Help - Christmas food for 3 days with just an airfryer and a microwave

[AllBranEater]

So I'm disabled and just have an airfryer and a microwave, no oven. My family has just told me that it's my turn to have my mum (who has fairly advanced Parkinson's). I normally live on ready meals/veggie food/soup, but my mum is dairy free so a lot of preprepared food isn't suitable. I'm looking for ideas for cooking Christmas in the airfryer (it's a small one) and microwave - turkey is a must! I struggle with manual dexterity, so any ideas would be more than welcome!

You can get those butter basted turkey breast in trays (stuffed or unstuffed) and would be more than ample for 2 people and easily cooked in air fryer. While this is rearing can cook roast potatoes and anything else you’d “oven cook”. Roasted veg, Yorkshire’s etc. for sides like mash, cauliflower cheese etc. just get the microwaveable ones in M & S etc. and can buy a sachet of gravy or just use instant.

I think plan a menu and buy ready made/prepared options which can all be done in air fryer or microwave

Editd to say just saw your mum was dairy free so apologies. So obviously lot of premade isn’t an option. In this case preparation is key. Pick a menu and maybe prepare most of it the day before so it can just be heated in microwave/ finished in the air fryer on the day. Roast veg and sprouts can be par cooked in microwave then oil and seasoning and then roasted in air fryer. Buy a turkey breast and brine on Xmas eve then cook Christmas Day in the air fryer and let it rest while you cook the veg. Roast potatoes the same. Ten odd mins in microwave. Coat in oil of choice and seasoning and finish on the day. If dairy isn’t an option some roasted garlic mash. Cover a garlic bulb with oil and roast in foil in your air fryer until soft then mash through your potato.

Honestly- ready made meals from M&S. Buy 3 so you can have seconds. Use the time saved to spend some quality time with each other. That’s what our Christmas is about anyway - food is secondary.

have a look for a slow cooker you can get them cheap second hand on facebook.I find them really good for cooking joints of meat

There are a few recipes for turkey done in the air fryer. You might not be able to do a whole turkey but a rolled turkey joint or if everyone prefers dark meat, some turkey legs. I would buy frozen roast potatoes - aunt Bessie’s have some vegan ones so will be suitable for dairy free. Same for yorkshires. No doubt supermarkets will have their own frozen vegan roasts range.

Pigs in blanket in the air fryer. Veg in the microwave. You can get ready mash from supermarkets that can go in the microwave. Keep everything warm with a few layers of tinfoil because everything will cook quickly in the air fryer. There will be prepared foods available, you just want the vegan options as they will be dairy free. Start with the turkey in the air fryer, then I would do potatoes/parsnips. Then pigs in blankets and yorkshires (if you do them) as you do the veg in the microwave.

Small turkey crown in the air fryer. Aunt Bessies roast potatoes in the air fryer. Lots of pre prepared veg can be microwaved in minutes. Vegan gravy granules. Vegan christmas pudding in the microwave for afters.

I think bisto turkey gravy granules are dairy free.

You could consider a Christmas meal out?

Failing that, lots of suggestions for turkey/potatoes above

Veg - a lot of the supermarket steam veg has butter on but the birds eye steam fresh bags (frozen) are always good - I prefer them to fresh

Aunt Bessie's frozen stuffing balls are dairy free

Not sure about dairy content of gravy granules but the original red bisto is definitely dairy free and there's a vegan chicken version of the Bisto Best granules.

Buy a pre prepped turkey breast joint and cook in air fryer. Then once cooked wrap in foil and cover with a big towel while it's rests. While that's doing, put the potatoes and a few pigs in blankets in the air fryer. Buy the pre made red cabbage and heat up in microwave. Boil/steam veg on the hob. Then plate up. While you're plating up, pop some frozen Yorkshire puddings in the air fryer on high. They literally take a couple of minutes.

Oh is see you mum is dairy free, skip the Yorkshires then

Tesco do packs of prepared fresh sprouts,carrots and broccoli.No butter or anything on them. In the veg aisle. You just stick the bag in the microwave for a few minutes.

Cook do Christmas food prepared a lot of which.caters for alllegies. I know I had them when I was gluten free. Worth a look.

Do your family really know what your limitations are?
I think they are being unfair TBH.

If you can order ready prepared food online you will find that supermarkets are pretty good at listing ingredients.

You need to be careful with preprepared turkey breast as they may contain butter.

Your family probably need looking at.

Thanks for all the tips - you're all right that there is a way to do it, and your posts have helped me start thinking/planning etc. I do want to do it - I do very little for my mum in comparison with my sisters, and it would be nice to give them a break just this once - usually they invite me and my mum for Christmas. I also want to do it because there will become a point where my mum can't visit me, and that's getting closer and closer unfortunately.

Absolutely a way to do it as you said just takes a little thought and planning. As someone suggested look into vegan prepared items (great shout) as will be naturally dairy free.

I quite often cook a roast for 2/3 people in the air fryer. I have the one with shelves which looks like a mini oven. I cook the chicken breasts first, and while they're cooking parboil potatoes and prepare other veg for hob. Then put the chicken on a lower shelf and potatoes on top shelf and stuffing on bottom shelf. When chicken done take out and cover with foil and move stuffing up to middle shelf. Whilst dishing up cook frozen Yorkshires which only take a few minutes.