whole shoulder of pork served ‘ pulled’ with bbq sauce, apple sauce, stuffing , different types of bread rolls /wraps etc.
Hope this helps!

@cuddly - sadly I don’t have a slow cooker, but guess I could do in the oven - feel like I should still have some sort of beef alternative as well.

Roast chicken (hot or cold) with crusty bread, salads (green, coleslaw etc), baked Camembert with veggies, cubes of meat and baby potatoes to dip or fondue?Jacket potatoes.

Lemon or chocolate tarts with cream for pudding and maybe a fruit platter.

Taco Soup - veggie, vegan, gluten free
1 x chopped onion fried
2 x tins of kidney beans
2 x tins of white beans
2 x tin of chopped tomatoes
1 x large tin of sweetcorn
1 x packet of taco seasoning
1 x packet of Smokey BBq seasoning.

After frying the onion, add all the tins, then add the packets. Cook on a low heat for about twenty minutes. To serve put nacho chips (will have to buy gluten free), the soup over the top, toppings for the soup should be grated cheese, a dollop of creme fraiche, jalapeño peppers and a few more nachos.

The above recipe feeds four/five generously, it's very filling and the toppings make it seems a bit more showy. Best things is its a one vat meal but you could add their Mexican type sides.

@yorkshireyummymummy - can I come to your next party ? I just had a bit of a party for bonfire night and did a huge selection of sauasages (different guests) but feel like I’d be pulling the same trick lol. A huge pie and a stew could be great though.

Should have also mentioned - on a practical level am currently cursed with a single oven - it’s the bane of my life

Im doing home made pies for 30 for a similar do. 20 in the freezer already, (cooked in small springform cake tins) will serve with cheesey mash, veg and gravy as a buffet.

Massive cottage pie with loads of added veg plus maybe a veggie version

Shamefully got the idea from Jeffrey Archer who is famous for shepherds pie and Krug suppers

Chilli with sides of salsa, grated cheese, guacamole, sour cream, big salad, garlic bread and potato wedges.

@tiger can’t help but think Jeffrey Archer has got it all wrong - cottage pie surely goes with a nice red

I want to try Nigella's chilli topped with cornbread www.nigella.com/recipes/cornbread-topped-chilli-con-carne you could make it GF using GF flour along with the corn meal.
For dessert banoffee pie made using gf biscuits for the base.

I can go meat crazy as no vegetarians

Nigella meatballs. Good for a crowd. U don’t need to serve with pasta just salad and nice bread. Lamb tagine or beef casserole. Waitrose recipe with ale is nice. All of these are fine (even nicer) if you want to make them the night before and put into fridge till you want to heat them up. Sometimes I find better to do three decent choices as can work out less expensive than lots of bits. Pudding cheesecake / trifle u can make in advance so again no risk of burning and it can be whipped out if the fridge when time comes.

I’ve done pulled pork in the oven before - it’s good for a crowd because it’s fairly forgiving if your times need to be flexible on the day.

I would do a couple of hot one pot dishes with bread and salads, possibly one meat & one veggie and buy ready made desserts.

Buy a slow cooker! They're only about £20, and so useful.
Do a gammon joint in it. Just tip half a bag of brown sugar in the bottom, add the meat, pour the rest of the sugar over, and set it on high for at least four hours. Or if you like cola, put the meat in with a litre or so of cola instead of the sugar.