Party planning do-it-yourself chicken platters is appealing to many people who are health conscious these days, foregoing beef and pork.So, why not enjoy chicken and turkey at your party instead. It's something that many of your guests that are big fans of this healthier choice of meat will love.
So, when you self-cater your next party, keep some things the same, yet making them different...
Make your next party a "chicken-platter-o-rama-jama".
Whether you're planning to host a "just because" get-together or a Super Bowl party, remember to serve what a lot of people love, chicken. Your party guests will be happy and you'll be glad you chose what they love.
Your Chicken Tender Party Platter
Also called "chicken fingers", this is super easy to make. So easy that you can cook the chicken the day of your party. It's up to you. You can fry your chicken tenders, serve them healthier - cooked with a "fried chicken illusion" after baking them in the oven, or serve grilled chicken tenders, which is of course the healthiest way to go. Or you could make Buffalo chicken tenders, adding Frank's RedHot Sauce to give them a spicy kick. Lots of people love the spicy flavor when they're cooked this way, so make sure you've made enough so you don't run out.
Irregardless how you cook them, add a little garlic powder or garlic pepper (but not garlic salt, because they might taste too salty) to coating base. This gives chicken that "kick" that will have your guest raving about how good they are and asking you for your recipe. Serve them on a platter with the centerpiece of the platter being a bowl of ranch dip. Garnish around the bowl with curly leaf lettuce and cherry or grape tomatoes to add a little color. Homemade, they're much better tasting (and better for you) than McDonald's chicken nuggets!
Your Buffalo Chicken Wing Party Platter
They're not "Buffalo Chicken Wings" unless you've tossed them in Frank's RedHot Buffalo Wing Sauce, the sauce used in the original Buffalo wings created in Buffalo, New York in 1964. Talk about something catching on! I grew up on Frank's RedHot, falling in love with it after trying it on my mom's fried chicken, just like my big brother, Johnie, who I idolized - who put "hot sauce" on EVERYTHING.
This type of platter isn't very different from the type of platter we've written about above. You'll want to cook about 2 - 1/2 pounds of chicken wings (which will make 6 to 8 servings), baking them (at 500 degrees for 20 minutes) or frying them (deep-frying them at 375 degrees for 10 minutes), then tossing them in Frank's famous RedHot Sauce (use 3/4 cup). Serve them on a platter with a center dish of your favorite blue cheese dip, placing celery sticks all around the blue cheese dip bowl - with grape or cherry tomatoes strategically placed to give your platters a garnished pop of color. Or, you could switch it up - going all out - and make Buffalo chicken pizza platters. Yum!
Your Boneless Chicken Wing Party Platter
Here we go... yet, again. This is a fantastic custom chicken platter that serves up a big game or Super Bowl Sunday crowd like no other. Serve the chicken wings with ranch or blue cheese dip, celery sticks (have goo-gobs of them - you'll need them for backup) and cherry or grape tomatoes. A medium size platter serves 12 to 16 people.
Your Fried Chicken Party Platter
When it's breaded chicken fried fresh, cooked in a breaded blend of herbs and spices, it's usually the biggest hit at the party (even when you serve spicy fried chicken). And, a fried chicken recipe buttermilk made will makes your chicken (even the white meat) super juicy. When the chicken is marinated in a buttermilk bath for at least a day, it's a definite fried chicken game changer.
Fried chicken is like baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie - it's an All-American dish that's so good that when you serve it on your platter(s), serve it up "naked". it doesn't need all the razzmatazz of dips, celery, and such. Most people just love, love, love friend chicken. Just ask the Colonel (Sanders)!
Your Baked Chicken Platter
Slow roasted, even if it's "slow oven roasted", optimizes the flavor of baked chicken. And it's delicious when you add your favorite spices to it in the form of a rub. But we've got a real twist on baking a whole chicken for you. This is a Carer-Hater Bonus recipe, one we created ourselves.
Indian-inspired, this recipe gives chicken great flavor and makes it super moist too. It's a big hit at all of our parties. People often go back for "seconds" and "thirds", so we always make a lot. We hope you like it too. We love this recipe!
Carlo's Beer Butt Butter Chicken Recipe
The Cater-Hater Beer Butt Chicken/Butter Chicken Combo Recipe
(Printable Recipe)
Serves 4 people
- 1 - 3 to 4 pound quartered chicken, skin removed
- 1/2 cup onion, pureed
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2 cup melted butter or Indian ghee (clarified butter)
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Serrano chili, seeded and minced
- 2 1/2 tablespoons ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon coriander seed, ground
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Combine onion, yogurt, Serrano chili, ground ginger, coriander, oil, and salt (everything except butter or ghee) in a deep glass or plastic bowl, dish or pot that will hold one (or more) whole chicken(s). Place whole chicken, with the skin pulled partly away from the meat, into mixture - in an extremely deep glass dish or bowl. Cover and allow to marinate in refrigerator for 8 to 12 hours, preferably overnight. Remove chicken from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes. Then, take half of a cup of butter and melt it in a saucepan; cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
Preheat your bar-b-que grill for medium-high heat.
Open beer can and drink (0r pour out) half. Place beer can on a solid surface. With a chicken leg in each hand, place the bird cavity over half of what's left inside the beer can. Now move your "beer butt chicken" to your barbecue grill and place it in the center of the grilling surface (grate). The chicken will balance on it's two (2) legs and the can, sort of like a tripod.
Cook the chicken over the medium-high, indirect heat (i.e., no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover on - periodically basting it with melted butter for approximately 1 - 1/4 (one and a half) hours or until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the breast area and 180 degrees Fahrenheit in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when pierced with a sharp knife.
Remove beer butt butter chicken from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. Serve after pouring the remaining melted butter on top.
Cater-Hater Tip: When we're pressed for time, we cook our butter chicken beer butt-less, placing the chicken on lightly oiled grilling surface (rack) and cooking it for 25-30 minutes, turning chicken and basting with melted butter often. When the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the grill and pour the remaining butter atop. Cooking the chicken this way the preparation time is about 20 minutes, and the cooking time is 30 minutes. You're eating in less than hour.
Other chicken party platter suggestions: szechuan chicken, easy chicken parmigiana (easy chicken parmesan) (also called "chicken parm" by many of us foodie-types), shredded chicken sandwiches, and chicken shawarma, chicken picatta.
Image source: Carlo At Your Service Productions
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Written by Carlo of Carlo At Your Service Productions
