Loans 2 Go: Summer entertaining on a budget

It happens every year. As soon as the sun shows up, the air is filled with mixed aromas of delicious cooking food and smoke. Yes, it’s barbecue season again!

As soon as we notice the smell we suddenly wish that we were also having a barbecue. But it often seems that everyone else’s barbecues are better than ours, or at least that others are more organised than we are. Some families seem to roll out the barbecue pretty much every night, and effortlessly serve up plates of delicious steaming food.

As a contrast, our own experience can often be a case of struggling to get the barbecue alight in the first place, then either vastly overcooking or undercooking the food: not to mention realising at the last minute all the things we have forgotten to buy!

So is it possible to improve our skills at summer entertaining? In particular, is it possible to do it on a limited budget? Let’s look at some money saving ideas for summer entertaining:

Use portable barbecues

If you have limited outdoor space you might have written off the idea of having a barbecue at all. But there are lots of alternatives to having a large fancy barbecue, that are suitable for either a small patio or even a balcony. An obvious one is that you can buy disposable barbecues that you just use once and throw away. But they come with everything you need just to light a match and start cooking.

Or if you prefer something a bit more quirky, then there are various ways you can create a DIY barbecue. For example for a simple table top barbecue you can light some charcoal in a heatproof bowl or pan, lay either a small grill or food on skewers across the top of it: then sit back and wait for it to cook. Or you could do something similar but larger on the ground, using a large terracotta pot (such as you can purchase at garden centres) with charcoal in the bottom and a grill on top.

If you have a larger outdoor area you might want to consider building a traditional in-built barbecue in part of your garden. The initial building materials cost less than a large shop-built barbecue, and it would also mean that you do not need any additional storage space. Something a bit different that is well worth considering.

Whatever barbecue method you choose, it is definitely possible to barbecue food outdoors no matter how small your budget and how limited your space.

Plan food wisely

Barbecues can end up being very expensive because we tend to panic buy too much food. Think back to all the barbecues you have been to and there will most probably have been a lot of waste. Whilst meats can usually be reused the following day, it is often the salads that end up getting thrown away,

So when you are having a barbecue make sure that you plan what to buy and just get what you need. If the main feature is the meat or fish or veggie items being barbecued, you probably don’t need that much else. Bread rolls and buns are always popular, and baked potatoes are cheap and can be cooked in the oven in advance (and mashed or fried the following day if they don’t all get eaten).

For salad items choose things that can be re-used such as cucumbers and tomatoes. It is also a good idea to put out only a small amount of salad items but keep the rest in the fridge ready to top up supplies if needed. If you put out a whole tub of coleslaw for example, you will probably end up throwing most of it away as it will have been exposed to the air (and had forks and spoons dipped into it) so may not be worth keeping. But if you put some out in a bowl and keep the tub in the fridge then it is fine to use again later.

The same applies to the vast array of sauces, dips and dressings that you can buy these days. Most people have an impressive collection of these in their fridge: items that have probably been used once and then just get left to fester until they end up in the bin. The best thing to do is have a core set of sauces etc that you know you will use again – for example mayonnaise, ketchup and mustard, then ask others to bring whatever sauce or dip they personally like.

Cut down the drink

If you are entertaining in summer you can end up spending a small fortune on drink. This can be caused by trying to make sure you have enough different types of drink to suit everyone’s taste: which sometimes means that you get left with an assortment of things that you don’t really like yourself. You then have to make room to store these bottles and cans “just in case” but they may well end up getting poured down the sink at some future stage when you realise that no-one is going to drink them.

You can also end up spending too much money on drink because you are being overly generous towards your guests. Whilst it’s lovely to have a few drinks on a hot sunny day, if you overindulge it can be really bad for you. More so than in cooler weather, because on a hot day you dehydrate much more quickly – and alcohol can also contribute to dehydration so you are going to feel worse. Most people will keep on drinking if the drink is there, even if they don’t really want any more. So providing a smaller quantity – where everyone has enough but not too much – is a good thing all round, including saving money.

If you are having guests they will normally ask what they can bring, so you can quite reasonably ask them to bring some drinks: perhaps anything that they particularly like to drink that you don’t have, and also something to top up the general supply.

We hope that by using the above ideas you will be able to enjoy lots of summer entertaining and fun this year, without breaking the bank.

Check back here soon for more money saving ideas from Loans2Go.