potluck supper ratio?

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...

I would bring enough to serve 20, though possibly as two seperate
dishes. Such as a side of seasoned, buttered Brussels sprouts as well
as a different vegetable; a chicken dish, as well as a roasted red
meat dish. As to categories, most comon are main, side, salad and
desert.

Picky

PickyJaz said:

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...

Quoted message said:

I would bring enough to serve 20, though possibly as two seperate
dishes.

That's ridiculous. If all 20 followed that advice you'd have food for
400. Bring an ordinary family quantity, something that will serve 4 to
6. -aem

I'd bring a casserole or something comparable in size. Probably feeds
between 6 and 8 if I went by recipe. One regular dinner-sized dish.
Remember that at potlucks, a lot of folks (like me!) will want tiny
servings of lots of different things, so something that s"serves 8"
might well serve about 15 people at a potluck. I agree with aem - don't
bring for 20 people!

The categories we used for a non-breakfast potluck were: munchies /
appetizers / finger foods; salads; side dishes & veggies; main dishes;
desserts; and miscellaneous, which included a few spots for non-cooking
types to sign up for paper goods, cutlery, beverages, etc.

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

With 20 people present, it's all about everyone getting a little
taste of everything. Dinner plates aren't big enough to hold 20 normal
sized servings, so most will get 6-8 small servings of what they find
appealing and even then, their plates will be loaded. Best case
scenario is the host provides enough meat for all and the guests bring
appetizers, side dishes, breads and desserts. A good host will
coordinate well enough with his invited guests so there are equal
amounts of each to ensure the meal is complete and no one goes home
hungry. Kev

kevnbro wrote:
Best case

Quoted message said:

scenario is the host provides enough meat for all and the guests bring
appetizers, side dishes, breads and desserts. A good host will
coordinate well enough with his invited guests so there are equal
amounts of each to ensure the meal is complete and no one goes home
hungry. Kev

Ah, but you're assuming this is hosted at someone's home. When I think
about potlucks, I think of the workplace (for me, the teacher's lounge
at school; for my honey, the office), where you need to include all th
other consumable items ilke paper goods, silverware, etc. as a
bring-along category.

I remember one time that nobody brought in disposable bowls, just paper
plates, so it made the lovely crockpots with soups & stews useless.

However I agree that if you're hosting at home, it's nice to do the
main course (offer a choice of a couple things IMHO) and get the guests
to bring all the other good stuff. Be sure to make it clear whether you
are offering beverages, though, or if they shuld be a category, and
then be sure to specify alcoholic or non, so there's something for
everyone. I'm remembering a potluck at my friend Paula's house, where
there was a TON of food, a punchbowl full of ice, about 35-40 people,
and only 2 2-liter bottles of 7-Up. She thought a few people were
bringing juice and soda; guests thought she was providing drinks.
(Water's fine with me, but not with everyone it seems. Several people
were unhappy about the lack of soda specifically.)

Jude said:

Ah, but you're assuming this is hosted at someone's home. When I think
about potlucks, I think of the workplace (for me, the teacher's lounge
at school; for my honey, the office), where you need to include all th
other consumable items ilke paper goods, silverware, etc. as a
bring-along category.

Right you are - I shud've mentioned this. It's an organization having
a potluck in a hall where utensils etc will be available.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they call
them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts, and no
entree -- tough rocks.
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 1-15-2006, RIP Connie Drew

In article <[email hidden]>,

kevnbro said:

A good host will
coordinate well enough with his invited guests so there are equal
amounts of each to ensure the meal is complete and no one goes home
hungry. Kev

Pishtosh, Kev! Pishtosh!
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 1-15-2006, RIP Connie Drew

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they call
them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts, and no
entree -- tough rocks.

Yep. If you assign or ask for commitments ahead of time, 9 timnes out
of 10 the person will either forget what she/he promised or not feel
like making it and will bring something totally different.

Wing it.

gloria p

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they call
them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts, and no
entree -- tough rocks.

I went to one of those. Everybody brought soup.

modom

Quoted message said:

Ah, but you're assuming this is hosted at someone's home.

Actually, I was assuming someone was in charge. kev

In article <[email hidden]>,

modom said:

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they call
them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts, and no
entree -- tough rocks.

I went to one of those. Everybody brought soup.

modom

Cool! Any good?
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 1-15-2006, RIP Connie Drew

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Take more than enough for your family; not necessarily a lot more.

Take something that you make well. I usually take a 10" homemade pie.
Or a double recipe of brownies if I need to whip something up fast.

Kentucky Fried or Popeye's fried chicken is usually a big hit.

Best regards,
Bob

Potlucks are my favorite oportunity to show off. I tell the host to
find out what other people are making, then ask me to fill in what's
needed. That almost invariably turns out to be vegetable side dishes.
(Lots of people make good lasagne, salad, and rich desserts.) I'll
bring asparagus with dip, carrots in lemon and ginger, baked butternut
squash, parsley and quinoa salad, etc. These are all simple, good
dishes, but people call me a culinary genius because I'm able and
willing to bring vegetables to a meal that's otherwise too rich.

--Lia

modom said:

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides
etc... thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they
call them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts,
and no entree -- tough rocks.

I went to one of those. Everybody brought soup.

modom

The biggest problem with not having a sign-up sheet (I prefer to call it
that rather than "assignments" - sounds too much like going back to school)
is you'll wind up with 20 desserts and no main dish type meals. We
practically had to force people to not all bring store-bought pies and cakes
so there would be something for *lunch*, or at least something for folks who
are diabetic. Big hits at the office were always that broccoli-cheese-rice
casserole and of course the meatballs in the crock pot; 'R' thought he'd get
in trouble for bringing in a bottle of booze to mix with the sauce.

One guy's fiance brought homemade spanikopita, still hot from the oven; she
carried it in wearing oven mits. How sweet! She didn't even stay for
lunch, just dropped it off. YUM!

And yes, someone has to bring the plates, bowls, etc. When I made red beans
& rice in the crock pot for these events I always picked up a package of
bowls and plastic soup spoons, too.

Jill

aem said:

PickyJaz said:

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...

Quoted message said:

I would bring enough to serve 20, though possibly as two seperate
dishes.

Quoted message said:

That's ridiculous. If all 20 followed that advice you'd have food for
400. Bring an ordinary family quantity, something that will serve 4 to
6. -aem

I don't agree with this at all. I can just see you coming to a
covered dish with 20 in attendance and bringing two eggs, deviled; or 1
two-litre coke; or six cookies. I've seen it done - and usually by a
husband and wife towing 3 or 4 kids.

There are a lot of things to be considered.

Of the 20 in attendance, how many households are represented?

If 20 (like an office gathering), you'll have 20 contributors.
If 5 (like 5 families of 4), you'll only have 5 comtributors.

Is there a designated main dish?

Sometimes, 2 or 3 will go in together to buy a ham, ground beef for
grilled burgers, or something.
(At 4 pieces of chicken each, it would take 5 <g>😉

These people will need to be deducted from the total contributors (in
order for you to calculate how many servings you need to bring)

Where are the plates, cups, napkins, flatware, etc coming from?

If purchased, subtract another contributor.

What's to drink and where is it coming from? Ice?
Subtract another contributor

If liquor, (the mixers, too) as part of the party.

You may lose another contributor or two.

If you start out with 20 contributors, now your down by 5 to 8.

1 or 2 people (out of 20 contributors) will usually bring an appetizer.
2 or 3 will usually bring a salad
1 will bring bread
3 or 4 will usually bring dessert.

That's another 10 and you still don't have a veggie

The one that brings bread might bring a veggie (hopefully more than 4
servings) unless it's homemade bread, then that is a nice contribution.

If you've got some slackers, and you always do, then you got no veggies.
(or dessert or salad or bread or however the breakdown falls) Or you have
7 desserts and nothing to drink, no cup to put it in, and no ice to cool
it down. Or you have 3 green bean casseroles, 2 bowls of potato salad, and
2 bowls of baked beans.

Covered dish events aren't as easy as they seem. They really do need to be
coordinated. The easiest way is to talk to one another.

Most people have a favorite dish they like to make and they will
volunteer. Just subtract that dish from the total areas to be covered.
After the volunteer items are noted, then ask for volunteers for items not
covered.

Cost and time to prepare make a difference. 1 fresh apple cake is worth
2 veggies and bread <g>. So, somebody might be willing to bring two
veggies that don't take a lot of work (frozen corn and canned English
Peas) and a pack of store-bought rolls, while the one only brings one
fresh apple cake.

If it is an office group of "acquaintances", things get a lot more
complicated real quick. But, a sign-up sheet works well. List the
categories and let people sign up, telling what they will bring.
This helps everybody else know what is being made (so you don't end up
with 3 green bean casseroles).

So, what you take and how many servings depends on the situation. If you
are just an invited guest, then I'm with Picky, I'd take one dish of 20
servings or 2 of 10 or 12 servings each. You might want to talk to others
that are invited (if possible) or call the host or cooridinator and ask if
all the categories are covered or if there is something specific you can
bring or if you can help out by bringing something extra (above and beyond
your one dish).

Elaine, too

jmcquown wrote on 24 Jan 2006 in rec.food.cooking

Quoted message said:

modom said:

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] wrote:

> If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other
> ppl, what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
> And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides
> etc... thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they
call them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts,
and no entree -- tough rocks.

I went to one of those. Everybody brought soup.

modom

The biggest problem with not having a sign-up sheet (I prefer to call
it that rather than "assignments" - sounds too much like going back to
school) is you'll wind up with 20 desserts and no main dish type
meals. We practically had to force people to not all bring
store-bought pies and cakes so there would be something for *lunch*,
or at least something for folks who are diabetic. Big hits at the
office were always that broccoli-cheese-rice casserole and of course
the meatballs in the crock pot; 'R' thought he'd get in trouble for
bringing in a bottle of booze to mix with the sauce.

One guy's fiance brought homemade spanikopita, still hot from the
oven; she carried it in wearing oven mits. How sweet! She didn't
even stay for lunch, just dropped it off. YUM!

And yes, someone has to bring the plates, bowls, etc. When I made red
beans & rice in the crock pot for these events I always picked up a
package of bowls and plastic soup spoons, too.

Jill

At my last office pot luck the coffee fund supplies the coffee,
condiments, plastic plates, buns, etc... Everybody knew any leftovers
would be kept for grazing and lunches for the next several days. There
was 5 or 6 crockpots going in the conference room and the 2 office
microwaves were used alot as well. I did a crockpot ham, there was
crocpot mac and cheese, Crock potted grape jelly meat balls, a chilli,
several different veggie casseroles, some sort of pizza casserole
dealie, a mexican taco csserole thingie, salads, several tortillia roll
up thingies and 3- types of desserts. We didn't get any only cooked
veggies dishes. We used a sign up sheet method. Most dishes were enough
to supply limited seconds of small servings. So say enough as a meal for
12-15.

I think my 10 lb Pork pininic roll cost me around 10-12 dollars (CND) to
buy. So for my 10 dollars I got a good feeding of fresh homemade food in
a party atmosphere and 2 days of leftovers. Excellent deal!

--
The eyes are the mirrors....
But the ears...Ah the ears.
The ears keep the hat up.

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

If you're participating in a potluck affair with, say, 20 other ppl,
what amount do you bring? Enough to serve 6, 8 ...?
And how would you divide the categories - main, dessert, sides etc...
thanks

Bring for 8. And I hate assignments at potlucks -- that's why they call
them potluck! :-) If you wind up with 8 salads, 12 desserts, and no
entree -- tough rocks.

Amen. When I was planning the family reunion DH kept wondering if we
were going to have enough to eat and enough variety. We had enough
food to feed a small army for a couple of days. There were meats,
vegetables, salads, and desserts. This was without any assignments.
Most people brought a couple of different things.

--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974

Quoted message said:

Jude said:

Ah, but you're assuming this is hosted at someone's home. When I think
about potlucks, I think of the workplace (for me, the teacher's lounge
at school; for my honey, the office), where you need to include all th
other consumable items ilke paper goods, silverware, etc. as a
bring-along category.

Right you are - I shud've mentioned this. It's an organization having
a potluck in a hall where utensils etc will be available.

Potluck is just that.....potluck. You get what you get. This
understood, the general tradition when our church has one, is to bring
plenty to feed your own family in attendance. If everyone does this,
there is plenty of food. We are only two, but I'll usually bring a dish
for 6 because lots of recipes are set for 6. But a family of 6 could
bring something to serve 8. It seems, that at a function like this,
people tend to eat more than they would at home. We never run out
totally, only out of the most popular dishes. No one goes home hungry.
We have a chili potluck coming up in a couple of weeks. The choices to
bring are chili or a dessert. One year they put all the dishes brought
in a large roaster and I'm told it was the best chili they every
had..... I'm not a chili eater, so I'll get to sample the
desserts...lol
....Sharon