Planning a Pregame Menu
Football season is about far more than sitting on your couch and watching a few games. As every die hard fan knows, following your favorite team at this time of year is not just a casual affair, it is a lifestyle. Major social events are planned around cheering for your favorite team. Often, when you purchase tickets for a game, the real fun is to be had before the coin is even flipped. Every year Bengals fans from all over the Cininnati area crowd around Paul Brown Stadium to enjoy, not only an excellent football game, but also an excellent pre game tailgating party. If you want to have the ultimate tailgating experience this year, you need to start with first assembling the ultimate tailgating menu.
Bring a Small Grill for Burgers and Dogs
When planning your menu for the big game, remember that classic American favorites are what everyone will be craving on game day. Hotdogs, burgers, chicken wings, and potato chips are the best way to start. Most of these favorite foods, however, require some preparing on the premises. If you want to offer your party the best food possible, you might want to invest in a camp grill that you can bring with you to the game. With a small gas powered grill, you can get a fire starter and cook up burgers the way they are meant to be made. With a little preparation at home, you can pack up some fresh patties and slap them on the grill as people get hungry. With hotdogs, you don’t even need to prepare, simply bring them to the game right in the bag. Once you’ve got all your burgers and dogs prepared, you can set up a condiment buffet so that people can prepare their food to their own liking.
Keep Things Warm in the Slow Cooker
Another travel sized food prep item that is a must have on everyone’s tailgate list is a slow cooker. With a decent sized slow cooker you can prepare fall off the bone chicken wings and also heat up some delicious chili or nacho cheese to go with some classic crunch corn chips. The tricky thing to remember about planning a menu around a slow cooker is that you will need to find a power source. Your best bet is to find an adapter that will allow you to plug the cooker into your car.
Put Your Heads Together
If you are gathering with a group of friends, it is advisable to get together to plan out your tailgating menu. The best way to get a delicious variety of food is to arrange a potluck where everyone can bring his or her own dish. Someone can be in charge of grilling, while others can add on with some homemade potato salad, beans, salsa, and so much more.
Don’t Forget the Drinks
Once you have packed all of the food you are planning to bring to the game and have figured out a way to prepare everything, it is time to start thinking about your drink choices. You simply cannot have a good tailgating without a few drinks, and beer is an absolute must. However, when you are choosing your beer, you might want to think outside the box. After all, why pack generic beer brands when you can show your Cincy pride even more with a few local craft brews such as Rhinegeist, MadTree, or Triple Digit. For those who aren’t into the beer scene, you might want to mix up some margaritas or other fun mixed drinks to get the party started.
Tailgating is simply not done right unless you plan ahead with a full menu. After all, the whole point of gathering before the game to is get together with friends, family, and other fans to eat, drink, and toast to the success of the Bengals. With a little luck and some delicious food choices, you can enjoy the perfect tailgate and a win for Cincinnati’s favorite football time.
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