How it works
- One adult plate: 6 oz of cooked protein, 10 to 12 oz of finished sides split across the side dishes, 1.5 rolls and one dessert. Raw weights to buy: 8 oz boneless, 12 oz bone-in pieces, 1 to 1.25 lb of whole bird, 12 oz to 1 lb of bone-in roast, 6 oz of ground meat or fish fillets, 5 oz of peeled shrimp, or 4 oz of dry pasta for a pasta main. Where the guide gives a range, the calculator uses its middle.
- Adjustments: children under 10 count as half portions of everything except dessert. Hearty eaters move the cooked target from 6 to 8 oz. Two mains means two-thirds of each.
- Format: plated dinners cook to the count plus two spare portions; buffets add 15 to 20 percent to mains and starches; other formats take a 10 to 15 percent buffer. A cocktail party replaces the meal with 10 to 12 bites per person from six to eight kinds; before a dinner, 4 to 6 bites each is enough. Cookouts plan 1.5 to 2 patties per adult.
- Drinks: half a 750 ml bottle per wine drinker over a dinner, one beer per beer drinker per hour, and for every guest two soft drinks or waters in the first hour and one an hour after that. Ice: 1 lb per guest, doubled for coolers or outdoors.
If in doubt, overshoot in the dishes that keep: rice, beans and braises reheat as lunches, and leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator if they go in within two hours of cooking.
The figures come from the guide How Much Food to Make: Portion Planning for Groups, which explains each one and the exceptions.
Sources
- USDA Agricultural Research Service: Nutrient Data Set for Retail Beef Cuts (raw to cooked yield)
- NIAAA: what is a standard drink (5 oz of wine)
- USDA FSIS: leftovers and food safety (3 to 4 days, refrigerated within 2 hours)
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