Ok critique comming...
But 40 people as your first BBQ 👏👏👏
First
Loo roll
And extra handwash
And a toilet brush 👀 ( can be binned post BBQ)
And extra long rubber gloves 🙈
Borrow a Kettle for extra quick boiling water.
You can/should quickly clean and scald BBQ tongs if you are moving from/between raw to cooked meats. So bring the boiled kettle out with the raw meat if need must.
You can create a hot store by doube potting a hot small pot of food into a larger pot of boiling water eg when there is a dely moving food from the oven to the BBQ and swap out the water to keep the temp up.
If you are planning on hosting large events over a number of summers invest in the hardware : delph/glass/metal over plastic for dishwasher safe long life items and guests not as likely be careless and endup drop food/drink and stain materials
Feed the U10 first at a table and then kick them out to play or outside use a old bedsheet as a grass cover picnic blanket
Use delph for the under 10's so parents will have to supervise the food delivery.
So you dont have the running and eating disasters of paper/plastic plates and crumbs everywhere.🤷♀️
And BBQ+ 2 days later your not finding a half eaten burger under the new sofa slowly melting into the new rug🙃
NB day 2 is rest and slow pack-a-way till next time.
Timing : If you are near Ikea do plates and bowls and smallish stackable glasses and wine glasses for about 75p each and metal cutlery. Same with cheaper large bowls and jugs and serving spoons. £100/£200 would buy a lot but only if you will use it longtern.
And local shops may have cheap house starter sets or individual items.
So you can build up a full party set over time and store it in a decent sealable plastic box in the loft or waterproof garden box seat or under the BBQ
But timing 😬 with 40 people and limited seating(?) buy plates or ask people to bring their own if eating off their laps.
BBQ:
Glasses can be named using a sharpie which will wash off. If you use a sharpie put a adult in charge of access to the sharpie.
no U10 art work is needed on your nice new walls👀🤨
Open cans attract wasps so I tend to avoid allowing children drink from them as they go back to 1/2 abandoned ones (and go looking for new cans)
Drinks:
Water jugs & ice and juice concentrate
> 24x Cans of mocktails
> 48x Cans of pre-mixed cocktails
Too expensive for a 40 people do a swap to soft drinks and/or pick 2/3 75ml spirits and mixer tonic or wine/beer
> 24x Fruit shoots
OJ / Apple juice cartons + jug of water and ice
Cheaper & less rubbish
> 48x Cans of Soft Drinks (coke/Diet Coke/7up/Fanta)
Large bottles are cheaper per L if you have glasses and Ice
I would do 2+ cans per adult driving & Teens 2/3
> 48x Bottles of beer (various)
40 -10 U10 - ? Teens = ??
Depends ...
> 4x bottles each : red/white/rose
Ditto depends....
Swap the cocktail £ for extra white /red and look for what people most drink for each and unless someone only drinks rose...
Nibbles before and after:
> Crudite platter (edamame, mini corn, cucumber, tomato, carrot sticks) mainly for the adults as the kids want :
> Pitta chips/Crisps (8 bags)
Some nut mixes are a good nibble too
During and after:
4x Focassia (small squares)
4x Sourdough baguettes (sliced and buttered)
Dip pots (hummus, salsa, sour cream and chive)
Layout:
Plates and cutlery etc
To Salads & sides
To breads
To meats with vegan options
To Condiments
To Exit
Volume
Teens can easly hoover 2 mains burger + sausages.
U10 will be hit or miss on .5/1/1.5 main
some adults will want 2 as depending on timing they will have had an early brunch and/or be combining lunch and dinner
>80x Hot dog rolls
> 60x Sausages
= 20 left
> 30x Vegan Sausages
= 10 short
>30x brioche burger buns
>30x crusty burger buns
> 40x Burgers
= 20 left
??? vegi pick&mix burger
> 10x Halloumi packs (sliced)
> 20x Large Flat mushrooms
= how many vegi/vegan servings do you actually need?
Can you customise them?
Timing I would start as many of the burgers as possible in the oven rather than try cook 40 in batches from raw.
Small burger bite buns and 1/2 size burgers work for U10s
Burgers are easy to make in the morning/night before if you have made them before in small batches and have the space in the fridge.
6 oz = 170g = 1 burger
Mince 10% fat or lower
Egg as a binder
Pre-cooked onion chopped fine
Ketchup / Sweet chilli jam
Gluten free breadcrumbs as a binder
Mixed and
"roll" out as a thick slab rectangle
(Which has 9 square shapes of about 6oz)
Stack the rectangles layers using baking paper
But at 40 people its easier to buyin prepack
> 40x Chicken Thighs (marinated in Nando's sauce)
If off the bone may need extra buns
and always precooked in the oven
Lazy Chicken Wings cook then drain any juice, coat with sauce back in the oven to cook till sticky.
Use tinfoil to line and split baking tray into 2 for 2nd/ extra choice
> 70x Cheese Slices (some plasticy American, some emmental)
Almost 2 per person imo too much unless u eat it yourselves after
> Caramelised onions (in slow cooker, then kept warm)
Oodles as its reusable if frozen and jamable
> 40x Corn on the cob :
Way too much for my lot..
But I cut into 4/5 rings high bite size stick with cocktail stick at either end or lollypop style basted in melted butter before oven finished or BBQ
> 20x Red Pepper (halved)
Better cut into circles unless being used as a bun /bowl replacement
> 3x Pineapples (sliced)
> 2x jars Gherkins
> Pickle
Plated/serving bowl & on cocktail stick
Volume = V??
> V2 Ketchup
> V1 BBQ
> V2 Mustard
> V2 Mayo
> V1 Nandos Mayo
> V0.5 Sweet chilli jam
> V0.25 French dressing
Volume ???? (.5/1/2 servings pp/per main)
jar@X g / (1 squish/ 1 teaspoons 7g aprox) × each main
= Overbuy but check shelf life
Best in squish bottles or small ramikin with own spoon (batched /refilled as needed) to speed the food line and (may) stop cross contamination.
Salads:
Huge ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ chopped salad
(4x bags salad leaves,
2x cucumber,
4x avocado,
4x packs cherry tomatoes,
grated carrot,
2x grilled sweetcorn,
2x grilled courgette)
Depends on bag size and heavy bits tend to end up in the bottom with people playing go fish..
cucumber & avocado i tend to keep out of bowls anyway and have as an optional add for salad or on bun with main
So if you have the table space/bowls keep as a pick&mix
Before adding let the tomatoes "drain" for 2/3h in the fridge by salting to remove water %
Easy option Tomatoes and thyme on its own as a side
Watermelon, Feta, Cucumber and Mint Salad (2x watermelon,
2x blocks feta,
2x cucumber,
1x pack mint)
Volume = Spoon per person ?
> Potato Salad (3kg baby potatoes, dill, greek yoghurt, mayo, 3x bunch spring onions)
Milk can be a problem so again I would provide yoghurt as an add in sidebowl
Oodles of pepper and salt to taste
Volume = 1.5 serving spoon pp
> Slaw (Friend bringing!)
> Caprese Salad (Friend bringing!)
> Stuffed Potato Skins (40 halves)
Depends on the stuffing and be hot
Imo good potato salad would be first option for meat eaters and no BBQ space needed
So Cooked and plain (& tinfoil wrap for ease of handling )
> Veggie sausage rolls (40, small)
Has to be hot and imo not worth the cooking space for non-vegans/veggis
Desserts:
Served at least 1 h after general clean up and min 1 h before going home time
🎯 easy
🎯 quick
> Caramelised bananas (in foil with chocolate chips, marshmallows and crushed cookie)
Your poor new home! 40 + wrappers !
PS Send the U10 to home first😉
> Cookies (from bakery, but warmed briefly on the grill) with scoops of vanilla ice cream
Lovely easy quick = stick on baking tray on arrival /cover and store/ pop in after cooking is done and turn off heat => Scoop and serve
> Grilled Peaches with mascapone/ice cream
Lovely easy quick but you need a clean grill
> Magnums (and vegan magnums!)
Costly
Icecream bloc wafer sandwich
Icecream tub and scoop cone
Good luck in you "new" home and hope you have many more BBQ and parties to come.