When you're looking to keep party expenses down, a little research shopping is a good way to start.
You can buy potatoes, rice, sandwich bread/wraps, pasta for your carbohydrates. Make a list and write different types at your local supermarket. In my area, for potatoes, I would get russets, Yukon golds, reds. Under the rice, I can find arborio which is used to make risotto, jasmine, brown, white, wild. For sandwiches, there is French or Italian bread, mini baguettes, tortillas, tacos, etc., as opposed to ordinary sliced bread.
After you reduce the carbohydrate rate per portion, do the same with the least expensive, topmost expensive, protein.
You have poultry, beef, pork, lamb, which are sold as fresh, prepackaged, deli counters, or chilled. For fish, fresh, canned, frozen, or chilled.
Now, we want to make our menu on the least expensive basis. In New England, where I live, I would find home-cooked chicken, or ground beef, or simply sliced bread with pork or different types of potatoes the least expensive. Apparently, this all varies from week to week as supermarkets and grocery stores sell.
An important point is to be careful about the spices you choose. Some are very expensive. They will rarely be used in your kitchen and eventually thrown out, which will cost you $ 50.00 or more per pound. Some spices are over $ 100.00 per pound.
For sandwiches, sliced bread with home-made protein filler would be preferred. But let's start with stuffed potatoes. It is very simple and takes about an hour to prepare.
You can only ruin it if you don't pay attention and you burn the contents in the saucepan, not talking on your cell phone or practicing your reggae.
If you cook onion/meat mixture in the morning, you can cover and refrigerate. You can then bake the potatoes and fill them with a mixture of heated meat. The best way to reheat is to bring 1/4 cup of broth, chicken, or vegetables to a boil. Turn down the heat and add the meat, stirring. Do not boil. Stir until hot through. Add potatoes and mix lightly. Fill the shells according to the instructions given below.
For eight people:
Eight medium-sized baking potatoes
Two chicken breasts, bite-size pieces
Two hot dogs, finely chopped
A pound of ground beef
One red chili, 1/2 of it, the other 1/2 cut into eight equal strips and then cut in half, diagonally
Three onions, diced
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground parsley
1/2 cup red wine, or broth, vegetable or chicken
1/2 cup olive oil or canola oil
4 ounces of frozen peas, defrosted
2 sticks of butter, each cut into 8 pieces for a total of 16 pieces
Salt and chili
Fry the onion in oil. remove. Add ground beef and cook it until it loses its color. Remove and set aside. Cook the chicken quickly until the pieces are medium-firm to the touch. Remove and set aside. Add remaining ingredients and cook for 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add onion, peas, and meat. Toss lightly and keep warm, cover tightly, if the broth starts to dry then add the broth.
When the potatoes are done, about an hour, allow them to cool so that you can handle them. Cut each in half carefully so as not to damage the shell. Now you have 16 stops. Cut the potatoes into small pieces and mix lightly with the meat mixture. Pour the mixture back into the potato sphere and then arrange the two halves of the potato on two large plates. Cover lightly with aluminum foil and keep warm in the oven for 15 minutes or they will dry. When ready to serve, pour a piece of butter and a strip of red chili over each stuffed potato. Optional: A blue cheese sauce that you make yourself in an ounce of blue cheese with a cup of mayonnaise.
Pass a plate with chopped cucumbers, pickles, olives. Then you need something to drink.
Another idea for your Teen Party Menu Challenge is to have a cafe party where everyone sees the cooking. You have all the ingredients prepared ahead and then just put the sandwich together. Maybe you get a chef's hat for the cook. Set up a buffet table or a counter with a glass, soft drink, and juice so that they can help themselves.
Hot Sandwich:
Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich
Toasted Turkey Club Sandwich
tuna melt
Or cold sandwich:
On fire eggs
Salt Mountain Cheese
Tennessee smokes
Find the recipe for the sandwich on the recipe page below.