Not sure what I'm making for dinner tonight.

[conuly]

It's got to be fast, and filling, and appeal to a fairly large number of people. Suggestions?

Comments

[redsixwing]

Pilaf? It's easy and relatively quick - you can do everything it needs in the time it takes rice to cook. That recipe is really basic, but you can use anything from a spice mix to chopped meats and vegetables to dried fruits. (I like raisins in mine, because they get all chewy and sticky.)

[silver_chipmunk]

Spaghetti? Can't get much faster, just boil the water and cook the pasta and heat the sauce. And most people seem to like it.

[conuly]

I make my sauce from scratch, actually, and now the jarred stuff is too sweet since I started doing that.

[coyotegoth]

Stirring in some garlic salt helps with that.

[spikethemuffin]

Hard to say without knowing more about who you're feeding and in what context, but:

-Make or buy adequate quantities of bread dough (I always have some going, but my local Subway sells it), go to tastykitchen.com, and search stromboli. It's like a show-stopper pizza presentation and very helpful-munchkin inclusive. When I'm crowd-pleasing, I go with the classic pepperoni/ cheese/ sauce, but you know the crowd whom you are serving;

-If "fast" is not code for, "not labor-intensive," and really means "we literally have 15 minutes from door to table," or you've got a GF crowd, cheat up a couple of boxes of butternut soup by glugging some hard cider and cream (evaporated milk works, too) and possibly pear slices in while you're cooking. Crusty bread, maybe some bleu cheese croutons;

-Swedish meatballs with store-bought meatballs and buttery noodles;

-A vat of tortellini;

-DIY waffle or sandwich buffet;

-German pancake--- you can bake them three at a time if your oven has room.

[greghousesgf]

Chinese food? stir fries are fast and not complicated

[conuly]

That's an idea. Been a long time since I made stirfry.

[jessie_c]

Perhaps this?
https://twitter.com/emmafreud/status/1040003783080796160

[aerye]

That's not food. That's porn. :)

[jessie_c]

Only the French...

Not to mention it's also a portable heart attack.

[conuly]

Not to mention it's also a portable heart attack.

Worth it.

[archangelbeth]

...someone make this for me. @_@

[mama_kestrel]

I'm late (as usual), but for the next time, I have a couple of standbys. One is what I call F&D* soup.

2 quarts good quality chicken stock. Trader Joe's works admirably if you don't happen to keep homemade around.
1 package frozen vegetables for stew
1 medium to large onion, chopped.
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
half a bag of frozen green beans
half a pound pre-sliced mushrooms
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup quick-cook barley
3-4 bay leaves
2 Tbsp dried thyme
1/4 cup dried parsley
1 Tbsp dried rosemary
meat of choice

The trick is the meat. What you do is put everything except the meat in a monster pot, then while the soup comes to a boil prep the meat. If I'm doing chicken, I take the meat off a grocery store rotisserie chicken. If beef, I get pre-cut stew meat and saute it separately, then toss it in. (That version is good with a tablespoon or 2 of Worcestershire sauce added in.) You can add frozen meatballs as soon as the carrots are tender, those being what takes longest. But from empty pot to soup ready to serve with crusty bread can be as little as half an hour, it expands as needed, and serves about 8 people just as written.

*F&D = Fast & Dirty

My other fallbacks for suddenly feeding the multitudes are chili, which I make with cut up chuck roast rather than the usual ground beef, and chicken curry. Both of those are served over rice.

Okay, it's a bit late, but I can't time the short circuits in my brain

[jessie_c]

Where has all the good food gone
And where are all the meals
Where's the kitchen magic gone
To fight the hunger's squeals
Isn't there a gournamd upon a fiery steed
Late at night toss and turn and dream of what I need
I need a dinner
I'm holding out for a dinner 'til the end of the night
It's gotta be fresh
And it's gotta be fast
And it's gotta be ready tonight
I need a dinner
I'm holding out for a dinner 'til the end of the night
It's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And it's gotta be larger than life
Larger than life
Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach
Someone reaching back for me
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It's gonna take a super food to sweep me off my feet
Up where the mountains meet the heavens above
Out where the lightning splits the sea
I would swear that there's someone somewhere
Watching me
Through the wind and the chill and the rain
And the storm and the flood
I can feel its approach
Like the fire in my blood
Like the fire in my blood
Like the fire in my blood
Like the fire in my blood
Like the fire in my blood
Dinner
I need a dinner
I'm holding out for a dinner 'til the morning light
And it's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And it's gotta be larger than life
Dinner
And it's gotta be good
And it's gotta be fast
And it's gotta be ready tonight
I need a dinner

Re: Okay, it's a bit late, but I can't time the short circuits in my brain

[flamingsword]

You win one (1) internets!

Re: Okay, it's a bit late, but I can't time the short circuits in my brain

[jessie_c]

Why, thank you :)

[wendelah1]

So, what did you end up making?

[conuly]

Baked potato, as the only quick meal everybody was amenable to.

[elenbarathi.livejournal.com]

Spaghetti?