How to Make the Best 4th of July Party Food

The 4^th of July is just another day here in the UK as Independence Day is a US celebration.  But that doesn’t mean that we can’t use it as an excuse to have a party.  Maybe you have friends from the US or simply want to get involved with the event.  Whatever the case, here’s some tips on the best 4^th of July party food and how to easily organise your event.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases and sometimes recommend products from other sellers at no extra cost you. For more details see my disclosure policy and privacy policy.

Organising the party

Organising a 4^th of July party is just like any other, apart from the fact that there’s a big US theme to what you do.  So to start with, the planning is just like any other party.

Determine the specifics

July 4^th might not be on a weekend – so do you want to have your party on the exact day or on the nearest Friday or Saturday night?  Will you be having it at home or another location?  You need to outline the basics of your event before you start as this makes it so much easier.

Set a budget (and stick to it)

Like any party, the best way to plan it is with a budget that you stick to.  It can be easy to go a little over the top, fireworks, brass band and everything American you can find.  If that’s within your budget, go for it.  Otherwise, maybe do the whole prioritisation thing!

Are you sending invites?

The days of the formal printed invite is largely finished, although you may need them for any non-digital guests.  Otherwise, you can send emails, Facebook Messenger invites, use Snapchat or your favourite messaging app to send invites to people and to note their replies.  Don’t forget to check about any special eating requirements such as allergies or vegans so you can be prepared for them.

The menu

The next important step is the menu.  If you are here in the UK and want to have a themed US party for 4^th of July, then you can go with traditional dishes from around the US.  There are also some suggestions just below that you can use to create tasty and interesting dishes. 

You can also throw in some British classics if you like plus checking out the supermarkets, you might often find some American themed dishes you can serve to make the work a little less.

Once you have your menu, you can get your shopping list together.  This will include the food and drink you need.  It might also include stuff like:

• Bags of ice (a lot easier than having loads of ice cube trays in the freezer)
• Paper plates, cups and cutlery (cuts down on the washing up)
• Packing supplies for your prepared food to keep it nice and easy to serve

Look to see what food you can prepare ahead of time so that there is less work to do at the time.

5 Bean Salad

Hands up, I’m not a beans person myself (sorry, not even baked beads from a tin) but I think you could use any of your favourite beans in this recipe or simply use one or two if you couldn’t find all of them.  But here’s the full recipe.

Ingredients (serves around 15)

• 1 can garbanzo beans
• 1 can cut wax beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can great northern beans
• 1 can cut green beans
• 1 cup white onions chopped
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Use a colander to rinse and drain all the beans and add them to a big bowl.  In another bowl, mix the sugar, oil and vinegar then pour this over the beans and stir to coat evenly.  Add salt and pepper to taste and cover then refrigerate overnight or for at least three hours.

Beef Arbuckle Salad

Ingredients (4-6 servings)

• 3/4 cup of leftover roast beef (or BBQ beef)
• 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons of onion minced
• 1 and ½ cups of sour cream
• 1 clove of garlic minced
• 2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 5 ripe slicing tomatoes (like Beefsteak)

Directions

Take a large bowl and add everything apart from the tomatoes.  Stir to combine the flavours.  Slice the tomatoes and add them either on a serving plate or on individual plates and then add the beef mixture on top.  You can serve them with crackers and some cheese wedges.

Patriotic Potato Salad

If you want something fun and patriotic (both for the US and here really) then this is an ideal side dish.

Ingredients (6 servings)

• 3 pounds potatoes. If you can get them, look for Peruvian (blue), small red, and any small white potato
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 6 hardboiled eggs, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 tsp. fresh dill, chopped
• 2 tbsp. pickle relish (dill or sweet – your choice)
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 3/4 cup sour cream

Directions:

Wash the potatoes and cut into cubes around 1 inch in size – you can also peel them if you are fussy like me and don’t like potato skins.

Take a saucepan and add the potatoes then cover with water.  Bring to the boil then turn down and cook until they are tender but not falling apart (par-boiled which is about 10-15 minutes).  Drain them and leave them to cool

Mix onion, eggs, dill and celery into a bowl with the potatoes.  In another box, mix the mayo and sour cream, add the pickle relish and salt and pepper.  Mix this into the potato bowl until coated.

Quick cheat – if you can’t get blue potatoes you can always keep some white ones separately and when cooking, add a couple of drops of blue food colouring.  Just make sure it isn’t a flavoured one!

Triple Berry Layer Cake

No party is finished without cake and this one has the advantage of being a great Fourth of July desserts with its red, white and blue colours.  Plus all those berries make it almost a healthy cake (almost).

Ingredients

• 1 strawberry cake mix
• 1 cup strawberry jam
• 1 cup fresh strawberries, halved
• 1 cup fresh blackberries
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 8 ounces whipped topping (cream would be my choice)

Keep back 3-4 berries from each of them to top the cake.

Use two round cake pans and make up the strawberry cake mix.  Then place on payer on a cake and spread half the strawberry jam on it.  Add half the fresh berries then cover with half the whipped cream.

Next, add the other layer of cake and repeat the process with jam, fruit and whipped topping.  Finish it with the berries you kept back and keep in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

These are just a few ideas for a 4^th of July party – or holiday food for any other occasion!  Do you have a favourite party food?  I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!