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Cooking for large groups

Cooking for Large Groups
If you can prepare a meal for 5, then you should be able to cook for up to 50 using equipment and utensils in your own kitchen. The solution is to simply cook in batches in advance and freeze the food until the day of your gathering. Once the numbers go over 50, however, you should consider the use of a commercial kitchen or a caterer.

Cooking for 50

1. Try to find recipes that can be made in advance and need very little last-minute preparation.
   
   
2. Think through how each recipe will be prepared and stored. Do you have ample baking/cooking equipment, or do you need to rent some items? Is there adequate storage room in your refrigerator or freezer?
   
   
3. IIf possible, select recipes that have already been formulated for 50 servings. If you must use Aunt Mabel's jello recipe and need to enlarge the amounts, try these suggestions:
   
   
   • Create a factor by which all ingredients will be multiplied by to determine how much is needed. For example, to increase a five-serving recipe to 50, divide 50 by 5 for a factor of 10. All ingredients will be multiplied by 10.
      
   • The challenge occurs when a factor is not an even number. For example, you may want to convert a recipe serving 12 to 50. Here you would divide 50 by 12 for a factor of 4.2. In this instance, you may want to change your servings to 48 to give you a factor of 4. Using whole or half numbers will simplify your calculations.
      
   • Multiply the amount of each ingredient in the original recipe by the previously determined factor. Round off unnecessary fractions to simplify measures. For example, your factor is 6.5 and the recipe now calls for 6.5 cans of soup. Decide if you want to round that to 6 or 7 cans.
     
     
   • Most recipes will not change significantly with these types of changes. Only baked goods need as much precision as possible.
     
     
   • If at all possible, season with salt at the end of cooking time and start on the light side. There are instances where the full amount of salt may not be needed.
     
   • Remember, additional cooking time may be needed for larger amounts.
     
4. When working with large amounts of highly perishable foods such as meat, fish, poultry or cheese, prepare them in batches and refrigerate the portions not being worked with.
   
5. Use a food processor or mixer attachment to help chop, dice, slice and shred as much as possible.
   
6. Twelve- to 15-quart plastic storage containers with lids from your local discount store are great for mixing and storing large quantities of food.

1. What is your food budget? If you're on a tight budget and willing to do some of the work yourself, think about catering from a local supermarket or nearby restaurant.
    
2. How many adults and children will be served?
   
3. Where will the gathering be held and what facilities are available?
   
4. What types of foods do you want served? Entrée only? Ethnic? Kids' food? Diet restrictions? It may be helpful to have the caterer provide the main dishes while you cook the side dishes yourself. This is a great way to save money without spending all day in the kitchen.
    
5. How much service do you want the caterer to provide? Food only? Setup, serving and cleanup?