Fish Tacos. For the breading, I use whole wheat breadcrumbs, a little bit of cornmeal, parmesan cheese, and salt. It’s so simple and so good! I roast red onions and serranos together until they’re really crispy and top our tacos with it. The girls have theirs without the heat.
Black Bean Chili. I made a giant pot of this for our Tuesday Dinner Club with some people from our church family. We topped it with queso fresco, cilantro, avocados, and bacon (turkey and soy options). It was a good time of sharing life over a spicy meal!
Week 8/5 – 8/9
Monday: Probably left over Black Bean Chili (I made a giant pot)
Tuesday: Some pasta dish
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Vietnamese Pho
Friday: Pizza/sushi night
What are good dishes to cook for about 10 people? We want to keep our dinner club going weekly at our house, so I need some ideas of some easy things to cook for a large group (a big pot of chili was good for this week). I told Ben I need a crock pot because I think that would work well for a big dinner, but I’m kind of stuck and need more ideas. If you have any to share, I’d love to hear it!
I have a TON of recipes labeled “friends dinner” that are easy and good for a group of people. I haven’t tried all of these but here are some I picked from my list:
Baked pasta dishes are always easy for guests: http://recipeshoebox.blogspot.com/2013/06/baked-ziti-with-spinach-and-sausage.html
Making a big pot of noodle soup was always a tradition at my parent’s house for large groups. You can have the soup warming on the stove and have the noodles and meats all ready to go earlier in the day. When it’s time to eat prepare the bowls and ladle the hot soup over it: http://www.theravenouscouple.com/2013/04/mien-ga-vietnamese-chicken-glass-noodle-soup.html
I love simply recipes…her recipes have never failed me: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/chicken_cacciatore_hunter_style_chicken
Feed a crowd for cheap with taco stuffed shells: http://www.budgetbytes.com/2012/08/taco-stuffed-shells/
And a bunch of crockpot recipes:
http://www.howsweeteats.com/2012/10/easy-crockpot-chicken-and-dumplings/
http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/slow_cooker_guinness_stew/
http://eatathomecooks.com/2012/10/chicken-philly-sandwiches-in-the-slow-cooker.html
Sorry…I went a little overboard with the links! 🙂 Hopefully you find something yummy! Would love to hear more about the recipes you guys end up using as we love to entertain at our house.
I like to make carnitas in the crock pot and do make-your-own tacos with the usual toppings.
Lasagna or baked ziti are stand-by crowd favorites.
Fried chicken or meatballs with mashed potatoes.
Homemade pizza is cheap and easy too.
In the winter, I like to do big pots of soup (black bean soup, sausage stew with white beans, tomato-basil soup) with garlic bread, cornbread, or buttermilk biscuits.
I like the make your own tacos idea!!!
What kind of fish did you use for the tacos?
Also, my go-to meal for a crowd is a chicken BBQ made in the crock pot. Chicken breasts, BBQ sauce (some prepared plus some homemade in the recipe), and it’s so good. Once it cooks for 4-5 hours, you stir it together and the liquid soaks into the chicken meat. It’s also my go to meal when I want to take someone dinner. I can give you the exact recipe if you’re interested.
We used dover sole for the fish. And I would love the exact recipe please!
I have an awesome Ropa Vieja (a cuban dish) that I love to make in the crock pot. SO yummy with a side of avocados, white rice and even fried plantains!
I would love that recipe if you’re able to send it over!
Merci, I’d love the recipe if you’d like to share! My previous comment was coming up under the name Danielle for some reason and just noticed it. That was me, but not sure why it was under a different name.
I love to make pozole for friends. It’s such an awesome stew/soup. Extra green chili in mine, please :). Plus you can cut up radishes, avocado, cabbage, etc. so everyone can garnish their own however they’d like!
I used my crock pot for the first time last weekend. I made some pulled pork to take to the beach in the morning. I dumped everything before I went to bed and woke up to super tender meat w/c I then shredded and added bbq sauce to. Served it on pan de leche (or Kings Hawaiian rolls) and coleslaw.
we use our crock pot to make pulled pork all the time (you can also make pulled chicken!) we put the pork or chicken in the pot on low for about 4-5 hours with a bit of diet coke or birch beer, some garlic, salt and pepper. once the meat is tender and tear-able you drain the liquid, shred it, put it back in the pot and put bbq sauce and a bit of red wine vinegar to keep the sauce from geting too thick and sticky. with some greens and a bit of cornbread it is amazing.
I love this Indian recipe – it is literally the easiest thing to make and very tasty too http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1502/onepan-prawn-pilau. Other tips are Jamie Oliver’s veggie chilli, lemon and coriander couscous with roasted chicken thighs and this, which I love making when it’s really hot http://theyellowbearblog.wordpress.com/2013/07/09/recipe-thai-beef-noodle-cups/
I love your meal planning posts – it’s so nice to see simple weekday dinners that are so different to what I usually eat! x
Also this! http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/my-mothers-praised-chicken-5155
Those fish tacos look amazing and I love the idea of roasting the onions and peppers until crispy. I am totally stuck on roasting veggies as a side dish. I recently roasted some frozen corn, onion, and peppers to go into a Chicken Barley salad; I love the flavor that roasting brings out. http://pinterest.com/pin/34973334579500735/
French onion soup is an old stand-by at my house. It is always a hit. I usually make a loaf of bread a couple of days ahead of time so I can make croutons on the day. I typically begin by serving a small salad to start, then french onion soup followed by some fruit-based dessert.
When I have a bunch of people over I like to do either a “build your own” taco bar or black bean & quinoa enchiladas.
I second (or third or fourth in this case) the idea of pulled pork or chicken. We do both in our crockpot and love it! The chicken we do for tacos, and the pork we do in tacos, burritos, or sandwiches with a coleslaw topping. Soup is always great for a crowd, or a large pasta dish like spaghetti and meatballs or veggie lasagna.
Shepard’s Pie is one of my faves to make, it’s pretty easy and you can make a huge pan full if needed. I’ve made it with lentils before instead of meat, though my favorite is with ground chicken and plenty of sage.
Last time I cooked for more people than typical, I made a bunch of different salads. It’s an easy way to provide for different dietary restrictions/sensitivities too! I made a quinoa salad (with feta and roasted cauliflower – SO good), a green bean/corn/tomato salad with a vinaigrette, roasted potatoes (white and sweet) and a green salad, plus dessert. Those dishes do take more steps than a big pot of soup but most of it can either be done ahead or just thrown together.
Soup is still my go-to for groups though, just because I’m bad at judging quantities otherwise!
such a great idea! I remember ripping from a magazine about a monthly soup club. She just offered one meat & one veggie option – and then just switched up the soup recipes. She said people always brought bread or a dessert and there always was enough food. I love the idea and it would be simpler to stick to one format and then everyone always knows what to expect! Though then you might need TWO crockpots….