Bar Mitzvah Shabbos - what to do about roast chicken!

Shoshbee

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 9:12 am

Hi all,
Advice please. I'm catering the shabbos seudas myself for around 25 family / friends. Usually I roast chicken with potatoes ,onion and garlic on Friday for Shabbos, and it's great. I use a good Calphalon roasting pan. I won't have much time on the Friday to do this - and we need at least 7 chickens I think. Can I roast and then freeze a whole chicken? Dr. Internet says no, but I don't see how else this is going to happen. What do you do in cases like this? Change the entree?

Help. First time simcha maker. (Except for his upsheren, which was milchik Smile

All advice most gratefully appreciated.

nicole81

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 11:49 am

I wouldn't freeze a whole roast chicken, or potatoes either. I just made a bar mitzvah a couple of weeks ago and served 2 different kinds of roasts that I made and froze in advance, and roasted chicken legs made the night before and reheated. With just legs, it was easy for me to lay out 16-20 pieces of chicken on one large tray to roast at once.

All vegetables and sides were made separately, with grains frozen in advance.

If you want, I can share my menu with you. It was definitely too much food lol, but I was able to cook and freeze methodically beforehand.

PinkFridge

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 12:00 pm

I've prepped raw chicken, put it in the oven erev Shabbos with extra time, legs and my coated schnitzel.
For our last simcha I decided to serve roast, which I could make fully, slice, and freeze. The reheating took up much less time and space. I did make a turkey roast for anyone who wanted to avoid meat.
I'm not saying not to go ahead with your chicken. If you do, you could have it fully prepped - cleaned, legs cut if you wanted, seasoned - and prep the vegetables on Thursday, then spend just a few minutes combining and putting in the oven. Are you adverse to disposables for this volume?

And mazel tov!

Raisin

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 12:03 pm

I would do chicken pieces cut up. Buy the chicken fresh, season and arrange in pan and freeze. Take out the night or even 2 nights before. put in fridge, and place in oven before shabbos to bake.

I personally hate reheated chicken pieces. But you can definitely cook in advance and freeze or refrigerate.

I agree brisket or meatballs are better to cook in advance.

Rice is a great easy side dish that freezes well. Also potato kugel.

simcha2

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 12:20 pm

I would do pieces rather than while chicken because it is much easier to serve. You don't want to be cutting up chicken while at your simcha. This way people can serve themselves, or if you are plating it is quicker.

Shoshbee

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 2:29 pm

You are all wonderful and amazing, and I am truly grateful for these wise words which I will study carefully. Study

I would be grateful for all and any menus for those of you who've done this recently. If it helps we're in Eretz Israel, and the guests are largely Brits and Yanks.
Thank you again for helping me out. Simchas by everyone. xx

Raisin

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 3:40 pm

I cook for this type of number each week. This is my regular shabbos menu.

Home made challa (can make in advance and freeze or buy)
dips - can all be frozen except maybe techina- chummus, techina, chatzilim. (freeze chatzilim before adding mayo) Sometimes I grill aubergine and drizzle with techina.
gefilta fish - fried patties, boiled or baked in tomato sauce.
fresh salad.

Sometimes I do chicken soup and matza balls but then I don't do fish. I find most people can't eat so much if I do fish, soup and main.

Main course - always baked chicken pieces. various seasoning, mostly garlic and paprika.
sauteed green beans.
1 or 2 of rice, kugel, mushroom boreka, roast baby potatoes, crispy roast potatoes, orzo, butternut squash kugel, mixed roast veggies. roast sweet potatoes with cashew nuts and sweet chili sauce. (many of these can be made in advance and frozen)

dessert: 1 or 2 of lemon pie, warm apple crumble with custard (alpro brand- not sure if they sell this in EY but brits love it with apple crumble, yanks are baffled) or ice cream, choc brownies, choc chip bars, some type of cake. Always fresh fruit as well. . .

cbg

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 4:44 pm

You can completely prep the chicken and freeze, so all you have to do is defrost on Thursday night in the fridge and bake on Friday.
I also agree that pieces will be easier than whole chicken.

If you are having 2 protein options cut the chicken in 10, 2 thighs, 2 legs, 2 wings, and cut the 2 breasts in 1/2 so that its 4 breast pieces.

If this is the only protein then I would do 1/2 the chickens in 1/4s and 1/2 the chickens in 1/8ths.

Potatoes need to be done fresh

amother

Sienna

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 6:52 pm

I don't understand. We're you going to repeat the recipe 7x in your calphalon pan and then freeze? Just do it all at once in disposable tins. The night before cut up all the potatoes and onions and garlic and lay in pans. Season chicken and place on top. Bake the next day all at once.

tichellady

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 7:05 pm

amother wrote:

Most people can’t fit 7 chickens in the oven at once. Maybe I could fit 3 or 4 in mine

MitzadSheini

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 7:14 pm

Personally I don't think you need 7 chickens for 25 people. We often have about that number for Yom Tov and I would make 4 and almost certainly a whole chicken would be left over. And I agree - prep it all on Thursday in foil disposables then just take it from the fridge to the oven on Friday. And get pieces not whole chicken and make sure it's a pretty saucey recipe.

ChutzPAh

Mon, Jan 08 2018, 9:15 pm

MitzadSheini wrote:

You can't make four chickens for 25 people if there's only one main dish, unless you want them to be hungry. A chicken should be counted as 4 portions.

As an aside, I'm loving the conversation about brits and yanks!

Mazal tov !!

Raisin

Tue, Jan 09 2018, 3:50 am

I have that number of people often and people eat less then a 1/4 of a chicken. Some people eat 1/8, some a 1/4, some none. I always have leftover. I would say 6 chickens (24 quarters) is more then enough. Do more if you want to have leftover for lunch.

If you don't have enough oven space I would suggest doing something like schnitzle, meatballs, or a pot roast.

MitzadSheini

Tue, Jan 09 2018, 4:51 am

ChutzPAh wrote:

A chicken is 4 portions????? Wow. Are they like really small chickens where you are? Here a chicken is cut into 10 pieces. Would serve about 8 people. So 4 chickens would be more than enough for 25 people. And that's with no other protein. And like I said I usually have about a whole chicken left that we end up using for another meal so it's not like people are being polite not taking the last piece.

How big are your chickens?

Iymnok

Tue, Jan 09 2018, 5:27 am

I consider a thigh, or equivalent, to be one serving. Especially with good side dishes. That equals about four wings, two drumsticks or half of a breast.
Are children included in your count?
Most people will take one piece of chicken regardless of how much they could eat. That's why I like to have it cut before cooking it.
The leftovers end up still on the serving dish, not on someone's plate.

etky

Tue, Jan 09 2018, 6:18 am

ChutzPAh wrote:

So that's my rule of thumb too but only because that's how I was brought up in the States and habits are hard to shake. In reality, I find that a medium sized chicken usually serves between 6-8 people. The breasts of the chickens that I buy here have been HUGE in recent years. They totally dwarf the leg portions and must be cut into two (one part has wing attached) when served. The legs are relatively smaller and so sometimes people will eat a full quarter or two drumsticks. More often though, one thigh or one large drumstick is usually large enough for a portion. I still calculate one chicken per 4 people but I always have leftovers (which is fine cause they get eaten another time).
OP, definitely make the chicken cut up already. You really don't want to have to carve chicken at your simcha. Also, being in Israel where the dark meat of roasted chicken is much more popular than the white meat (I've found that to be the case even among Anglos here), maybe consider buying several whole chickens and then the rest as leg quarters.