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#1 Thu 29 Mar 12 6:23pm
SCJ9
- Member
- Member since Thu 29 Mar 12
Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
I've offered to cook an Easter lunch for my boyfriend and both of our mothers. My mother is a very very fussy eater, won't eat anything that she knows has butter in it, and garlic or herbs, wine - its extreme. She likes food absolutely plain (cooks her mushrooms boiled in water!). My boyfriend's mother, like the rest of us loves strong flavours, and we are quite adventurous with flavour. I think I can cope separating some potatoes away without salt/butter, and the same for the veg, but what should I do about the meat?
My main problem is that my mam would only really want to eat roast chicken obviously cooked totally plain, which would be incredibly boring for the rest of us.
Is there an easy way to cook 2 kinds of meat in one small oven or would one flavour the other? I'd like to avoid just buying a cooked chicken for my mam, it feels like I'd be short changing her a bit after she's always made an effort to make us food we like. Any advice for cooking for very fussy people would be very helpful ! 
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#2 Thu 29 Mar 12 9:09pm
mummza
Occupation avoiding housework
- From The land of song.
- Member since Tue 04 Oct 05
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
Welcome to the forum SCJ9 
I think what I would do is to cook a few different things and try in that way to acomodate all the tastes, may be something like a really good casserole style dish that you can make in advance and reheat fully on the stove top on the day.
Roasting the chicken in the oven to keep your Mum happy , both are good with a decent mashed potato ( that was you can separate a bit before you add butter etc for your Mum ) If its a casserole style dish then you wont have to worry about the gravy ( apart from for the chicken for your Mum ).
You could add something extra to the mash , like chopped parsley , or mashed potato and parsnip mashed together ... or mashed potato with sweet potato mashed together , there is a large number of possibilities here.
Veg , you can keep simple , cooking in just a couple of pans ( one for Mum , minus salt ) one for everyone else .Mixed freash veg , adding different veg at different times depending on how fast they cook.( quicker and easier than you think ).
Or you could roast a decent sized joint for majority of the people and just a little Poussin ( basically a mini chicken ) for your Mum . That should be OK to fit into a smaller oven.
You could also make a small selection of yummy deserts that can be pre-made and served cold or possibly just warmed up , making your life easier.
It will be less stressful if you can prepare some things in advance and will give you more time to enjoy the day.
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#3 Thu 29 Mar 12 11:14pm
mark's kitchen
- Member Occupation Head cook, Mark's Kitchen & Smokin' BBQ
- From santa rosa,california,usa
- Member since Mon 21 Jun 04
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
How about Cornish game hens, you all get the same meat and presentaion and you can add or subtract flavors as you like to each individual bird.
Mark
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#4 Fri 30 Mar 12 10:29am
MsK
Occupation Travelling around the globe..
- From ..Holland..land of windmills!!
- Member since Tue 12 Jan 10
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
How about à small barbecue? You can reserve a small spot on there for your mum, away from the spiced, marinated and buttered things...
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#5 Fri 30 Mar 12 12:46pm
sergio1972
-
Occupation NLP Trainer and Coach
- From Portugal
- Member since Tue 09 Dec 08
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
You can always cook a piece of chicken for your mum but wrapped in foil. This way you can season it separately and you can cook both things in the same oven and tray.
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#6 Fri 30 Mar 12 1:49pm
koukouvagia
- From New York
- Member since Fri 12 Dec 08
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
It's very easy to separate a bit of food and cook it alongside the other. Can you tell us what your menu is for the others?
And no, cooking one piece of meat in the same oven does not contribute to the flavors of another so long as they are in separate cooking vessels.
If it were me I would make roast leg of lamb and roasted veggies. Put the leg of lamb and veggies in a roasting pan, season generously with all the garlic and herbs you like and roast away. About 45 before it's done add a smaller tray with half a chicken and veggies seasoned as your mother likes and let it roast with the lamb. Voila.
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#7 Fri 30 Mar 12 11:38pm
JoyYamDaisy
- From Melbourne Australia
- Member since Sun 12 Apr 09
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
Hi Scj9, Welcome here!
Usually I advocate taking the special needs of the guest and making the whole meal according to those limitations. I think it is respectful to that person, good practice for the cook, and interesting for everyone.
However, in the case of your mum needing such plain food, it is the one time I would cook a separate meal, as much as is needed.
I like Sergio's idea of chicken in foil, and I would make some plain veggies.
Then cook your heart out for everyone else!
Good luck with it! 
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#8 Mon 09 Apr 12 5:02am
JoyYamDaisy
- From Melbourne Australia
- Member since Sun 12 Apr 09
Re: Cooking at Easter for a very fussy eater and partner's family !
How did it go SCJ9?
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