Long time, no post....and a quantity question for a team meal.

T

therese

Well-known member
Hi there. I am so glad you all are still here. I haven't posted here in a LONG time. I went back to teaching in 2012 and my time to cook and talk about cooking diminished drastically. (Driving four kids around to various activities didn't help either!) I'm glad to see this forum is alive and well.

I have a quick question: I am helping to prepare a lunch for a soccer team...approximately 30 people, mostly 16-17 year old boys and about 6 adults. We plan to serve tacos--just simple ground beef filling and shredded chicken. I'll prepare the chicken in the Instant Pot. Do you have any estimates for how much ground beef and how many boneless skinless chicken breasts I should buy? We'll probably also have some kind of beans and a salad and dessert. 3-4 tacos per person, I'm guessing.

I'd welcome any estimates you have. TIA!

Therese

 
Maybe even easier than beef would be "pulled pork" (no BBQ sauce) and cheaper if

pork butts are on sale as they are here for $1-1.29/lb. A 7#butt would give you enough for half of your tacos easily, I think. I have served 40 with 14# for BBQ.
Chicken thighs might give a better shredded chicken.
If it is about 6-8 oz. per person total I think you need 18# of meat total so maybe 12# of chicken?
I'm sure the caterers here can give you great advice. And as always, I make too much lest I run out.

 
Welcome back, Therese. It's nice to see you. I've never fed that many teenagers, but I'm betting

you'll need to "up" the 30-person estimate count because I remember my teenage brothers eating their weight in food on a daily basis. Cereal in mixing bowls...that kind of thing. A typical "2-taco" per person may not be enough for soccer players.

I'm sure someone will be able to give you a value based on experience, but here are some numbers from the Internet:

For Chipotle's beef taco filling:
10-12 tacos = 1.25 lbs of beef
20-24 tacos = 2.5 lbs of beef
>> 30-36 tacos = 3.75 lbs of beef

Rick Bayless Chicken taco
12 tacos = 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs
24 tacos = 2 lbs
36 tacos = 3 lbs

 
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