A Vegetable Feast
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2
Chapter 9 · A Vegetable Feast
Skill goal
Plan, time and serve a vegetarian feast, a mezze table and a week of meal-prep vegetables.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
The last chapter is about planning. You now have a large set of dishes. Cooking a feast is mostly deciding what to make, in what order, and how much can be done ahead, so that you aren't cooking six things at once when the guests arrive.
Planning a menu
- Balance the flavours and textures: something creamy (a dip, a purée), something crunchy (raw vegetables, crisps), something sharp (pickles, a dressing), something rich (a curry, a gratin) and something fresh (a salad).
- Use different methods: one roasted, one simmered, one raw, one fried or grilled, so they don't compete for the same oven or hob.
- Make ahead: dips, pickles, caponata, curry base and sauces are all better the next day.
- Choose one showpiece and keep the rest simple.
- Ask about diets and allergies in advance.
The running order
A running order is a list of times, worked backwards from when you want to eat. Start with the slowest dish, then fit the others around it. Write down when each dish goes in and comes out, and what you will do while it cooks.
Your skills table
| Skill | Chapter | Best for | My top tip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toasting and tempering spices | Vegetables 2, chapter 1 | Curries, dals, vegetables with a spice lift | Watch it: seconds matter |
| Curry and stew building | Vegetables 2, chapter 2 | Using up vegetables; big batches | Balance salt, sweet, sour and heat at the end |
| Braising | Vegetables 2, chapter 3 | Fennel, red cabbage, leeks, aubergine | Lid on, low heat, glaze at the end |
| Grilling and charring | Vegetables 2, chapter 4 | Summer vegetables, peppers, aubergines | Two zones: sear, then finish |
| Fritters and tempura | Vegetables 2, chapter 5 | Snacks and starters | Dry the food, fry in small batches |
| Pickling and fermenting | Vegetables 2, chapter 6 | Condiments and preserving surplus | Weigh the salt; keep it under the brine |
| Dips, purées and sauces | Vegetables 2, chapter 7 | Using up surplus; freezing | Taste and adjust at the end |
| Awkward vegetables | Vegetables 2, chapter 8 | Making seasonal treats feel easy | Know the one trick for each |
Fill in your own tips in the table below, in your own words.
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spices: my favourite combination | ||||
| Curry: my house curry | ||||
| Braise: my best vegetable | ||||
| Grill: my best marinade | ||||
| Frying: my crispest batter | ||||
| Preserving: my best pickle | ||||
| Sauce: my signature sauce | ||||
| My signature vegetable dish |
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
A vegetarian feast for 6
No new recipes here: you cook what you have learned. Write a running order first, work backwards from when you want to eat, and make everything possible the day before.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 1 batch caponata, made the day before (Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2, chapter 3)
- 1 batch quick pickled red onions, made the day before (chapter 6)
- 1 batch baba ganoush (chapter 4)
- 1 batch roast vegetable tray, with squash, peppers and fennel (Vegetables 1, chapter 3, and Vegetables 2, chapter 8)
- 1 batch coconut vegetable curry (chapter 2)
- 1 batch griddled courgettes (chapter 4)
- 300 g rice, cooked as in Cooking Skills: Rice 1, chapter 2, or flatbreads
- 1 handful chopped herbs and a lemon, for finishing
- The day before: make the caponata and the pickled onions (both improve overnight) and refrigerate them.
- 2 hours before: char the aubergines and make the baba ganoush. Prepare and cut the roast vegetables and the curry vegetables. Set the table.
- 1 hour 15 minutes before: put the roast tray in the oven. Start the curry base and simmer the curry. Take the caponata out of the fridge to warm to room temperature.
- 15 minutes before: cook the rice, griddle the courgettes, warm the curry and plate everything up with herbs and lemon. Put hot dishes in a low oven if you need to wait.
Feeding a crowd
Serving a crowd: keep hot food above about 63°C (in a low oven) and cold food in the fridge until needed. Don't leave dishes out for more than 2 hours, and cool and chill leftovers promptly. Ask guests about allergies and diets before you plan the menu: nuts, sesame, gluten, dairy and egg all appear in this course.
Level 2 · Assembly
A mezze table
A mezze table is a feast that needs almost no cooking at the last minute: dips, pickles, roasted vegetables, raw vegetables, bread. Balance the colours, flavours and textures.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 1 batch baba ganoush
- 1 batch romesco, or hummus from the shop
- 1 batch pickled vegetables
- 1 batch roast peppers or charred peppers
- 200 g cucumber, carrot and radish, cut in sticks
- 100 g olives and feta
- 4 flatbreads or pitta
- 1 tbsp olive oil, for drizzling
- Make the dips and pickles ahead (see chapters 4, 6 and 7). Keep them in the fridge.
- Take the dips out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving. Serve in shallow bowls, drizzled with oil and scattered with herbs.
- Arrange the raw sticks, olives, feta and peppers on a large platter or board. Warm the bread.
- Aim for a balance: something creamy, something crunchy, something sharp, something smoky, something sweet.
Counting portions
A mezze with plenty of vegetable sides is an easy way to reach several of your five a day in one meal.
Level 2 · Meal prep
A week of meal-prep vegetables
A prep session gives you building blocks: roast vegetables, a sauce, a grain and a soup. Mix and match them through the week.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 1 batch roast vegetable tray (squash, peppers, courgettes, onion)
- 1 batch tomato sauce from scratch (chapter 7)
- 1 batch pesto or romesco (chapter 7)
- 200 g dried rice, couscous or pasta, cooked in batches
- 1 batch pickled vegetables (chapter 6)
- 1 batch a pot of vegetable soup (Vegetables 1, chapter 6)
- Put the vegetable tray in the oven first (it needs the most time). Start the soup on the hob and the tomato sauce on a low heat.
- While they cook, cook the grain (cool it quickly) and make the pesto or romesco. Make the pickles.
- Cool everything quickly, within 1 to 2 hours, and divide into boxes. Label them with the date.
- Eat the roast vegetables, sauces and soup within 2 days, and freeze the rest in portions. Reheat only once, until steaming hot all the way through. Keep rice for no more than 1 day in the fridge.
Leftovers
Leftovers: cool cooked vegetables quickly (within 1 to 2 hours), keep them covered in the fridge, and eat within 2 days. Reheat until steaming hot all the way through, and only once.Rice: cool within 1 hour, refrigerate, eat within 1 day, and reheat only once until steaming hot, because cooked rice can carry bacteria that survive cooking.
Experiments
Experiment
A timed feast
Six dishes, one deadline.
- Write your own running order for a feast or a mezze table. Cook it, noting when each dish was actually ready.
- Compare your plan with what happened and rewrite the plan.
Look for: The usual mistakes are starting the slow dish too late and leaving too many last-minute jobs. Adjust the plan and keep it for next time.
Experiment
Swap one dish
Same menu, different recipe.
- Take a menu you have cooked and swap one dish for another from the course (for example the curry for the braised fennel, or the baba ganoush for the romesco).
Look for: A good menu has a structure (creamy, crunchy, sharp, rich, fresh) that survives swaps. Note which swap worked and why.
Experiment
Your signature dish
Make it yours.
- Choose one vegetable you love and decide the method, the seasoning, and one contrasting texture. Cook it, taste it, change one thing, cook it again.
Look for: Write the finished recipe down, with quantities and times, in your own words. That is your first house recipe.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetarian feast | ||||
| Mezze table | ||||
| Meal-prep session | ||||
| Timed feast | ||||
| Swapped dish | ||||
| Signature dish |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Everything ready at once, or nothing ready | No running order | Write one: slowest first, working backwards from serving time |
| Too many last-minute jobs | Not enough made ahead | Choose dishes that improve overnight; set the table early |
| Hot food gone cold | Dishes ready too soon | Use a low oven (about 70°C, fan lower) to hold; warm plates |
| Meal feels heavy | Too much fried or rich food | Balance with a salad, pickles and something fresh |
| Guest can't eat a dish | Didn't ask | Ask first; label dishes; keep a simple safe option |
| Meal-prep food goes off | Stored too long | Eat within 2 days; freeze the rest in portions |
Food safety for a feast
Serving a crowd: keep hot food above about 63°C (in a low oven) and cold food in the fridge until needed. Don't leave dishes out for more than 2 hours, and cool and chill leftovers promptly. Ask guests about allergies and diets before you plan the menu: nuts, sesame, gluten, dairy and egg all appear in this course.Leftovers: cool cooked vegetables quickly (within 1 to 2 hours), keep them covered in the fridge, and eat within 2 days. Reheat until steaming hot all the way through, and only once.
Knife safety: cut on a stable board (a damp cloth underneath), tuck your guiding fingertips back (the claw), and cut round or slippery vegetables on a flat face so they can't roll. A sharp knife is safer than a blunt one. Never catch a falling knife. Cooking Skills: Knife Skills 1 covers all of this.
Hot oven and trays: use dry oven gloves (a damp one conducts heat), pull the shelf out a little rather than reaching in, and put hot trays on a heatproof surface. Open the door and step back, because the steam is hot.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can plan a menu with balance and different methods.
- I can write a running order and cook to it.
- I can make a mezze table.
- I can do a meal-prep session and store food safely.
- I have a signature vegetable dish.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2 is complete. Cooking Skills: Vegetables 1, Knife Skills 1 and the rest of the series are good companions.