Running club BBQ: hints and tips welcome!

Indigo_and_Violet

Hi team,
I've volunteered/been volunteered to run a BBQ at a summer event for my running club. Not huge numbers (about 100) but it's the first time I've done something like this before so I'm after hints and tips from people with experience of PTA BBQs or similar. It's run as a fundraiser so we want to keep costs low but also provide some okay food. I'll have some helpers but I am steering the ship. 

My thoughts are to try and do sausage+bun + two sides as a BBQ meal rather than a big range of grilled options.
Logic is: 
- We have a large domestic BBQ but not a commercial one, so space on the grill will be limited
- Sides can be prepped in advance  
- Its more of a balanced meal than just bread+meat
- Its reasonably interchangeable for veggies/vegans (different sausage, same sides). 

I think my plan of attack is to pre-cook a big batch of sausages in the afternoon and then reheat/finish them off on the BBQ at the event to avoid the risk of the burnt outside, raw middle situation.

Sides I'm thinking:
Potato salad
Rosemary roasted new pot (vegan option. Could do a some cauliflower instead?)
Green salad (vegan option)
Coleslaw. 
Plus masses of lovely onions of course!

So, random internet people,
How does this sound as a plan? Any obvious boo boos that I've missed? 

Any tips on supplies? In particular, recommendations for good bulk buy vegan sausages (about 1/3 of our club are veggie or vegan). We have a club cost-co membership but I don't drive and we're away the weekend before so I'm thinking we need to either order online or get them from a normal supermarket. 
Also recommendations for cheap sources of paper plates and disposable cutlery or similar? This might tip the balance in favour of going to cost-co if it's much cheaper there than online, but I'm finding it hard to get price information. 

Thanks in advance for any tips. I'm not quite sure how I ended up with this job, but I'm going to try and make an ok fist of it. 

kimwp

Sounds tasty! People seem to expect burgers at BBQs, so maybe those instead of sausages?

I'd personally cut down on the number of sides for your sanity (unless you are buying them ready made)

I made a yummy and easy vegan lentil salad yesterday - completely fine to make ahead and you could do it with any roast veges. You could probably even put it in a burger bun as a kind of sloppy Joe at a push. Recipe is the vegan lentil salad at amummytoo, though I've made a note to myself that I'd use about a third of the (dry) lentils that she uses and add the chopped garlic towards the end of roasting do it doesn't burn.

There are companies that will provide sturdy plastic cutlery/crockery which you can wash before returning or pay extra to have them washed - much better for the environment if you can afford it. 

joedenise

The one thing you haven’t mentioned is whether you have access to a 2nd BBQ.  The vegan/veggie food needs to be cooked separately from the meat and using a 2nd set of utensils to avoid contamination.

kimwp

joedenise said:

The one thing you haven’t mentioned is whether you have access to a 2nd BBQ.  The vegan/veggie food needs to be cooked separately from the meat and using a 2nd set of utensils to avoid contamination.

Good point, though that would depend on if the veggie/vegan people there care about that. 

Indigo_and_Violet

kimwp said:

Sounds tasty! People seem to expect burgers at BBQs, so maybe those instead of sausages?

Yup, I'd thought about burgers but they're much harder to pre-cook plus there's more of a difference between veggie/vegan ones and I've struggled to source veggie burgers in bulk. Renting plates/cutlery sounds like a good idea, I'll see what I can find. Limit might be transport, even if I did drive there's no car access to the track so I'd need to be sure of helpers to carry it in/out. Rosted veg/lentil salad sounds like a good call - thank you. 

joedenise said:

The one thing you haven’t mentioned is whether you have access to a 2nd BBQ.  The vegan/veggie food needs to be cooked separately from the meat and using a 2nd set of utensils to avoid contamination.

We don't, which is another reason I'm keen to pre-cook as much as possible. We have some of the BBQ frying pans so plan would be to have one side meat and one side veggie and use the frying pans as an extra level of protection. We have double utensils at home. 

If I could find a good source I'm not adverse to the idea of just doing all veggie. Iceland has the Richmond meat frees on £2 for 8 at the moment, maybe that's the best call. 

Thanks both!

kimwp

I've been puzzling over the burgers being harder to pre-cook than sausages - do you mean because they are bigger?

Indigo_and_Violet

kimwp said:

I've been puzzling over the burgers being harder to pre-cook than sausages - do you mean because they are bigger?

I've never done burgers in the oven (although google tells me it's possible) so was imagining having two big frying pans with 6 burgers in each needing to be stood over (and taking hob space from the onions). Google tells me I can oven burgers, but I've never tried it.

Also yes, the space makes a big difference. I reckon I can get 50 sausages done at a time across four baking trays in a full oven, would be less for burgers. 

kimwp

Indigo_and_Violet said:

kimwp said:

I've been puzzling over the burgers being harder to pre-cook than sausages - do you mean because they are bigger?

I've never done burgers in the oven (although google tells me it's possible) so was imagining having two big frying pans with 6 burgers in each needing to be stood over (and taking hob space from the onions). Google tells me I can oven burgers, but I've never tried it.

Also yes, the space makes a big difference. I reckon I can get 50 sausages done at a time across four baking trays in a full oven, would be less for burgers. 

Ah, ok! Yes, they do fine in the oven, particularly if you're going to finish them off on the bbq- actually might even do better as they'll probably retain more juice if there's more of them piled up. I'd stack them on the tray, then every now and then restack them to evenly cook them.

Something like:
___  ___  ___  ___
    ___   ___   ___
___   ___   ___   ___

tetrarch

I've neve cooked for 100, but 30 I've done before.

One great idea for BBQ is corn on the cob. Super easy to cook, doesn't take up too much room on the grill, not expensive and absolutely delicious.

You really need as much cooking real estate as possible. Why don't you ask your PTA members if anyone has an oil drum BBQ?

Sausages are OK, bt I'd recommend chipolata sausages as they are easier to avoid the "pink middle" problem. Burgers are OK, but pre oven-cooking tends to dry them out when you put them on the BBQ

Does anyone have a Costco membership - their range of pre-prepared salads is amazing and their sausages are extremely good quality

Regards

Tet

Indigo_and_Violet

tetrarch said:

I've neve cooked for 100, but 30 I've done before.

One great idea for BBQ is corn on the cob. Super easy to cook, doesn't take up too much room on the grill, not expensive and absolutely delicious.

You really need as much cooking real estate as possible. Why don't you ask your PTA members if anyone has an oil drum BBQ?

Sausages are OK, bt I'd recommend chipolata sausages as they are easier to avoid the "pink middle" problem. Burgers are OK, but pre oven-cooking tends to dry them out when you put them on the BBQ

Does anyone have a Costco membership - their range of pre-prepared salads is amazing and their sausages are extremely good quality

Regards

Tet

Corn on the cob is my favourite BBQ side but I'd ruled it out for lack of space. Really you want it warm and I can't see us having room. 
Oil drum BBQ would be ideal but there's no car access to the BBQ location so it'd be a double favour of can we borrow it and can you help us carry it on site!
Costco yes - I mentioned the club card but it's a PITA to get to. Our nearest is a fair way away and I don't drive so I'd have to cadge a lift. Trying to work out if the money saving is worth the time spent getting there vs something like an Iceland home delivery/click and collect. Might be worth it for pre-made salad though, I'll take another look.

Thanks!

sillyvixen

kimwp said:

joedenise said:

The one thing you haven’t mentioned is whether you have access to a 2nd BBQ.  The vegan/veggie food needs to be cooked separately from the meat and using a 2nd set of utensils to avoid contamination.

Good point, though that would depend on if the veggie/vegan people there care about that. 

 I care about it as I have a meat allergy and can't eat anything cooked on a BBQ with meat items - most veggies and vegans would have a moral objection to cooking meat and non meat options on the same grill due to cross contamination issues. We have 2 bbq's a big one for the family and a small one for me!! We also have colour coded utensils, chopping boards and 2 slow cookers (one for meat one for veggie). We are going self catering on holiday in a few days the accommodation has a double oven (we have been before) I will clean the top oven on arrival and will use it for my meals and any roast potatoes and veg we have, hopefully we will be able to BBQ meat but if the weather is bad it will be cooked in the big oven as we do at hime!