To think serving a starter with Christmas dinner is unnecessary. And weird.

[Kavalier]

Am hosting DH's family for Xmas dinner for the first time this year. MIL always does a prawn cocktail starter and they will miss a starter if I don't serve one, so I will. I think it's very odd though. AIBU?

Whoops!

Meant to say everyone thinks their way of doing it is normal and any other way is weird

We either do starters or have fancy nibbles pre-dinner, dinner is usually after 2.
I don't think its my most looked forward to meal of the year. I enjoy the occasion more than the meal itself. Everyone opening presents with Bucks fizz (except kids of course, they'd just knock it over in their excitement is maybe my favourite bit. I love fancy nibbles too.

Prawn Cocktail has always been my favourite starter so for that reason I don't mind making it, but I also do a melon or pate starter for family who do not like. I always ask who wants a starter.However, Christmas dinner is one of the few times we ever have a starter at home, so it's just part of that special Christmas service :). We will have a homemade Christmas pudding, but we tend to have a break between dinner and pudding as we have it closer to teatime when they want food again after everyone's had a chance to digest in front of the TV.

Plating up . Just had that discussion with DH, he was brought up in a house where all meals are plated up and brought to the table that way and I was brought up in a house where food is never, ever plated up, we always put out serving dishes whether it's sandwiches or Christmas dinner.

When it comes to the DCs I think they ought to be learning to help themselves, pass dishes to each other, take sensible portions and generally have some autonomy over what goes on their plate (they're 8 and 10) but DH always plates everything up and I've got in the habit too when I'm in a rush. But I like it so much better when we use serving dishes.

Definitely another case of thinking the other way is weird, but neither actually being wrong.

No. You are most definitely NBU! As some earlier posters have said, I didn't know until I was in my thirties that anyone had a starter with Christmas dinner. Mam never did and neither do we. Just don't get it. Like lots of people, I'm sure, we have a full cooked breakfast at about 10.00 and eat the main event at about 2 - no way could I eat a starter as well! I have friends who eat much later and have a starter but to be honest I don't really get that either. The little ones will need lunch in between anyway so more faff! I love a good cheese board too. Sometimes I think it's just people showing off - I don't feel the need to. We have friends around for dinner regularly and cook lovely three course meals from scratch - but not on Christmas Day! No need (especially not for ready made prawn cocktail from the 70's. Soz.)The end.

I just assumed everyone had a three course meal on Christmas Day.

We only have a one course meal, no one's interested in pudding or starter here. We might have pudding later on if anyone wants it, but most of us don't like Christmas pud. We don't have a full cooked breakfast either just croissants or similar, but we will have some nibbles around midday (dinner at 3ish).

Plating up is handy if your table isn't big enough for loads of serving dishes/ you don't have loads of serving dishes and large spoons/ you don't want everything to get cold/ you don't want the extra washing up of all the serving dishes.
I usually plate up for all those reasons. Serving dishes are fine if you have servants

I usually plate up and then put some dishes of extra meat, roasties, stuffing etc. on the table. Saves room when there are 15 people at the table.

People have ham and turkey at the same meal? No wonder people can't have 3 courses. I'd rather have Christmas pudding and serve the ham for the evening or boxing day. You have to have a proper sherry trifle (proper means birds custard and jelly I'm not into posh trifles, it's the sherry soaked sponge that matters here) at some time, usually boxing day.

Gotta have ham with your Christmas dinner!

I have never in my life had ham with my christmas dinner - how strange

No servants and very little space here, we can just about fit round round the table, but we have square serving dishes that line up very neatly down the middle and use dessert spoons in them. Do have a dishwasher though.

I've never not had ham with my Christmas dinner.

Ham with Christmas dinner? No, that's a new one on me as well. Definitely no trifle either.

Ham is a pretty traditional Christmas dish.

My DH always wants to do ham as well as Turkey for christmas dinner. I assumed it was an English thing as have never heard of anybody doing it growing up in Wales.

I hate cooked ham though so poor DH is usually deprived

Ohhh no, the smoked salmon starter is one of the many gastronomic joys of Christmas lunch in our family. My totally bizarre mother thinks prawns are not 'posh' enough, so we always have something with smoked salmon and other nibbles. I hate seafood and adore all types of salmon, so it's become my family tradition too. Marks and Sparks do an excellent salmon terrine actually, hope they'll sell it this year.

Gawd, am I the only one who is practically salivating reading this thread?!

My parents put cold ham with the hot turkey roast dinner. Even though I grew up with it I have always thought it was weird.

Agree that starter is too much food. Quite nice to have smoked salmon on bread nibbles though before sitting down.

Ham baked with a coating of marmalade is a thing of taste bud beauty. Cold ham with a hot dinner is wrong.

Absolutely ham with Christmas dinner. Not cold - room temperature!

Christmas isn't a discrete meal, it's more or less constant eating from breakfast until dinner. I'm not sure I could differentiate snacks from starters at our "normal" Christmas...

And yes, there must be ham. And it must be glazed. Yummmmmm

I'm wondering where the prawn cocktail starter originated from for Christmas dinner?

We always have ham and turkey, both served hot. I never plate up the food, it's always put in dishes for people to help themselves. We have four courses but dessert is normally an hour or so after the main meal then cheese and biscuits an hour or so after that.

I've just read a post about Yorkshire puddings and gravy for starters. I've never heard of that. I serve yorkshires with the main meal.

We have ham turkey and beef.

Don't do stupid sausages and bacon though.