# Here we go! First time feeding 50 friday night...



## mobcounty

This is my largest crowd thus far, but I have practiced each dish a couple times and I am pretty confident in a positive review. I hope to document the process for SMF'ers, thats why I have posted here.

The location is 20 minutes from my house, and will have 50 people. Last year they had tri-tip on paper plates. We are taking over the dinner this year, and we are trying to make a good impression.

I am not afraid of any of the cooking. However, serving warm courses will be a trick. I plan on reheating the pork and tri-tip a few hours before and serving in foil pans. I also plan on heating the beans on site and serving these from foil pans. Salad will be prepped some time the day of the meal (I do need a tip on keeping the salad from wilting or turning brown).


Here is the menu.

-Pulled Pork (Meowey's Basic Pulled Pork sticky)
-Finishing sauce (Jeff's sticky)
-BBq sauce cut with vinegar and mustard
-Dutch's Baked Beans
-Tri-Tip
-Soft Rolls
-Salad
-Vegtable platters w/ dip
-Red Wine, White wine, (Merlot, Cab, White Zin, two cases total)
-Soda
-Water
-Coffee (caf/decaf)
-Dessert (sheet cake)
-Vegetarian Tofu Dogs

I plan on running my smoker at the site to keep pans warm as we need them. I also plan on using my two burner stove to keep beans warm as we need them.

Per a suggestion on the forum, since some people do not do pork I have added some tri-tip. I plan on cooking the tri-tip early then slicing it into a small amount of sauce made from cooked down rub and beer. I have done this before to great effect.

Any additional tips are welcome.
All the best,
MC


***EDIT***
*SEE PAGE 4 FOR THE QVIEW UPDATE on this project =)*


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## vlap

Keep a detailed report of how ya do it all... I may have to cook for 50-70 hungry fishermen in March. I am trying to figure out amounts of food needed. Keep me posted on how it all goes...


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## mobcounty

A quick note, my notes say to figure on 1/2 lb.  (pre-cooked) meat per person. Is that reasonable?  

Right now, I have in uncooked meat 31 lbs (bone in) pork butt and 10 lbs of tri tip. Is that enough for 50'ish?

MC


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## vlap

Wait to dress your salad untill the last moment. Or do the salad and have the dressing on the side...


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## mobcounty

Will do!  Thats exactly why I wanted to keep a record.


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## vlap

That amount of meat sounds good.


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## fatback joe

Are you serving people or are they serving themselves?  If you are serving, you can control the portions and figure out amounts exactly........a lot more estimation involved if you are just throwing it out there for them to take what they want.


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## fatback joe

MC

Send me your email. I have a spreadsheet that I think will help you, but it is too large to post


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## shellbellc

Definitely serve on the side.  Whenever we serve salad we have usually 3 choices next to the salad bowl.  We have a BIG mixing/serving bowl that we put the green in and then we have a small "bucket" that we have the chopped tomatoes and onions in.  Right before we get ready to serve, I'll toss the tomatoes and onions into the lettuce.  When they go through the line they can get their own salad and dressing choice.


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## buddy

Good luck on your cook. Hope everything turns out ok.


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## mobcounty

The guests will be coming up buffet style. Oh, and I sent my email to ya Joe.

Thanks for the salad tips, I'll keep the dressing on the side as suggested. Is there any word on how many hours chopped lettuce will stay before wilting?


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## kookie

Good luck on your cook. Looks like you have everything covered. 

Kookie


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## cman95

Set your containers of lettuce in ice. Not just on top of ice but put the containers about half way down in the ice. It will help slow the wilting process. Good luck with your feed.


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## vlap

When you chop put it straight into ice water. Once done chopping spin it in a salad spinner to dry and put it into a container and cover with a slightly damp rag/ cloth. It will keep a day or so before turning.


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## Dutch

MC-Just a quick tip that I have used in the past - the Igloo type insulated cooler also does a great job of keeping things hot. I have a cooler that will hold three full sized hotel pans. Place lids (use the metal ones) on the pans and use aluminum foil to seal the lids to the pans. You could probably get by using foil pans but I don't know how well they will hold up to stacking.


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## bbq bubba

Figure 50% shrinkage on the pork, less on the steak, so you end up with 15# pork at 1/4# serving's = 60 serving's.
Everyone know's at a buffet they will take triple that so i would suggest a couple more butt's, ya want leftover's don't ya???


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## mobcounty

Cman, Thanks for the lettuce tip!

Vlap, thanks doubly for the lettuce tip!
I'm now confidend in my lettuce prep=).

Dutch, I have two coolers just like you described, They are now going to be pressed into keeping food warm.  I've got foil pans, but I have the hots to get some hotel pans.  Maybe this is the perfect reason, muahahaha.

BBq Bubba,  I feel you on the meat count.  Maybe I am just a nervous nelly, but I ran out and picked up another 10lbs of Tri-tip just in case.  I think my total meat will be 31lbs pork (w/bone) and 20+ lbs. of Tri-tip. 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			





That should keep me in meat for the next month haha.  At least it will keep me in meat for the playoffs on sunday


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## shellbellc

In November we did a tailgate for 50 people, it was in another state (Indiana, we're in PA) so we had to prep early as much as possible.  Below is a link to it, but I will give you how much I got and what I ran out of and what I had extra of. 

One box of 1/4 burgers - 48 count
Hotdogs - 48 
Jalapeno hotdogs - 16
hamburger bbq - 10 pounds burger (almost full half pan)

We fired up the grills around 8 am and served until about 10 then broke down and got ready for the main course.  This was just a teaser so people didn't starve to death.

Pulled pork - 22 lb's, 3 boneless from Costco
crab soup - one half pan full
smoked salmon - 5 full fillets 
shrimp - one box frozen jumbo's mounded in a half pan
filet mignon - 3 full loins, trimmed out to just filets

Crab soup we ran out of about 2/3 of the way through and that was with us serving a small cup to everyone.  Screwed up on this amount. 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Pulled pork - had extra, this was about 3/4 full in a full pan, we served with smaller dinner roll size rolls but let them take as much as they wanted.

Salmon - after smoked I cut down the middle and then about 2 in slices.  Had a little left over, but had a few that didn't like fish so they didn't take it. 

Shrimp we handed out to those who wanted and had just enough. 

Every body got a filet and if you got a small one you got two small.

So the only thing I didn't have enough of was the soup.  Keep in mind though that they had just eaten 2 - 3 hours before.  Some of the younger guys took bigger portions, some of the older people took smaller and not everything, but I think it evened out on the richter scale.  

Hope this helps.  Here's the link with maybe some more info to help you (and my BIG problem with the smoker)

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ad.php?t=10221


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## gramason

Nice menu, good luck.


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## mulepackin

I've always understood that torn lettuce wilts less than knife chopped. May not be practical under those circumstances. Otherwise, not much to add that the pros here haven't covered. Good luck. (oh, what times dinner?)


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## linescum

-Vegetarian Tofu Dogs----on a seperate table i hope


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## triman22000

What I gave done with the salad is nowadays they have the salad already cut up in air tight packages and I just buy those and cut up anything else I am going to put into it and put that into zip lock bags. When it is time to serve just open the bags put all in a bowl and your done. A lot less work.
I also do not do use multiple dressings just use Italian mix it up and your done with it.
As for the meat one meat at least 1/2 per person more then one 1/4 lb person.
Just chicken 1/2 include ribs 1/2 and 1/4 chicken.

Oh yeah and I always make plenty extra for home lol
Godd luck


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## white cloud

The challenge is great, but with your confidence in what you know and have prepared for, the reward of achieving your goals and meeting your expectations the satisfaction will be even greater. Good Luck. I have fed about 75 head twice once for my sister in laws wake and another time for my daughters wedding shower. But I didn't do anything in the smoker. It all worked out. whew!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## mobcounty

Here is a quick update.
There is a total of 52 pounds of meat in the smoker 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






I started the smoker at 6:50am it's now 7:12pm.  I suspect I will be wrapping up around 2:00am.

The butt's just went into foil, total time sofar is about 11 hours at 165.

The reason it took a while, is that I was sneaking pans of beans in and out.  30 quarts of beans smoked in six pans.  

Tri-tip just went in.  These will cook pretty fast in comparison. I figure 6 hours to 165, then rest, then slice.

BBq sauce is done, pork wash is done.

Salad is good to go, bought in pre-made packs its sitting in the fridge.  We will spruce it up with some veggies tomorrow.

I took a lot of pic's sofar and look forward to posting them as soon as the event is over.


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## mulepackin

Are you using chafing dishes? My buddy and I get em at Sams. They are pretty reasonable for the racks, sterno, and pans. They work quite well for keeping things warm at the serving counter or table. Have used both solid pans and foil type pans from there with success.


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## fatback joe

Good luck with it.  Sounds like all is well so far.


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## mobcounty

... all smoked

Now I look forward to reheating and serving this evening.  Man, I am dog tired. I started at 7am and the last bit of pork was pulled and put into the fridge at 2:30 am.  Whew, I need a nap.


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## bbq bubba

What do ya mean "all smoked" ???
Where's the pic's???
Starting to think this is one of those ghost smokes!!


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## mobcounty

Haha, all smoked, but I still have to heat and serve in a few hours.  If I had time I'd post more, but this will have to suffice for now.   Four 15 pounders on two shelves =).


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## shellbellc

Well...the final verdict???????????????


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## vlap

still recovering?


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## charles1056

Looking good Mob.  Let us know how every goes.


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## dbecklund

I watched some rural Okie folks back in the 70s tear through 200 lbs of butt in a couple of hours for a huge church picnic. They bought boneless butts by the case from a packer, smoked them and then pulled them with a combination of hand sledge hammers, meat cleavers and oversized tenderizing mauls. The texture and cuts were really close to a manual pull.  I finally took up the process and can tear through a 100 lb pig or 150 lbs of butt in a couple of hours with just 3 of us.  One flattens (sledge), another chops (cleaver) and the 3rd guy mauls (apiked tenderizing maul) and tears it into the holding pans. I'll never go back to a manual pull again.

BTW, I'm not a commercial operation, just a guy who volunteers for neighborhood and church BBQs several times a year to keep the cost down.


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## mobcounty

Hi guys!
Sorry for the very very very long delay.. I almost forgot to post final conclusions 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Here are Qviews of the final cook.


Backyard kitchen stadium ready to go!! It's low light cus it's early in the morning.


Groceries arrive.



Here is one of the most important tools for the avid smoker.. No not the smoker, the bottle opener 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





 ..



Pork butts marinated and ready to go.


The pork goes on first, I planned on smoking the tri-tip and beans in the same smoker while the pork was still going. Timing was tricky, but it is possible.


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## mobcounty

Sausage and Bacon on the griddle heading for baked beans.


These baked beans had a lot of meat!! Just how I like it. I basically quadruple every recipie on the web when it comes to meat in baked beans.


Opening cans and getting ready to prep peppers and onions for the baked beans.


I never did put the beans in the large pot. to cook, I just put them there to stir in the ingredients.


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## mobcounty

Juggling the beans tri-tip and pork in the smoker proved to be a trick. I think the cook time on the tri-tip was 7 hours, and the cook time on the pork was 17. The rest of the shelves were filled with shifts of beans when possible.

**EDIT**, you will notice in the above picture that I have filled every shelf slot.  The two heavy duty shelves were added to help with the load.  You must have all the slots filled to do this much meat.



Getting closer..


One of the pans of beans heading to the reefer to cool for the next day's meal.


The tri-tip cooked while the pork was wrapped in foil. Notice, its night already. I believe this was around 9pm..


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## mobcounty

A close up of the tri-tip. The meat is just about done.


mmmm


Mmmmmmmmmmm


Letting the meat rest for an hour or so. The whole house smelled like smoke =).


After the rest, the bone pulled right out of the pork.


I actually pulled the pork by using this wooden spoon. A little bit of pressure would seperate the meat very nicely. I also added the finishing sauce at this point.


Frankly, I did not like Santa Maria Tri-Tip as I live just a few miles from SM. Everyone who claims to have good SMTT is basically lying. The meat is always tough and salty, burnt on the ends, and rare in the center. Not that it's not possible, I just have yet to taste it done well... Until now. I basically used the knowledge base here to modify the SMTT for use in a smoker. This TT was the best I have ever had, I call it *Atascadero Tri-Tip*






 ..


The meat was packed in tins and put in the fridge.


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## mobcounty

DAY 2:


Parking lot kitchen stadium. This is my reheat station. Do your hotel a favor and put the smoker over pavement. It will stain a concrete sidewalk, and they will not be very happy.

Reheating was a trick, I basically put the pans on the griddle and stirred them, the meat went into the smoker and got back up to temp. The whole process took a few hours so leave some time.



Here the table is set with the meat and beans. Do yourself a favor and put towels down under your pans. This will help hold heat, and it will keep your linens from being ruined. Another trick, if you have vegetarian beans, put a few sprigs of greens on the top so people can tell which is which.



Here is my crowd. I think the total was 60+. They loved the food, and there were no complaints. There were some big eaters. Do yourself another favor and feed the hotel staff 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





 . This will get you big karma points for the next time you need to mess up their facility!!

 Here we are close to the end. I had waaay too much food. Please refer to my first post in this thread for the amount I started with. I think I ended up with 30% more food than I needed. I suppose this was a great problem to have, as I was able to feed all of my friends the next day ..
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	






All in all it was tough, but an amazing experience. Everyone now calls me the pulled pork guy, and they all want to know where I will cook next.


All the best,
MC


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## shellbellc

Looks GREAT!!  Points to you for your successful smoke!  I agree with you, leftovers are great so you can spread the wealth!


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## chargrilled

Excellent post, pics and grub.  That is a marathon smoke.  I am tired after just smokin one butt!!!   Lots of work, I am glad everything worked out.  Looked like a bunch of happy customers.


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## travcoman45

Mighty fine lookin feed!  Glad it all came together fer ya!  Excellent work!


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## blacklab

Nice smoke job 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






. When summer get going you may have more $ smokes


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## daboys

All I can say is that's awesome!!


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## smokin out the neighbors

Great job on the cook. I'm trying the same basic recipe for about 100 mechanics next week.  This will be my first cook that large. Any tips to make it easier?


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## funh2o

Congrats on a great smoke and a job well done. I can't imagine the time and effort you put into it. The Q-View is great.

Points for a job well done.

Happy Smokin

Steve


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## flyin'illini

Wow. That looks great.  Thanks for documenting.  This will make me think twice about signing up for something like this.


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## mobcounty

Here are a couple things.

Add as many shelves as possible to your smoker.  If you have the same one I have, you will need to add two shelves.

Smoking was cut and dry, just allow yourself plenty of smoke time, the butts went on around 8am, and I was putting the finishing touches on it right around midnight.. 

The reheating was a bit tricky.

I reheated by putting pans of meat in the smoker. It worked okay, keep watch on the temp. Pork did well, the tri-tip cooked a little more when reheated. 

I reheated pans of beans on top of a griddle. My suggestion is to keep them in a big turkey frying pot on a big camp stove and reheat them that way. 

Go with tubs of mixed greens from CostCo and mix in cherry tomatos and crutons on the spot, super easy.

Also go with big bags of rolls. Super easy. 

We got serving stuff at the dollar store, platters too. I think I had all the serving tongs, spoons, and trays I needed within 20 bucks.

Next year I am going to go with all tri-tip right off the smoker to dinner. The tri-tip smoked in 6 or so hours. If I start in the morning I can have it for dinner pretty easily. 

Good luck, prepare to be excited!


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## geob

AWSOME!  Thats all I can think of.


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## Dutch

One trick with reheating pulled pork-FoodSaver bags and boiling water!! Use the gallon size rolls. Make the bags as long as the reheating pot that you will be using is deep. Make sure to double seal the ends to ensure that you have a good seal. Here is my method-cut bags to length. Seal one end and make another seal about a 1/4 inch from the first. Fill the bag with cooled (not hot) pulled pork. Be sure to leave enough room so you can obtain a good seal when you seal it. Vacuum seal the bag, when the vac/seal cycle stops, add another to the bag a 14 inch from the first. Notice that NO finishing sauce was added to the sealed product. The Finishing Sauce is sealed in a seperate bag and reheated and then added to the reheated pulled pork. Use tongs to pull the bags from the boiling water.

To reheat the pork, stand the bags in the reheating pot (you don't want to pack the bags in too tight) and then add enough water to the pot to cover the pork in the bags. If you try to add enough water to completely cover the entire bag, you will end up with boiling water everywhere. Remove the bags, bring the water to a boil and return the bags to the boiling water. Reheat the pork to 160 deg and then make sure that the pork stays abouve 140 deg. while serving. Add the reheated Finishing Sauce to the pork before serving.

If you have access to a microwave oven you can it to reheat the pork. Just remember to make a small cut in the bag to allow steam to escape before reheating.


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## travcoman45

That be good information there dutch!  See, I woulda put the finishin sauce on then into the baggies, makes more sense to wait.  Thanks fer sharin yer secrets!  I gotta get me a new super sucker, mine seems to have disppeared somewhere!  Aliens land here and shop at my place fer there cookin needs!


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## ajthepoolman

Awesome thread!  I am going to be smoking for 75 for my wife's graduation party.  All I have is my little Brinkmann electric though!  I have a friend who has a GOSM and he is going to help as well.  This thread has given me a lot of confidence!  Thanks!


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## smokin out the neighbors

Thanks Mob/ Dutch for the tips. They will help a bunch.


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## mulepackin

Excellent thread and photo essay. Great job! Damn, I thought after all that work you fell off the face of the earth after not hearing from you. Glad all went well. Again thanks for sharing
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





(trying to figure out right sequence of points, clicks, etc. to apply points)


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## seboke

Great Post!  I'm gonna do my own smoke for my annual 4 July party combined this year as my retirement party.  Usual attendance is around 40, but expecting 75 or more for this one!  I'll be using ALL the suggestions the fine people put up in here.


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## mobcounty

Haha!  I swear when I was going into it, I intended to post the next day..  Then I slept instead 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





 ..  Then it was clean up for a couple days, then it was resting a couple days.. Then it was, "Oh man! I have not posted yet!".


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