Whether you're throwing a get-together for a summer holiday, a birthday, a graduation party or a simple backyard barbecue, follow these summer hosting tips for a successful outdoor bash.
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Prepare for Unpredictable Weather
Before you even send out invites, have a backup plan in place if the weather isn’t the sunny 75°F we all hope for on party days. If you were planning to grill outside all day, Taste of Home prep kitchen manager Catherine Ward says to ditch the charcoal grill. “I don’t mind cooking on a gas grill in the rain,” says Catherine, “but a windy or rainy day can really trip up my plans if I’m using charcoal.” No gas grill? The oven is your next best bet. Baked hamburgers, hot dogs and baby back ribs in the oven are super easy to pull off.
If your house is big enough to move the party inside, great, but don’t forget about your best indoor-outdoor asset: the garage! Whether it’s stiflingly hot or an absolute downpour, the garage offers a safe haven. “As part of your pre-party yard prep, give your garage a good cleaning,” says Taste of Home deputy editor Julie Schnittka. Once it’s cleaned, make it feel less garage-y with some string lights, then pop up a few banquet tables with chairs and get the tunes going. On stifling days, Julie plugs in a few fans to keep the air circulating.
Let the Drinks Serve Themselves
Drinks are an important aspect of a great summer party. People mingle more easily when there’s a beverage in their hands, plus it keeps them cool in the heat. Catherine suggests serving a drink to guests as you welcome them in, then showing them to the outdoor drink station where they can get their own refills. No playing bartender all night! She also likes to cut out the labels from the beer, soda or seltzer boxes and tape them on top of the respective coolers where the drinks are chilling. It helps people find everything right away.
For summer cocktails and mocktails, drink dispensers are your best friend. “I like to make a big batch of lemonade and serve it in a beverage dispenser,” says Taste of Home brand content director Ellie Martin Cliffe. “We put out age-appropriate add-ins, like liquor for the grown-ups and Monin syrups for the kids (or anyone!).” Whether you’re serving batched cocktails or nonalcoholic beverages, keep the ice on the side to avoid diluting the drinks as they sit. Better yet, take Community Cook Pattie Prescott’s advice and make ice cubes from lemonade and limeade to add flavor to the punch or iced tea.
Lean on Marinades
Marinades are a major win-win. Why? They slowly infuse flavor into the meat, and the acidic ingredients break down connective tissues, making everything tender and juicy. Another bright side? “It forces you to prep this part of the meal ahead of time,” Ellie says. Depending on your cut of meat, fish or seafood, marinades can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 hours. That’s a lot of extra time to focus on tying up odds and ends, or take the moment to chat with guests before the meat hits the grill.
Some of Julie’s favorite marinade recipes are those that work overnight, like grilled steak kabobs or huli huli chicken. Just make sure to remove them from the marinade in the morning or they’ll over-marinate and become mushy. Yuck!
Make Memorial Day Meals Ahead of Time
You should prep ahead for any party, but it feels especially important for holiday weekends like Memorial Day. Most make-ahead sides actually taste better the next day, so it’s doubly worth doing for dishes like deli-style pasta salads, fluff salads, sweet macaroni salad and slow-cooker baked beans. Even veggie-loaded salads can be made ahead, but stick with heartier vegetables and avoid anything with tender leaves. A chopped garden salad and your favorite coleslaw recipe are excellent for this.
When it comes to main dishes, you can’t grill steaks, hamburgers and hot dogs ahead of time (they’re done quickly and don’t reheat well). But take Bakeable member Cindy Nerat’s advice: Spend the day before the party cooking the bigger pieces of meat that need hours in the oven, like pulled pork or a rack of ribs. Then, reheat them on the grill or in the oven before serving. Ina Garten makes ribs the same way, so I’m definitely trying this at my next party!
Get Your Grill Ready
Make sure you plan ahead before party day and take time to clean the grill, season the grates, and check your charcoal or propane supply. Even if it’s full, Taste of Home editor Melissa Gaman says she always has extra on hand, just in case. “I can’t tell you how many times I have tried to start my charcoal grill only to find that the bag must have been old or compromised in some way and the briquettes refused to light,” says Melissa. Propane gauge readings can also be inaccurate, and you don’t want to find out your tank is empty when you’re midway through grilling chicken.
When it comes time to cook, Taste of Home senior editor Lindsay Mattison recommends setting up a two-zone fire so there’s space to cook and keep food warm. It seems counterproductive, but she recommends starting with quick-cooking items, like hot dogs and veggies, and transferring them to a disposable grill pan when they’re finished. Hear her out: “Hot dogs taste fine warm, but things like burgers, steaks, chicken or pork chops are best when they’re hot and fresh.” She also says to take a beat to clean the grill in between batches. “Any burnt-on bits can cling to the food, adding a bitter flavor.”
Keep Bugs at Bay
One of the quickest ways to ruin a backyard party is to let bugs swarm all over the place. We don’t want to get rid of them completely (it’s their home too!), but we do want to naturally deter the bugs from the backyard for the day. Taste of Home editor Lesley Balla turns on two rechargeable Thermacell mosquito repellers and sets out bug spray so guests can take extra precaution. I love lighting giant magnolia and citronella incense sticks to keep mosquitoes away, and they add a luxe vibe to the party.
If you’re not a fan of citronella smells, Taste of Home writer Lindsay Parrill is right there with you. She sets out a small fan near the food table for a little breeze that keeps the flies from landing. She’ll also tuck herbs, like basil and mint, around serving platters. “It adds a pretty touch, and the bugs seem to hate it. Win-win!”
Plan a Buffet Setup That Works for a Crowd
The food station can get crowded quickly (let that be a compliment to your cooking!), so it’s helpful to plan the serving flow ahead of time to avoid a crazy backup. Community Cook Lorraine Hickman suggests setting up the table under the shade and creating double-sided access around the table so the line goes faster.
Plates should always start the line, and Lesley loves using super chic compostable products for eco-friendly hosting and easy cleanup. Community Cook Ashley Cook recommends setting up utensils and napkins at the other end of the table so no one has to carry them while they go through the buffet line. And before you put those utensils in a red solo cup, Bakeable member Laurie Wilson suggests displaying them in a Mason jar with a themed ribbon tied around it. Genius!
Get Creative with Keeping Foods Cold
Chances are good it’ll be pretty hot out on party day. It’s easy to keep food warm with aluminum pans and foil, but what about keeping food cold? Lorraine suggests filling aluminum pans with a few inches of water and freezing them, turning the pans into big ice blocks. Then, place your cold salads and desserts in their pans on top of the ice. Community Cook Kallee Krong-McCreery has the same idea and also suggests placing a towel underneath to absorb condensation.
As it turns out, there are lots of genius ways to keep food cold—all you have to do is look in your shed. Yes, the shed! Community Cooks Susan Weller Bickta and Mary Anne Thygesen set inflatable children’s swimming pools or wading pools on the ground, fill them with ice and pop in drinks. Kristyne Komlosi Walter uses a similar approach with pool floats, filling each float with ice and setting foil pans full of cold food on top. Place towels underneath so the pool floats don’t slide around as condensation builds. “When I’m done,” says Kristyne, “I dump, dry, deflate and roll up for the next party.”
Plan Your Timeline Around Fourth of July Fireworks
Everyone knows that the Fourth of July isn’t over until the last firework pops! Whether you’re watching at the park or from your home’s amazing vantage point, make sure you don’t miss them by planning your evening backward from sunset. If you’re going to the park, this is when you should arrive for a primo spot. Ellie likes to start her party around 6 p.m. to spend the evening grilling and roasting s’mores over the fire and still have time to set up for the show. “When the fireworks end, we say quick goodbyes so people can scoot before the crowds from the park clog up the streets.”
If you’re lucky enough to live in a high-rise and view dozens of displays at once, like Taste of Home senior editor Christine Rukavena, there’s no need to leave at a certain time. She asks guests to arrive at 8 p.m. (or earlier for large groups) and sets out hot appetizers and drinks for snacking during the show. Once the display starts winding down, Christine brings out cookies, dessert bars and other hand-held sweets. “Even if you’re heading to a park instead of watching from home,” says Christine, “breaking out a simple dessert or snack near the end makes the night feel a little more festive.”
