Tips on cooking for people with different allergies

A few basics which haven't been mentioned:

1. Find out what people's allergies are before they come (they should tell you, but better to ask)

2. Make labels which list food ingredients and put them on your buffet.

3. Bring an epi-pen.

I don't often cook for people with gluten issues; most of the problems I deal with when cooking for others are avoiding corn, milk from cows and nuts, none of which are allergies, they're all intollerances, so small amounts might cause GI problems, but won't cause anaphylaxis and kill someone. I also sometimes cook for people who have other dietary restrictions (preference or religious, such as no pork, no meat, no animal products).

To take the buffet idea one step further, consider something like 'assemble your own' dishes like fajitas or tacos. You can serve both corn and flour tortillas (or as a salad for those avoiding carbs entirely), beans for protein instead of meat, etc.

I also like items that can be assembled individually -- it's easy to designate a stuffed pepper as dairy-free or meat free; much more so than a corner of a casserole, particularly if you have to replace the binder for that portion. You may need to mark the special ones if you're trying to keep track of lots variations (color toothpicks might work). If you have enough ramekins, you might be able to make individual casserole-like items in advance, or be able to take items that are normally served family style and individualize them (eg, meatloaf into burgers, so you pull out a portion or two and don't use breadcrumbs).

If your friends are seriously allergic/intolerant to different items, then take a step back and think. Cross contamination could cause some serious problems here - nut allergies for example.

Go for rice as a base for every side. Create different types of rice dishes, and as mentioned above, use something like a color coded tooth pick, or chop stick.

Chicken can be a problem for some people, however, as long as you have another dish, possibly a vegetarian curry without any added yogurt then that should suffice.

Those of us with allergies/intolerances normally tell our host. I have in the past taken my own food, which takes the pressure off the host, and still allows for me to join in the fun.

Deserts for multi allergy/intolerance problems could be a simple fruit salad, with a choice of cream or yogurt (even the soy variety) at the side for people to choose.

The main thing is that in a domestic kitchen, cooking and preparing a meal for friends should be an enjoyable occasion, not a stressed out mind bomb. I guess what I am trying to say is, keep it simple.

Well, if you're having friends over for dinner, you're probably willing to put in some extra effort anyway. That may sounds like throwaway advice, but it's not meant that way: for instance when my vegetarian friends come over, I make sure to have vegetarian food (duh), or I go buffet-style: as longs as there are enough vegetarian dishes, not all of them need to be that way.

The same thing (buffet) could work for multiple allergies.

Some times, however, sure, you're tired, rushed, or you just don't want to 'rise to the occasion'. I get that. Apparently there are commercial products out there that may help you (one such example offering), and amazon has a TON of cookbooks on this issue as well. (One example, and one more) (Also note the 'Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought' section).

Good luck!

I'd begin by coming up with a couple of dishes for each course that are allergen-free, as this dietary requirement affects the health and well-being of the people. Once you are certain that there are no ingredients that are harmful to health, take the next step regarding omitting other offending ingredients. I think this method would make it easier and clearer for you and will cover two meals to start off with. If you can, always use unprocessed ingredients, if you can't, then check each ingredient list for allergens first, then other problem items. Keep documents for each recipe and a list of foodstuffs that comply with your requirements. You could complicate the matter here and have recipes and food lists in sections for the different dietary requirements for when you want more choice and you only have guests with one special dietary requirement. As another poster mentioned, be aware of cross-contamination of residues.