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How to do well when cooking for a crowd?

No one needs to be afraid of cooking for a crowd. Cooking for hundred people is not really different from cooking for one person. All you need to make it work is to be attentive to the hygiene and safety rules, and organize and prepare all you will need in advance.

Food and Hygiene Rules.

Cooking for a crowd involves hazards you absolutely need to be aware of. Make sure you have the appropriate knowledge of the right cooking and storing temperatures. Wrong temperatures are the biggest cause of food contamination since bacteria grows incredibly fast when you don't prepare it right.

So, what should you do to protect your guest's health? When cooking, you must use instant-read thermometers to control the cooking temperature. If the food will be stored, divide it in smaller portions before storing it in the fridge. It will make the food cool quicker not giving bacteria time to develop.

Quantities - Rule of Ten

To avoid either hungry guests or waste of food you need to estimate quantities.

To figure out how much you will have to enlarge your recipe, the catering industry uses the Rule of Ten. It says that for ten adults you will need:

Meat - four pounds Potatoes - three ponds to make potato salad Dry pasta - one pound to make pasta salad Prawns - two to three pounds, pre-cooked and peeled Shellfish - Two pounds (clams or mussels) Soup or stew - one-half gallon (if served as an appetizer) Soup or stew - one gallon (if served as a main dish) Green salad - two pounds Salad dressing - three cups Cocktails - twenty per hour Punch - one gallon

If you know the guests enjoy cocktails a lot, make sure you have the proper amount of ice (ten pounds) and a good assortment of soft drinks. Watch the liquors as well! You will need a 750 ml bottle for each 16 cocktails.

Cooking Provisions

Well, your own pans and bowls will probably not be enough to cook for so many people. However, you have two options to sort this problem out: you can either buy one-way foil baking pan or rent professional catering equipment. Although it's a more expensive solution, professional equipment will give you all the tools you need to cook for a crowd therefore you will be able to exclusively concentrate on the cooking.

Stay Organized

Organization is a must have when it comes to cooking for a crowd. One nice tip is to make a to-serve list having the whole menu on it, and score out every dish you serve. Things can get quite frenetic in the back stage of a huge dinner, and you may simply forget to serve something.

Organization is the key for cutting out "worries" from your menu when you are cooking for a crowd. Following those simple tips, I'm sure you will be very proud of yourself when the party is over.