Planning a dinner Party – THE DAY BEFORE…….
Let’s start with the single most crucial element for successful entertaining, – PLANNING a dinner party. Get that wrong and you’re fighting a loosing battle. Get it right – and not only will the dinner party run like clockwork, but you will be able to relax and enjoy yourself too!
- Set the dinner table. That’s one less thing to think about while you are cooking!
- Empty your fridge of unnecessary items.
- Buy all of the perishable foods. To save time, do your grocery shopping online, and have them delivered to your door.
- Separate & wash salad leaves & fresh herbs in cold water, shake dry & pop them into sealed polythene bags & refrigerate. This keeps them fresh, and crisp for up to 24 hours.
- Cover all foods to be refrigerated with clear film wrap, or kitchen foil to prevent flavours crossing over and the food from drying out.
- ALLWAYS keep raw meat, poultry and fish on the lowest shelves and properly wrapped to prevent contaminating other foods.
- Depending on your chosen menu, now do as much of the cooking & preparation as possible (all recipes clearly indicate what can be done ahead of time). Many dishes, particularly those cooked slowly in liquid, actually benefit from pre-cooking as it enriches the flavours.
- Allow all cooked foods to chill thoroughly before you refrigerate them.
- Ensure that ALL cooked & perishable foods take priority in your fridge. This particularly applies to soups, sauces, meat, poultry, fish, mousses, pâtés & desserts. This is why sometimes, particularly when cooking for more than 6 guests, the ONLY solution is to have certain prepared dishes delivered to your home (e.g. the first course, the dessert, or possibly even the main course).
A little bit of planning can save you heaps of time, especially when you could rather enjoy that time with a good book and a glass of red wine…In my case a nice cup of Camomile tea (for the stress) and a slice of lemon meringue. OUr next blog entry will deal with day of the dinner party…don’t miss out.
Be inspired, have fun and enjoy the journey!
WOW…Well worth the wait, this is going to help me become the party guru amongst my friends. Thank you for keeping it real and helping us become the best hostesses we can.