In just over a week, the government’s next stage in their gradual lifting of lockdown restrictions commences. Rejoice! From the 29th March, groups of six will be able to meet in outdoor spaces and private gardens, paving the way for a Spring speculatively featuring friends and family (all law-abiding and socially distanced, of course).
Whilst not wishing to rain on everyone’s private, six person parade, we should remind you that April is just around the corner, and the UK’s inclement weather listens to no government. Cue those infamous showers and the prospect of garden parties getting well and truly rained off.
Not to worry. From May 17th, outdoor gatherings of up to 30 people will be allowed, and on June 21st onwards, it’s anything goes; with all the usual caveats thrown in, of course. By the time these restrictions are lifted, the sun will be shining, shorts and T-shirts will be the UK’s only uniform, and the aroma of burnt budget burgers will be wafting all about the place. We can’t wait.
Suddenly, everyone’s going to be hosting Spring and Summer garden parties, barbeques and bashes, and we suspect things might get a little competitive. Come out on top, with these 6 tips for making a success of your Summer garden parties.
PREPARATION IS EVERYTHING
Just like hosting a great dinner party, preparation is key to a successful Summer garden party. Marinating, dry-rubbing, slicing, dicing, par-boiling, searing, half-steaming, picking and chopping…so much of the work, food wise, can happen well in advance of your party if you design your menu right.
In fact, the only elements of your meal that genuinely need to be left to the last minute are the dressing of salads (premature dressing leads to limp leaves), a final sprinkle of seasoning, and any à-la-minute cooking of meat which only needs to kiss the grill before it’s done.
If you’re concerned about timings, why not slow roast a whole leg of lamb on the barbecue, ensuring its meltingly tender and not requiring any last minute faff? Or, consider hosting a fish barbecue, with whole fish like mackerel only needing a few minutes on a white-hot grill. Magic!
Vegetables can be prepped in advance, too. Simply steam or boil vegetables in advance, then ‘shock’ them in ice cold water to stop them overcooking and discolouring. Then, just before serving, warm them through over the coals, imparting a beautiful smoky flavour and a few grill marks whilst still maintaining the vegetable’s integrity.
Finally, prepare some sauces, salsas and dips the day before, and bring them out around half an hour before everyone sits down to eat to ensure the chill’s been taken off. Hey presto!
Being stuck in the kitchen, flapping over the sides instead of charming and taking care of your guests is never a good look. Make your life easy by preparing what you can in advance. Or make your life even easier, and ask all your guests to bring a dish with them. Just a thought…
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE TOOLS
Lighting a BBQ in Britain’s oft inclement weather – it can be one of the most frustrating moments of the whole summer. To make things simple for yourself, consider investing in a chimney starter – these chimney like devices push the flames through the charcoal, allowing for just the right amount of air circulation to get your fire going and ensuring that all your coals are at an even temperature when you’re ready to start cooking.
Don’t stop there; a digital probe thermometer will be your new best friend, if you’re keen on precision cooking (and avoiding salmonella!). This trusty tool allows for accurate, safe cooking by checking the internal temperature of your food and ensuring it’s cooked to yours and your guests’ exacting standards. Repeat after us; “probe, don’t poison”.
Finally, if you’re considering grilling a fish on the BBQ and are concerned about the near inevitable skin-stickage, then there’s a tool-based solution for that, too. So many keen grillers steer clear of barbecuing whole fish because of its tendency to stick to the grill bars, but fear not; an investment in a specially designed fish basket (sometimes called a clamp) will see you right. It’s essentially a fish basket which you can ‘clamp’ shut around the fish, allowing for easy flipping and no sticking to the grill.
Other than that, a pair of heat resistant barbecue tongs, a fish/burger slice and a grill brush will see you right for many summers to come.
KEEPING THINGS WARM
“Hurry up and eat before the food gets cold.”
If you’re hosting a larger gathering outdoors this Summer, then there’s always a danger that elements of your meal – whether it’s hot off the barbecue or coming out from your indoor kitchen – will go cold before guests have properly enjoyed it.
You know how this story goes by now; guests are distracted by Champers and chatter, the cook gets sidelined by a game of beer pong, the kids are hungry before the adults…all of which requires some careful juggling of food prep, cooking and serving to ensure everything arrives at its optimum temperature.
When it comes to keeping your food warm, there’s a whole host of gadgets to help you out. If you’re hosting a large gathering and making easy, one-pot dishes to please a big crowd, then a Ban Marie food warmer works wonders in keeping stews, ragu, curries and chills at just the right temperature. A trusty slow cooker will also keep these dishes warmer for longer, or may we suggest investing in a rice cooker? They’re brilliant at holding all manner of things at the right temperature, and have uses way beyond just rice!
Should you be hosting a barbecue for the kids, then hot dogs are obligatory, don’t you think? It can be a pain keeping a party’s worth of sausages cooked and hot until everyone’s ready to eat, but a sausage warmer (must. avoid. making. coarse. joke) is the perfect solution for keeping hot dogs or sausages ready to serve for longer.
If you don’t have the budget to blow on new gadgets, then a trusty roll of tin foil will keep things insulated. Alternatively, you could cleverly redeploy a cool box – while they are primarily designed to keep things cold, the insulation means you can use them to keep things warm, too.
And if you’re keen to warm the cockles of your guests, too, then place a keen focus on spice when considering your garden party menu. Chilli in all its glorious forms offsets the onset of a chilly Summer evening, whilst aromatic spices and flavourings bring a different kind of warmth and comfort to the table, too. In this respect, fermented sides like kimchi or sauerkraut are always a winner.
SERVING DRINKS
Speaking of warm things – we don’t know about you, but one of the most annoying tasks of a large gathering is making a round of teas or coffees for everyone, then having to spend the rest of the afternoon by the kettle, trying to count the right amount of mugs and inevitably forgetting one person wanted coffee instead of tea. A simple solution? Allow guests to make their own hot beverage with a handy hot water dispenser, which are available online for around £50.
And now, onto the cold stuff. There’s nothing better than enjoying a cold, refreshing glass of white wine or beer in the sun. On the flip side, there’s nothing worse than grinning and bearing a lukewarm version.. Actually, we could think of loads of things worse, but anyway.
Enter rapid drink chillers. After that inevitable shop run to pick up more booze, these things can chill your bottles of wine and cans of beer in a matter of minutes. We’re talking ice cold here, and while we don’t really understand how the rapid cooling technology works, we’re certainly thankful for it.
Some of the most regarded models on the market include the Cooper Cooler which takes approximately six minutes to cool a 750 mil bottle of wine and the Zero Rapid Drinks Chiller, and pledges to take your bottles from room temperature to sub zero in as little as 3 minutes and keep your drinks cooler for longer than any ice bucket. The choice is yours!
If you’re not in the market for a rapid drink chiller, then the wine cooler market has improved massively in recent years, way beyond a metal bucket and some quickly disappearing ice. Promising to keep your drinks perfectly chilled for longer, may we suggest a cooling stick that lowers the wine temperature from the inside out? Priced at £19.99, The ChillCore 3 in 1 chills your bottle in 15 minutes and helps your drink stay cold for up to two hours. Just store it in the freezer and use as required.
KEEPING THINGS WITH WINGS AWAY
Flies, wasps and other things with wings tend to make a beeline (ahem) for Summer garden parties. First things first, never swat a wasp; it’s inhumane and you might inflame the situation, too.
According to Somerset Live, “A swatted wasp releases a chemical that is picked up by other wasps and they see it as a call to arms and come flying to the scene with stingers at the ready’’. Now that catastrophe has been averted, let’s talk about preventing them arriving on the scene in the first place.
Repelling wasps is a good first line of defence; prevention is better than cure, and all that. A tried and tested trick is to hang up crumpled brown paper bags, which gives the illusion of wasp nests and sends a message to other wasps that the territory is occupied. If you’re keen for something a little more concrete, then covering food is the best way to deter wasps and flies – mesh food covers which act like a tent are ideal, here.
Mosquitoes are another notorious warm-weather pest. You’ve probably used citronella candles in the past to deter them? Well, according to Science Mag, whilst citronella candles are great for setting a mood, they’re not actually all that well suited to the very thing they’re advertised to do; repel mosquitoes. Instead, an outdoor electric or battery-powered fan will best keep these bugs at bay; mosquitos are weak flyers and are loathe to fly into a fan’s breeze. Moreover, your guests can enjoy the fan’s cooling effect on a sticky, humid day.
If you’re doing things close to the beach, then you’ll no doubt be familiar with the threat of seagulls, whether they’re swooping in to swipe the chips straight out of your hand or they’re stealing a whole leg of lamb from your barbecue (trust us, it happens!).
Some experts suggest dying your food green to save your sandwiches from greedy gulls, since they’re confused by camouflaged food. Hey, who isn’t? If that sounds like a lot of effort, then other authorities on the subject suggest staring down the seagull until it flies off. Hmmm, perhaps we’ll just eat indoors.
TAKE COVER
Speaking of those refreshing breezes, if you don’t want your guests to melt (yep, even British summers are getting hot) then it’s essential you create some shade. In the last few years, we’ve seen some of the hottest summers since records began. While of course we should all be focusing on reducing our carbon footprint to help mitigate global warming – perhaps extinguish that barbie with haste – it’s a good idea to ensure your garden has a good amount of shade to ensure the comfort of your guests.
A permanent awning is a good idea here and will allow you to make the most out of your garden this summer. Not only do they provide shade, but they protect from rain, too, guaranteeing your outdoor gathering goes ahead, whatever the weather. Awnings also allow a section of your garden to double up as summer living space – known as ‘zoning’ – with outside furniture like a dining bench or comfortable outdoor chairs and even sofas able to provide enough seating and space for everyone.
Though you might be keeping guests dry with your awning, it’s certainly not wise to light the grill under one. On the flip side, remember that rain and fire don’t mix. As such, it’s a good idea to get a barbecue with a lid to ensure seamless cooking and avoid any disappointed guests!
THE BOTTOM LINE
We’ve shared every secret under the sun for a successful summer party, giving you all the tools to host the season’s hottest event. Now, can we assume our invite’s in the post?
Check out our article on 6 IDEAL tips for creating a backyard built for entertaining and 5 IDEAL ways to raise your Summer BBQ game if you’re looking for even more inspiration!