[Sca-cooks] Intro and Newbie question - estimating meat portions

[Terry Decker]

The feasts I prepare take roughly two hours or less, served in three courses 
with two brief periods of entertainment (hopefully) while setting up for the 
next course.  If I planned for a longer feast, I would consider more dishes 
of smaller portions served two or three at a time at roughly 20 minute 
intervals with continuous entertainment.  Interminable, boring waits for the 
next course do not enhance the cook's or the group's reputation.

The quantity of meat at a feast is often dictated by the dietary habits of 
the people at the board.  In my case, I live in a region of carnivores with 
a high incidence of heart disease in the general population.

Bear


>I would also add that the portion sizes are dependent on the time frame in
> which the feast will be consumed. If the courses are spread out over
> several hours you might have the 8-12 oz. of protein per person, if it is
> going to be served as a dinner (most food served in 90 minutes) you might
> opt for 6-8 oz per person.
>
> Euriol
>
> On Wed, 12 Mar 2008 06:58:49 -0500, "Terry Decker"
> <t.d.decker at worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>> While it may be wasteful, as long as you broke even or made a profit on
> the
>>
>> feast, the leftovers are immaterial.  Cutting waste, however, can keep a
>> feast in the black and is a worthy goal of itself.
>>
>> When I plan a feast, I usually plan for 10 to 12 dishes (including bread)
>
>> with a portion size of 3 to 4 ounces.  I calculate meat portions at
>> roughly
>> one pound for four people.  I will normally serve 3 different meats for a
>
>> total of 12 ounces per person.  For fewer meat dishes, I might serve one
>> or
>> two ounces more in the meat portions, particularly if I were limiting the
>
>> number of dishes overall.  Portion size of mixed dishes needs to be based
>> on
>> the total weight of the ingredients.  You could probably trim my
> estimates
>>
>> by 1/3 and still have a good feast with even fewer leftovers.
>>
>> For tarts and things of that ilk, I usually ignore weight and serve as
>> quarters or eighths.
>>
>> Bear