Lunches and dinners with friends are a great opportunity to show off your cooking skills and make delicious recipes. Even if cooking has never been your forte, it's not nice to show up empty-handed. If you can't cook or are short on money, space, equipment or time, try to help in another way. You might even get away with bringing something no one else had thought of.
Steps
Step 1. Buy something to accompany the main dishes
You can opt for nachos with Mexican sauce, crackers and cheese, bruschetta with butter or dips, potato salad, various appetizers, frozen lasagna or a pastry dessert.
- If you want, you can arrange the dishes you have purchased in plates and bowls and then garnish them for a more elaborate appearance.
- You can also order something at a restaurant or delicatessen known for its specialties and quality food. Just remember to do it a few days in advance.
Step 2. Go to a diner or delicatessen in a supermarket and ask if a glove box can be filled
It will probably look a little weird, but you will look great at the party. In any case, it is a more expensive solution than cooking at home.
Step 3. Bring food that requires little preparation
Here are some quick and easy ideas:
- You can make a fruit salad, bring fresh seasonal fruit or a watermelon cut into pieces. Strawberries and berries are also very popular.
- Prepare ready-made meatballs in a crock pot and garnish them with barbecue sauce or teriyaki. Alternatively, you can bring everything separately and, as soon as you arrive, put the pot on the stove so that the dish is hot when you sit down at the table. Place toothpicks near the pot so that everyone can help themselves easily. Of course, make sure there is a kitchen in the place where the evening was organized.
- Make no-bake cookies or peanut butter chocolate fudge using the microwave.
Step 4. Bring something to drink
You can make lemonade, sangria, or buy soft drinks and fruit juices.
- Consult with the landlord first, especially if you intend to bring alcohol.
- Do not forget the bottle opener and the corkscrew, even if the packages have the cap that can be unscrewed. Almost always on these occasions the bottle opener is forgotten. Sure, you could show off by opening bottles with the handle of a cutlery or the bottom of a lighter, but if you bring the right utensils you will be appreciated more.
Step 5. Bring the ice
Ask the landlord first if and how much they might need. He will be happy to know that he does not have to provide for this at the last minute and he may not have thought of it at all.
Step 6. Bring other necessary things
Instead of bringing food, ask the host if they are serving plates, glasses, napkins, forks, or other decorations. It may seem trivial, but they are indispensable objects and one less thought that will have to deal with.
Step 7. Offer your time and help
See if the landlord needs a hand to arrange the tables and chairs. Alternatively, offer to wash the dishes and clean up after the night is over.
Step 8. Bring other kinds of necessities
Do you have a garden umbrella and folding chairs? A cooler or a cooler for drinks? In the summer it would be convenient to have an extra fan or, if it's cold, a gas stove. Ask the householder what it can serve.
Advice
- Even if you have decided to buy something, don't do it at the last moment. If you want to bring frozen or partially cooked foods, remember to defrost and / or reheat them in time.
- If you intend to take something out of the program, please consult your host first. For example, they may have already thought about disposable drinks and dishes if you don't warn them that you will be in charge of them.
- See if there is anything in the refrigerator and pantry that you can use for cooking. Then search the Internet for a recipe that is easy to make with the ingredients at your disposal. If you are unfamiliar with cooking, allow for more time than the recipe suggests.
- If you don't know how to cook, try to learn at least a couple of simple recipes. They will also be useful to you when you are not organizing a dinner with friends.
