The concept of having guests over for dinner can be a fun and exciting one, but it can also feel rather overwhelming and stressful. Naturally, you want to make sure that your guests have a good time and enjoy their meal, and you also want to ensure that you’re able to spend as much time with your guests while they’re over as possible, and aren’t chained to the oven all night long. Striking the perfect balance isn’t necessarily an easy concept to master. 

The good news is that if you’re entertaining guests, there are lots of simple ways that you can make cooking for them easier and less stressful. It’s simply a case of being smart about your approach to their meal and how you cook for them, that’s all. 

Wondering what steps you can take to make cooking for guests less stressful and more enjoyable? Have a read of the handy guide below. 

Choose easy-to-cook meals 

If you’re going to make hosting for guests as easy as possible, it’s a good idea to opt to make meals that are fairly easy to cook. This doesn’t mean serving guests pre-made food, it simply means selecting dishes to cook that won’t cause too much stress and are easy to prepare. If you’re stuck for ideas for these kinds of easy-to-cook meals, you will find plenty of recipes online – there are some really fantastic options that taste amazing but are seriously quick (and super easy) to prep and prepare. 

Use a slow cooker 

A great hack for making cooking a meal for a lot of people easier and less stressful is to prepare a meal in your slow cooker that will cook slowly throughout the day. That way, when your guests arrive, all you need to do is serve up. It’s quick and easy, and if you find the right recipe, like a top round roast recipe for instance, your food is sure to be a success. For cooking for lots of people – or even just for a few – using a slow cooker or instant pot will make life so much easier and believe it or not, you can create some incredible dishes in them. Which means that all you’ll need to do is make sure you’ve prepared your side dishes to go along with the main meal. 

Prep everything beforehand 

• Another great tip for hosting success is to be as prepared as possible, which means making sure to prep as much beforehand as possible and having all the tools you need. For instance, if you are serving a dish that needs to be cooked fresh, make sure to measure and weigh out all the ingredients beforehand, so that once your guests arrive all you have to do is chuck it all together. Honestly, this little bit of prep will make the whole process of hosting, and getting dishes cooked quickly, a whole lot easier. So, it really is worth preparing whatever you can beforehand. 

There you have it, a guide to how you can make cooking for guests easier and far less stressful.