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Do you pass out at the thought of cooking for a crowd?
Cooking for a crowd can be a very scary thing that you may quickly pass on  to someone else, call on your friends to help with, or just order pizza. Cooking for a crowd need not be the terror that you think it will be or have personally seen others experience. From my own experience, cooking for a crowd can be fun if done right. A good example was when my husband’s cousin, who is a roofer, and about 13 of his crew replaced our roof.
Now cooking for a crowd of about 20 people is not easy so I started a couple of days ahead. The first thing I thought of was foods that would lend themselves to cooking for a crowd so my menu consisted of collard greens, cornbread, corn on the cob, lima beans with smoked neck bone, fried and baked chicken, and baked macaroni and cheese. I know that is a lot to be cooking for a crowd but they were our friends and they worked hard. On Thursday, I started with the foods that taste better with time, which means I started with the collard greens and baked macaroni and cheese.
On Friday, I made the beans, corn on the cob, and baked chicken. I saved Saturday for the foods that tasted better fresh like the crunch of crispy fried chicken. That morning I started frying the chicken in batches and I put the cornbread in the oven. During that time, I put oven items in the oven, the beans on the stove, and the greens in the microwave all for reheating. By the time the chicken was done, it was lunchtime. I must say that I did have fun that day because I was not slaving in the kitchen the entire day. I was able to  mingle because I saved the chicken for last and so every time I put a batch of chicken on I could leave it and enjoy my company. Cooking for a crowd, this way made it easier than I thought it would be and I actually look forward to cooking for a crowd again.
When cooking for a crowd you definitely want to keep food safety in mind and be sure to keep the cold things cold and the hot, hot. You can do this by placing your cold food containers in an ice bath and using a chafing dish for hot items. Since nails and shingles were everywhere, I decided to run a buffet line inside and have everyone serve themselves around the dining room table. Everyone came in, walked around the table, and walked right back out the door to eat outside. It does take some planning but cooking for a crowd is doable.
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Chicken Casserole
Serves 24
10 cups chicken, cooked and diced
5 cups celery, chopped
1 bunches green onion, chopped
1 can (4 oz. size) green chilies, chopped
1 can (5 3/4 oz. size) ripe olives, sliced
2 cups slivered almonds
5 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
2 cups mayonnaise
1 container (16 oz. size) sour cream
Combine chicken, celery, green onions, green chilies, olives and almonds. Add 2 cups of the cheese. Mix mayonnaise and sour cream together and add to chicken mix. Spoon into 2 greased 9 x 13 inch baking dishes. Top with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes . |
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Crowd