How Much to Cook Up to Serve for Thanksgiving Dinner

Nothing is worse than cooking Thanksgiving dinner and running out of food. It is important to err on the side of excess while sticking to your budget.

There is no exact formula for cooking for a crowd, so you have to consider your crowd. Do they really enjoy eating? Will many children be present? Are most people in your crowd weight conscious? All these questions and similar ones impact how much food you prepare.

Quantity planning for holiday appetizers

Appetizers and drinks don’t have to be a pain in the neck, but planning them tends to be confusing. Because appetizers don’t lend themselves to a quantity chart per se, you can let the following list guide you:

• For appetizers preceding a full meal: Offer at least four different types of appetizers and six to eight pieces per person. For example, say you have 20 guests. In that case, you’d need at least 120 total appetizer pieces.

• The more variety you have, the smaller portion size each type of appetizer will need to have: Therefore, you don’t need to make as much of any one particular appetizer.

• When you serve appetizers to a crowd, always include bulk-type appetizers: Bulk-type foods are items that aren’t individually made, such as dips or spreads. If you forgo the dips and spreads, you’ll end up making hundreds of individual appetizer items, which may push you over the edge. To calculate bulk items, assume 1 ounce equals 1 piece.

• Always try to have extra items: Black and green olives and are great for extra filler.

Quantity planning for holiday drinks

The following list give you some general beverage-serving guidelines for entertaining:

• Soft drinks: One to two 8-ounce servings per person per hour.

• Punch: One to two 4-ounce servings per person per hour.

• Tea: One to two 8-ounce servings per person per hour.

• Coffee: One to two 4-ounce servings per person per hour.

• Water: Always provide it. Two standard serving pitchers are usually enough.

Quantity planning for soups, sides, main courses, and desserts

The following tables can help you determine how much food you need for some typical soups, sides, main courses, and desserts. If the item you’re serving isn’t listed here, you can probably find an item in the same food group to guide you.

Buffet-style affairs typically figure at a lower serving per person, because buffets typically feature more side dish items than a plated meal does.

Don’t use the quantity tables as an exact science; use them to guide you and help you make decisions for your particular crowd. If you’re serving a dish that you know everyone loves, make more than the table suggests. If you have a dish that isn’t as popular, you can get by with less.