First catering gig - how much can I fit into my PBC?

[kamadoRob]

I kinda had the same thing happen to me. I used to fly RC airplanes and brought my smoker out to the field early one morning and smoked up some ribs for the club. After that I was offered several catering jobs at RC events. For my first one I tried to get some help from a friend who suggested I just bake the butts in the oven because 'they won't know the difference'. I fired him and had to cease talking to him as I don't need that kind of negativity in my life!

I ended up buying a vertical propane smoker that was able to fit 5 butts easily and smoked the ribs on my Acorn. The best thing about the vertical smoker was that it doubled as an oven at the event so I was able to warm up baked beans and keep the butts hot before serving. Cost only about $120.00. I ended up using it as a portable oven for a few years at other catering events.

[kamadoRob]

Oh and I would say about 6 - 10lb butts would feed 60 people. If you are providing an alternative such as chicken or ribs 4 should be enough. I always figure about 1 pound per person as some of the butt's weight is bone and some will render out. That leaves just over 1/2lb per person which would be 1 to 2 helpings each.

[RobertC]

For a dinner party for a dozen people this summer I estimated 1 lb/person of raw pork butt and there was a butt load of pulled pork left over. At first I wasn't going to comment but I really wanted to use "butt load."

[kamadoRob]

RobertC, perfect use of the word 'butt load'!

[TripleB]

I've done a few events like the one you mentioned and I am not a professional caterer. So this is just my opinion..... keep it simple, ESPECIALLY if you have not done this before. Therefore, just do butts. You have enough room on your PBC to feed 60 easy. Butts are easy to que and you really can't screw them up. Briskets and ribs on the other hand is a different story. Bring the butts whole to the event and pull them in front of the guests. People will be drooling. Put the pulled pork in a warming dish and viola!! Have a coleslaw, buns and BBQ sauce and you are ready to go. Easy-peazy.

You did not mention if you were doing sides.

[jfmorris]

I’m with others who advise keeping it simple. Having recently done parties for both 25 and 80 people, the butts alone will go a long way. For the party of 25, two 8 pound butts, served in crock pots to keep the meat warm, along with some sides, was more than plenty. If you set out buns, slaw, things like that, people use less pork on a sandwich than they do when just piling it on their plate. Also, for a work lunch, pork eaten with a fork or on a bun will be less mess than ribs.

For the party with 80 adults, I smoked 9 butts (right at 75 pounds total precooked weight) and also grilled 20 pounds of wings, tossed in homemade buffalo sauce. The wings were a hit with the 50+ 20-somethings there, especially the guys, and went fast. We had 3 full butts untouched, and a little more pork from a 4th one left over. So at most 6 8 pound butts along with the wings fed 80 people, along with any chips, dips, etc, that they had. We had big pots of baked beans, slaw, potato salad, as sides.

For 60 people, I would go with 5-6 butts, and if you want to add an option, make it something simple and cheap like some chicken legs (my kids love chicken legs almost more than wings, and they are a LOT cheaper), or do as someone else suggested and do a couple of chuck roasts for pulled beef. You have the oddballs that won't eat pork out there I know.

[Steve R.]

Agreed. I'm not sure on the proper way to estimate by weight per person, but it has been my experience in cooking for family get-togethers and the occasional office meal that one ~ 8 lb butt will usually feed 12 people pretty easily, especially if most of them make sandwiches. We also have generous amounts of sides available. These weren't groups of farmhands and teenage boys, so YMMV.

[jfmorris]

Shredding pork in front of people sounds better in theory than I think it might turn out in practice! With 60 people and 1 hour for a work lunch, I think he will want to be ready to go right when people get there. Plus, you really have to pull the pork while its still pretty hot.

I advise pulling the pork in advance, and just put it in foil steam table trays. I buy the half steam table trays and foil lids at Sam's for $6 for 36 - about the size of a 9x13 pan, and each one holds pretty much exactly a 7-8 pound pulled Boston butt. Shred it up into the pan, put the foil top on, and stack them in a cooler/cambro in the morning, and pull it out as you serve. Setup multiple food lines and people can get their food and eat quicker.

[Gunderich_1]

I agree. Do it before. It'll take longer than you think.

[Chelnerul]

If you smoke brisket, how are you going to serve them? They dry out quickly when sliced, and some people have trouble keeping the flat moist anyway. Chuck roasts might be easier to do, and you can do both the beef and the pork ahead of time, shred, vacuum seal, and just heat the bags in hot water the day of the event. Then all you have to do is empty the bags. Make sure you save the drippings and add them back to the shredded meat before bagging and sealing.

To serve, you can get two serving pan sets that use sterno under a pan of water to keep the meat hot. Maybe the company could spring for those pans. If you have more meat than room in the trays, just keep the sealed bags in the hot water until a serving pan is empty. Then dump another bag in the pan.

Cooking a few days in advance would sure reduce the stress on you on the day of the event...

Excellent advice!

[Chelnerul]

These are great comments and advice, I deeply appreciate you all taking the time to reply and the thought you put into them.

I committed to it this morning and the invite has gone out to the masses. We have over 110 in our division, but for the past two years we've only had between 55-70 commit to a Christmas lunch. Commuting in the DC area has a lot to do with turnout - people who live north won't drive south, and vice versa. I live west so go figure...

I wish I had seen some of these suggestions BEFORE today!

I have committed to doing Carolina-style pulled pork. In the invite that went out, we added a vote button where people could vote for either brisket or ribs. I'm hoping its brisket.

I really like the idea of pulling and vaccuum-sealing. I admit, I wanted to pull it there for the presentation value, but in terms of ease of serving, the large trays and burners might be the best bet. I could both chop and slice the brisket as well. Pulled beef is a specialty of mine that I stupidly did not offer...Wings are also ridiculously easy and I should've offered those. Lots of guys who would've jumped at that at our office.

So now we have 10 days until they get me an exact head count. The show is on a Friday, so I would probably cook Thursday and part of Friday, or do the cook over the weekend and vaccuum seal it up. Options are nice.

[RonB]

Good luck - if I was a bit closer, I'd offer to help.

[Mudkat]

Sounds like it will be a great event! Very nice way to give to your fellow workers.

[Chelnerul]

I think I've got a second PBC to use for the big day, I should be good to go! Feeling more relieved now, and votes on the meats are running 4 to 1 in favor of brisket over ribs...

[RipSUp]

So how did it go in the end?