If you aspire to be a good host who is always able to lay on an excellent spread, you will need to prefect the art of impromptu entertaining. Unlike the planning and preparation that underpin a perfect dinner party, impromptu entertaining relies on your ability to improvise and conjure something out of nothing, preferably while also maintaining a calm and unruffled demeanour.

Every now and then we will inevitably find ourselves with some unexpected hungry guests to feed. It might be a spur-of-the-moment visit from relatives, a last-minute invitation to friends, or simply drinks that turn into supper… Whatever the situation, it is important to have a few tricks up your sleeve and a few supplies in the cupboard so you can throw together an impromptu meal with panache.

An Impromptu Guide

•Attitude Counts

An impromptu lunch or supper requires your best ‘can do’ attitude. Even if you’re mentally scouring the cupboards in a blind panic as to what you can serve up, never let on to your guests.

The charming host is always capable and calm, at least on the outside. Rushing around in a state of obvious agitation will unsettle your guests, make them feel on edge, and might even persuade them that they are asking too much of you.

•Time is of the Essence

A last-minute supper is not the time to disappear into the kitchen for hours on end in an attempt to assemble a gastronomic feast. Your guests will be conscious of you as you clatter energetically around the kitchen and will soon feel that they have put you to too much trouble.

Whatever you decide to serve, keep it quick, easy and well within your culinary capabilities – in these circumstances it is safest to fall back on dishes that you have made many times before. A perfect omelette, served with confidence, will be much more successful than a botched attempt at something more ambitious.

Aim to have something delicious and digestible in front of your guests promptly.

•Never Apologise, Never Explain

Nobody expects a five-star gourmet extravaganza when they have come round for an impromptu supper, so don’t feel the need to endlessly apologise about the paucity of your offering, or to embark on long-winded explanations about why dishes are deficient, missing ingredients, kitchen mishaps and so on.

Never use the conditional tense, as in, for example: “This pasta would taste much better if I had some fresh basil, but unfortunately I’ve had to use dried.” Nobody is interested in might-have-beens.

Serve your dishes with confidence and you will ensure that your guests feel much more comfortable. Most importantly, they will not be made to feel that their unexpected arrival has put you out and inconvenienced you.

•Perfect Settings

Don’t be tempted to over-compensate for your lack of preparation by digging out your best china, polishing your finest crystal and buffing up the heirloom silver.

Instead, lay up the kitchen table with the plates, glasses and cutlery that you use every day, and create a cosy, jovial and relaxed atmosphere – a few candles or tea lights will help the ambience.

Opting for a more informal approach will also save you minutes when you’re serving up and allow you to maximise your time with your unexpected guests.

•The Waiting Game

While your expectant guests are sitting around, waiting for you to conjure up a delicious supper, keep them happy with drink and nibbles.

It’s always a good idea to have olives, crisps and nuts in your store-cupboard. Distribute these around the table in small bowls, keep your guests’ wine glasses well filled, or offer them a pre-prandial gin and tonic. They will soon be lulled into a mood of relaxed conviviality and will be delighted with whatever you dish up.

•Pasta to the Rescue

Pasta is an excellent resource for the impromptu host. It is easy to ensure that you always have a supply of dried pasta in your cupboard, and it is a good idea to stock up on the following: tins of anchovy fillets, tinned tomatoes, black olives, capers, pesto sauce. If you always have eggs and bacon (preferably pancetta) and a slab of Parmesan in the fridge, you’re all set to make the following:

Puttanesca
Spaghetti served with a sauce of olive oil, garlic, chilli, anchovy fillets, tinned tomatoes, black olives, capers.

Pesto
If you’re lucky enough to have plentiful supplies of basil, you can blend your own fresh pesto sauce from basil, garlic, pine nuts, olive oil and Parmesan. If you cannot muster all these ingredients a jar of pesto sauce can be mixed with pasta of any variety and can be made more delicious with the addition of double cream, lemon juice and grated Parmesan.

Carbonara
Spaghetti or tagliatelle served with olive oil, garlic, pancetta, eggs and Parmesan.

Vegan Tomato sauce
Dried pasta is not made with eggs so is suitable for vegans. Combine it with a tomato sauce, made from chopped onion and garlic, tinned tomatoes, a couple of teaspoons of brown sugar and a pinch of chilli. Scatter walnuts or toasted pinenuts over the top before serving.

•What about Wine?

It’s always a good idea to have a decent bottle of red and white (chilled) on stand-by at home in case guests drop by. If you have space in the fridge, it is great to have something sparkling available for impromptu celebrations.

Offering a well-presented aperitif, with plenty of ice and a garnish of lemon or lime, can really make a casual supper feel like a special occasion. Just make sure that your drinks cabinet contains gin and vodka (and tonic), and maybe a bottle of Aperol or Campari, which will mean you are able to offer a delicious Spritz (you’ll need prosecco for this), giving the whole occasion a festive air.

•Is Pudding Necessary?

You certainly won’t have time to make a pudding, but there are several ways in which you can round off the meal, depending on what items you have available in the fridge.

If you have some decent cheese (even if you only have one variety), you can offer this with crackers or hunks of bread, chutney and a fruit bowl (or a handful of grapes or a couple of figs, whatever you have available).

Offering round a well-stocked fruit bowl is always an acceptable end to a meal, but of course you might not have adequate supplies of fruit. If you have supplies of ice cream in your freezer, you could offer this – one way to make plain ice cream more appealing is to slosh some liqueur over it (Cointreau or Grand Marnier would be good choices), or you could offer thick Greek yogurt with honey. Scatter your ice cream or yoghurt with toasted flaked almonds, or roasted pistachios.

The Last Resort

If you really are in a position where you can’t muster up a meal, then call for a takeaway. Never try to pass it off as your own cooking, so come clean with your guests. Make an occasion of it, allowing your guests to name their cuisine of choice.

Takeaways should be eaten off warmed plates and decanted into suitable serving dishes – the sight of a tableful of silver foil containers is depressingly mundane. Where possible, try to make the meal as authentic as you can – for example, dig out some chopsticks and serve suitable accompaniments (soy sauce, mango chutney, lime pickle, etc).

The host should foot the bill and tip the delivery person. Equally, guests should always a write a note or send an email to their hosts to thank them, even though the evening was very informal.