It’s game night! What excitement lies ahead. Now, you want the party to last as long as possible, right? After all, why should the fun be unnecessarily cut short? As in life, two things are inevitable on game night: fun and hunger. Now, certainly you want to maximize one and limit the other (we’ll let you decide which). So, how can you keep the fun going all night long? Here are four great food ideas for your next gaming night.
Pizza
It’s a game night staple that has almost universal appeal. Pizza provides a customizable option for everyone at the party. Whether that means you’re ordering carryout or delivery from a chain, heating up a frozen pizza in your oven, or maybe you have a chef in your group who can make individual pizzas for everyone in your posse. If you regularly host or attend game night, you’ve almost certainly dined on the fine Italian pie while you were there.
But maybe you’re looking for more experimental options; if that’s the case, here are three more picks you can sink your teeth into:
Crockpot Meals
Crockpots and other slow cookers are absolutely fantastic for game night. “Why?” you may ask. First, their sheer versatility. A simple Google search will reveal literally hundreds of different options that will delight your guests. In fact, the seemingly endless options may be overwhelming—if that’s the case, maybe you can make a game out of it! Pick a number of recipes that catch your eye and roll a die—if 20 of them look appealing, assign each one a number, and roll a D20. That may be an extreme example, but it could make choosing a lot easier: make sure you do this ahead of time, though, as most recipes take hours to cook.
Second, prep times are often short and cook times are long—which means you can go about your day while dinner cooks. Finally, the slow cooker will keep your food hot as long as you need: just put the cooker into its low-power or heater mode to ensure that your food is ready to eat whenever hunger starts to pang.
Sliders
If pizza is the universe’s favorite food, then burgers and sliders may just be a close second. Much like the slow cooker possibilities, there are a variety of ways to make sliders with grilled beef patties, chicken, or cold cuts. Sliders are a stress-free way to make a quick batch. There is no shortage of recipes available: chicken and biscuits, chicken parmesan, breakfast bagels, even Hawaiian-inspired sliders can hit the spot.
Nachos/Tacos
You may have seen this one coming, but Mexican-inspired cuisine has been a staple of many a gaming night for many years. Nachos topped with meat, beans, and/or cheeses are a surefire hit, baked nachos take the classic nachos fixings and put an oven-baked spin on it are sure to satisfy dungeon crawlers and masters alike. Finish them off with freshly made salsa or even beer cheese. You may see tacos and shudder at the thought of a mess, but there is a way to make them mess-free—we recommend gently wrapping tortilla shells around an ice cream cone, pin them together with toothpicks, and baking for about 10 minutes (check out a step-by-step guide here); give them a shot and you may find yourself surprised.
Some quick tips before we’re done: keep napkins on hand, and hand sanitizer around, and keep wet wipes within arm’s reach. After all, you’ll want to keep your handcrafted game table clean and free of unsightly stains.
Game On!
