# Banquet mash



## Lucusd88 (Feb 11, 2018)

Hi Chefs, 

I've got a banquet coming up for 250 people. They've requested mash on the main meal. My initial thought was to put the mash in piping bags and keep warm in sous vide, but have read stories of butter splitting and the bags being too hot to handle. We won't have enough chefs to quenelle quick enough. Any ideas on the best method.
Thanks


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## Seoul Food (Sep 17, 2018)

Lucusd88 said:


> Hi Chefs,
> 
> I've got a banquet coming up for 250 people. They've requested mash on the main meal. My initial thought was to put the mash in piping bags and keep warm in sous vide, but have read stories of butter splitting and the bags being too hot to handle. We won't have enough chefs to quenelle quick enough. Any ideas on the best method.
> Thanks


Is there a reason you can't cook/hot hold in hotel pans?


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

One of the best things to hold mash is a Cambro, a.k.a. “Sweatbox”. Failing that, picnic coolers are pretty good too. If you keep mash in a hotbox it will discolour, have a greater chance of butter splitting, and certainly will be very hot to handle in piping bags, hence the Cambro.

You can spoon in the mash into piping bags, assuming you have a runner to replenish meat and veg. There are heavy rubber piping bags that have some insulation value, as well as disposable bags made for hot pastry creams, etc., and then there are the rubberized nylon washable bags too. Whatever bag you choose you will have to “circumcise” it in order for the tip /nozzle to fit through, so Sous-viding multiple bags is not really an ideal method, plus once the bags get wet they are very slippery.


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Can you artistically smash the potatoes? So just lump it on, flatten one side and put your protein on that side?


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## frankie007 (Jan 17, 2015)

I always used piping bags, tied tight and suspended in a pot of water on the gentle simmer. if you don't put them in too early it should be fine. I had one time green basil mash loose colour but it came back when the mash got a bit cooler! Never had buttter split or anything like that.
Make sure to bring thick gloves, I used a pair of new garden gloves or a few pairs of disposable ones on top of each other. i used to go first with the mash and set the pace of plating up on very large parties and the above tactics always worked for me. Good luck


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## chefbillyb (Feb 8, 2009)

Mashed potatoes are a PITA. We always made them loose if we had to hold them for a period of time. They tighten up when holding. Another way to make them would be








I offered these as Pomme De Chef Potatoes. As long as the client didn't want gravy I was fine. I also served these with a nicer meal that offered a more elegant look to the plate. This isn't my picture but you get the drift. I used the the name " Pomme De Chef " because at the time I want the name to fit the menu or meal. It sounded good so what the heck. Never had any complaints. Another way of serving potatoes would be piping potatoes into shells for twice baked. They actually sell the potato shells... Good luck......ChefBillyB


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