Guys, do you think cooking a dish in a larger quantity , needs alot more expertise then cooking the same dish in smaller quantity? 
Why is it more difficult or does it require a specific way of handling larger quantities ?
Re: Cooking in larger amount
if u mean larger as in for around 50-60 ppl..then yes it does..if u mean larger as in...10-15 ppl...not necessarily
For 10-20...i cook...for 50-60..mum cooks :D
Re: Cooking in larger amount
of course...u need bigger spoon [called kafgeer in urdu] and bigger arms and stronger muscles ... hehe :D and, don't forget a bigger brain :P
Re: Cooking in larger amount
I agree, it depends on the size of the crowd, but yes, you need to know the correct quantities for spices, salt, basic things you know, really can't say much because I've never had to cook for that many people, but I think I've gotten my point across. =)
Re: Cooking in larger amount
Frankly i havnt cooked in larger amounts , I prefer to make many dishes in smaller quantities then one dish in a larger quantity ... I did try it a few times , but just didnt work out for me ... I feel everything needed a longer time to get done , eg, onions needed loner time to caramalize properly ... couldnt handle the meat properly .. specially while stirring , it was a total disaster and needed so much muscle power !
and once when i tried the rice , it became kheer in no time !!!
Re: Cooking in larger amount
Once cooked for 15 people and I remember everything took longer to get done and I had problems with how much masala to put in and all. Although it turned out fine in the end but still, more effort is required.
I've cooked rice for about 20 people, turned out perfect!!
Re: Cooking in larger amount
I used to cook for loads (over 25 people at a time) and had no problem, my issue started when i got married and then had to cook for just me and him!! we used to have so much left over all the time, it really took me ages to get the hang of cooking such small amounts.
Re: Cooking in larger amount
I guess its natural to feel the pressure when you are used to doing something in larger amounts and suddenly have to cook in smaller amounts ... and viceversa ...
The question is what tips to keep in mind when cooking in larger quantities?
Re: Cooking in larger amount
I used to cook for loads (over 25 people at a time) and had no problem, my issue started when i got married and then had to cook for just me and him!! we used to have so much left over all the time, it really took me ages to get the hang of cooking such small amounts.
same here, although not that many. 10 people at my parents house regularly for dinner... so food for about 12. although i'm familiar with cooking for about 20-30 people because whenever there's a dawat at my parents house, that's the typical number of people. i've cooked for about 20 people myself and it came out okay (in the good old days when i used to have holidays so I could be bothered to do stuff like that). i just don't know the amounts for cooking small.
now the thing is when you are cooking one dish for 50 or 100. my mum makes chicken salan and chawwal on friday's because one of the initiatives to raise money at the mosque is to sell food after jummah. there's about 70 containers made and she has to do stuff like cook the onions the day before. she gets a large pot, a bori's (sp?) worth of roughly chopped onions go in and are cooked for aaaages. then the next day she will put them in the blender with the tomato (takes a few portions to get through it all) to make the paste and takes it to the mosque so they can start cooking quickly when she gets there- just need to add the spices, cook it a bit and then add the meat.