Where To Start When
When you’re catering your own wedding there’s a lot to think about. For most of us, we’ve never catered for large numbers, let alone an important event like a wedding. But it doesn’t have to be complicated and difficult as long as you get your planning straight and choose simple dishes. |
First of all you need to think about your numbers. This is important in two ways. Primarily, how many people do you think you’ll be able to cater for? Have you done any catering in the past and do you think you’ll manage it? Your own skills and ability, along with budget will dictate how many people you’ll be able to cope with.
The second important reason to think about numbers is do to with your venue. If you’re having your wedding reception at home, will your kitchen be able to support the number you want to cater for? This is true for other venues as well. For example, is there enough worktop space, fridge space and serving space.
Consider your wedding theme
The type of wedding you have will dictate the type of food you choose. For example a tropical wedding theme may have tropical fruit and Cajun chicken, or a garden wedding may have a BBQ or an afternoon tea party. Ask yourself if you think confident serving up that kind of food and choose your theme according to your ability.
For more ideas about low-cost wedding food, have a look at these themed catering ideas for your wedding reception menu.
Will you need additional help?
When you’re catering your own wedding it can be daunting task, so it would be worthwhile getting some family and friends to help out. If you had five friends bring a dish each, it would make light work of your wedding catering (and cut your costs, if they’ll pay for the dish too).
If you’re having a large number of people, will you also need people to help layout and serve the food? I touch on this in another article about DIY wedding catering, a must-read if you’re catering your own wedding reception.
Will you need additional equipment?
If you’re preparing food for lots of people it’s important to make sure you have enough storage space. Buy large plastic containers in advance for storing the prepared food. You can then stack them in the fridge.
Speaking of fridge space, do you have enough? Warm summer days are perfect breeding ground for bacteria and other nasties, so make sure you hire a few extra fridges to keep your prepared food nice and cold.
You can hire fridges from catering hire companies. A quick search on Google will throw up a few businesses, especially if you type in your county or city too. (E.g. catering equipment hire Derby)
Plan your timings
To make your preparation as smooth as possible, it’s best to think about your timings carefully. What dishes can you prepare in advance? Are there any that you can do well in advance and then freeze, defrosting them the night before? Poached and smoked salmon, quiches, chicken and pizzas will all freeze, so they’re handy when you’re catering your own wedding.
For the fresh items, which can you prepare a couple of days in advance and then keep cool. For example a bean salad, coleslaw, pasta salad etc can all be made up to two days in advance – just keep the dressings separate so you can mix them on the day.
You’re never going to get away with not preparing anything on the day. So try as much as possible to keep your ideas simple.
For the day itself, carefully think about what you need to do and when you need to do it. Draw up a timeline and if possible delegate to someone you trust. Alternatively, get some hired help in and brief them fully, right down to the last degree!
Serving the food
So you’ve taken the time to organise and cook all the lovely food for your wedding, now who’s going to serve it? Certainly not you! Carefully think about who is going to put out the food while you’re having your ceremony, who’s going to serve the food and who’s going to clear it away.
As I mention above, you can get people in to help you when you’re catering your own wedding. I got my sister-in-law’s student friends to help out, but you can try neighbours, catering colleges or catering hire firms as well. Trust me, they’re worth every penny!
Finally, clearing up
You’ve worked really hard and your wedding has been a wonderful day. Now, who’s going to clear up? Hopefully, you’ve dashed off on your honeymoon, just make sure you’ve arranged for your festivities to be tidied up and cleared away.
This was one thing we wished we had done, but instead, we got lumbered with the clear up the next day!
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DIY Wedding Catering – Hints and Tips
Tips For Cutting Your Wedding Catering Costs
Got A Wedding Catering Question You Need Answering?
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Cheap Wedding Reception Menu Ideas