Adapted from an article on TastingTable.com..
PORTION CONTROL
How to plan the right amount
of food for a dinner party
We don’t do a ton of large dinner parties, but we
do ‘entertain’ the family and friends on a regular basis. It doesn’t always happen, but every once in a
while we’ll have ‘extra’ guests show up.
I have come to realize a couple of things: a) it’s never a bad idea to
cook a little more than you think you'll need, and b) As long as the cook is
calm, the guests will be calm. I don't think they even had a clue that I had to
stretch the food. Nevertheless, here are a few tips for figuring out how much
to make for your next dinner party.
Sketch out your menu first. Once you've decided what you're having, you can start
thinking about portion sizes. As a general rule, the more dishes you serve the
less of each you need to make.
Play the numbers game. Throw out
the old-school recommendation for eight ounces of protein per person: With
individual pieces of meat or fish, plan for about four ounces per person
instead, or roughly the size of a deck of cards. For pasta, plan on about one
cup per person, and for other sides like grains or vegetables, shoot for about
a half cup each—unless it's a leafy salad, in which case you should budget
about ¾ cup per person.
Sometimes less is more. With
roasted meats and stews, the four-ounce recommendation can go out the door. If
you cook a large chunk of meat and slice it thinly, people will end up eating
far less than if you serve individual steaks, pork chops or a rack of lamb. The
same goes for a stew or casserole.
Recipe servings are merely a guide. Recipe amounts are written as though that dish is the
only thing you're eating for your meal. So if you see a salad recipe that says
it serves four, and you're making it as part of a large buffet spread, chances
are that salad will stretch to feed six or eight people.
Plan pre-party bites carefully. Limit appetizers to just one item you have to make—say, wings,
crostini, cheese plate, or shrimp cocktail and fill things in with other things
you don't have to prep much, like little bowls of olives or roasted nuts. You
don't want people filling up before the main event—you're just providing
something for them to nibble on while you finish. If you're having cocktail
hour before dinner, plan on serving enough for people to have three to five
bites of food along with their drink.
Keep dessert servings small. At the end of a three-hour dinner party, your guests
aren't going to want a big slab of pie or wedge of cake—just a little something
sweet will suffice. A flourless chocolate cake recipe might say it feeds eight,
but you can slice it into 12 slivers and garnish each with a dollop of fresh
whipped cream and raspberries to fill out the plate. The goal is to leave your
guests wanting more, not waddling home stuffed.
Bottom line…Relax and enjoy the party as well!
