Party food/feeding a crowd

[BuffaloCauliflower]

Thinking about food ideas for a family party coming up in July. Will be about 30-40 with about 8 of those children. I’d usually do what my mum calls a ‘cold collation’ - homemade quiche, ham, salmon side, salads, cheese, breads etc and this is still top contender, but wondering if there’s something else that might come out a bit cheaper? Don’t want to do a BBQ, and end of July feels too summery for the chilli/baked potato/pasta bake type options. Meal will be lunchtime and won’t be eaten round a table, and I want to be able to prep most in advance. Would love ideas.

(I’m very comfortable feeding a crowd and have fed many more than this in the past by the way)

I think what you've suggested sounds absolutely lovely and is ideal for the time of year & age mix

I regularly do a similar buffet but for a lot less people

I think you're catering for all tastes and, if you have any vegetarians, they also have a nice choice

A big bowl of pesto pasta salad always seems to disappear rapidly. The one disaster I've had is with beetroot salad. It's very popular with my family but unfortunately someone dropped some on my beige sofa so now I only serve it when we're going to sit at the table😥

The other thing my family really enjoyed at Christmas was a sausagemeat plait . . . I bought it but I'm sure there are recipes available

Hope it all goes well . . . doing the catering sometimes means that you can't join in as much but, hopefully, with this type of meal, it's mainly prepared in advance and frees you up to enjoy the party too

Pizza!!!!! Lots of it - get to lidl its quite cheap

Also - sandwiches- ham is cheap

Pulled pork or brisket, rolls, and slaw? Pulling the meat seems to make it go much further than slicing it and Pork is a bit cheaper than salmon. I’d serve with seasoned roast new potatoes and dips to help fill everyone up.

My favoured approach to feeding large numbers is to roast a couple of large joints of meat and serve with bread and salads.

So this what I have book marked for next time.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/jul/06/yotam-ottolenghi-summer-al-fresco-feast-recipes-pork-vindaloo-slaw-mango-ice-cream?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2XO08Jaoxig9yPqro0jz5mV24wuPuGroKc6rEqfx704yVoBpRYUn8QwnI_aem_ieRRv9E7hPkXOFl1NoT-ew

What about Afternoon Tea?

I’ve bookmarked this for over the summer. Thank you

What you normally do sounds absolutely lovely. If that's what people are expecting/hoping for, I think it would be a letdown to find that you are instead providing cheap pizza and/or sandwiches made with plastic ham.

The obvious place to cut costs is on either or both the salmon side and the ham. Would it be cheaper to provide a big pile of sausages instead of a joint of ham/gammon? Sausage plait as mentioned above sounds lovely and less fuss than sausage rolls.

A 'buffet' does always cost more than you think. I'm waiting to see if someone will be along to suggest a grazing table and set the thread alight ;)

Recently (for a smaller but still large group) I've done pulled pork and honey BBQ chicken, stuffing, apple sauce, coleslaw, salad and rolls/wraps (and gravy for the kids who insisted) This didn't feel too wintery but I know everyone who was coming and no veggies. I think it worked out cheaper overall and was easier. It accommodated different start times too as I had the meat in slow cookers.

Taming twins website has a summer slow cooker range which would be a great jumping off point

If that's what people are expecting/hoping for, I think it would be a letdown to find that you are instead providing cheap pizza and/or sandwiches made with plastic ham. they'll get over it. Can mix the cheaper bits in with the fancy bits just to bulk and keep cost down. Also it isn't plastic ham, just buy normal ham

One year I did an amazing Middle Eastern spread - centre piece was two slow roasted lamb shoulders rubbed with Moroccan spices.

Flatbreads
Cous cous salad
Tomato & onion salad
Beetroot & feta salad
Taboulleh
Hummus
Tsatisiki
Roasted herb potatoes (could be more of a potato salad)
Roasted Mediterranean veg

Because we had people coming for different times, I staggered the lamb so one was ready an hour before the other.

This sounds lovely but expensive for 30-40 people. Lamb is really expensive now

Buffets get expensive the more variety you have. So instead of doing a ham, salmon, quiche and cheese board pick two. I'd go for the ham and a veggie homemade quiche.
I'd then offer French stick, pickles/chutneys, a green salad, coleslaw, a roasted veg cous cous and either watermelon and feta salad or a Greek salad.

If people won't be eating from a table then you need things that can be eaten easily with just a fork or fingers - rules out the slices of roast meats for me, as lovely and simple as they are.

I love Delia's chicken, tarragon and grape salad i poach chicken thigh fillets - reduces the prep, easier to chop up than a while chicken and tastier/cheaper than breast. I use shop bought mayo and you can use cheap yoghurt instead of cream.

I also love homemade quiche but that's a lot of work for that many people. Oven baked frittata would be easier. Lots of recipes if you Google.

Sticky cocktail sausages aren't just for Christmas & easy/cheap to make mounds of.

You don't mention whether you have any vegetarian / vegan guests. Roast butternut squash and chickpea salad is one of my favourites and I'm a meat eater. Have taken it to several barbecues and it always gets eaten. Just chop squash into chunks, roast, mix with tinned chickpeas and French dressing while it's still warm

You could still cook a ham, but make less go further by chopping into cubes and mixing with chopped potatoes, spring onions, sweetcorn, anything else you fancy and mix with either mayo or a dressing. Although I'd avoid having 2 dishes with the same dressing.

You've had lots of other great suggestions, you'll easily pull together a fabulous lower cost menu. Keep the salmon side for a smaller group !

My top tips:

I've find IKEA's very large ziplock bags kinder on fridge space for the kinds of salads I've suggested above than bowls, then decant on the day.

Never turn anyone down if they offer to bring anything. I'm not very good at accepting offers as I am a bit of a control freak when it comes to everything going together - so have a list of things others could bring that save fridge space whilst being reasonable to ask for eg green/Greek/tomato salad/a trifle/ a cake etc.

It would be great if you shared what you go with as I'm always on the look out for tried and tested dishes for a crowd.

Good luck!