What alternatives have you had for your Christmas dinner?

[Geekmama]

This year i'm really considering having Mexican food on Christmas Day. So my question is...... Have you ever had an alternative Christmas dinner? did you feel like you had missed out? did it feel less Christmassy?

Bye the way I know I'm BU talking about Christmas in September Sorry. [santa]

[Thighofrelief]

This thread has made me starving!!!!! Will have to do a trial run roast this weekend.

[Olderbyaminute]

I love doing a ham with a citrus glaze and all the trimmings and usually a show stopper dessert

[BikeRunSki]

I quite often have a big pile of loaded veggie nachos for Christmas lunch. If I have a nut roast, then everyone has Mexican on Boxing Day.

[LARLARLAND]

I love egg and chips but the idea of eating it on Christmas Day seems a bit grim and joyless.

[merlotmummy14]

I always have salmon instead of Turkey. Have everything else. One year we burnt the turkey and got a Chinese take away instead. Was glorious.

[ToffeePennie]

My mum had never once cooked Christmas dinner. Boxing Day would be a mega roast, but never ever on Christmas Day.
We always have a massive cooked breakfast (with hash browns, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, sausage, bacon, toast, fried bread and black pudding) then the rest of the day for as long as I can remember it’s been “feed yourselves” so we would have cereal, toast, sandwiches, soup. Anything easy and quick really. I now follow my mum who says “it’s my Christmas Day too.” And if hubby wants a roast, he has to cook it, otherwise there’s no roast!

[AamdC]

Sausage and chips in th the hospital canteen tbf i was in slow labour with ds1 wasent the greatest meal ds1 was finally born at 5.50 am on boxing day

[HerondaleDucks]

@Whatwaswrongwiththatusername Camel... camel was a huge mistake. Tough as an old boot with the flavour to match.
I usually leave it up to mum but I have no idea what she's going to pick. Our favourite by far has been the year of the kangaroo very closely followed by the Rose veal year.
I suspect we'll have to start recycling one day but it's a very fun tradition! I recommend! My DP and his kids have really come on board with it and dsd tells everyone at school. She liked ostrich that we had the year before.

[AnneProtheroe]

One year we had egg, chips and bread and butter. With Champagne.
It was lush.

I feel like having fajitas this year.

[Sedona123]

I'm very jealous reading some of the replies.

We usually spend Xmas day with DH's family. Traditional roast with just about every additional extra that you could think of. End result - cold food by the time everything is on the table, and it's been passed around to everyone. Followed by lots of clearing up/washing up. 😡 Personally, I would prefer that everyone does their own roast Xmas eve, then we all just have a buffet, and a more relaxing time on Xmas day. Maybe one day 🤞🤞🤞

[nokidshere]

@Sparklingbrook that's exactly what we do

[user1484830599]

In our last house the oven was too small for my DH to make the feast he normally lays on, so for four glorious years we had Christmas lunch at a local Indian restaurant.

You could have curry or traditional turkey, so we'd have curry (I'm not a fan of turkey anyway). Starter, main, rice naan and a desert all for £28 each, and the kids were half price. It was such a bargain.

We moved house last year and now have a bigger oven, but I miss the curry actually. It was heaven not to have to cook, or wash up and have the day just to potter and enjoy.

[nokidshere]

We never have Christmas dinner we have an all day buffet of luxury foods that we don't normally have along with some old favourites.

[marriedtogrumpy]

BBQ (even though we are in the UK ) - had to ask around friends and family to get enough charcoal because no one sells it at Christmas.

[DoraJar]

A curry in a beach bar in Goa

[Willow1992]

We had goose instead of turkey the other year and it was much nicer I thought. I know a family who have a takeaway on Xmas day and then go out for Xmas dinner on boxing day when it's much cheaper.

[Chrisinthemorning]

Would love to do the seafood feast - sounds amazing to me- but wouldn’t suit DH and MIL.
As I say we’re doing afternoon tea. Plan is to still do a piece of roast pork with cracking and have in sandwiches with stuffing and apple sauce when family arrive around 11.
3.30 Afternoon tea- champagne/ tea. Sandwiches- hm egg mayo and smoked salmon.
Mini Sausage rolls and Brie/ cranberry tartlets (stolen from this thread- fab idea!)
Scones with jam and clotted cream. Made festive- maybe cranberry scones and naice jam.
Mince pies/ Christmas cake with Wensleydale/ Chocolate stollen bites/ mini Yule logs
Fall over

[PoisonousSmurf]

We regularly have Venison casserole with chesnuts. And one year we even watched 'Bambi' whilst eating the casserole.
Our in laws never came back. Mission accomplished!

[JaceLancs]

One year we had a Chinese - didn’t feel right and have never repeated it
I always do a roast with lots of veg but never turkey
Last year was lamb and chicken

[bananasandwicheseveryday]

Although I do cook a turkey crown, that's mainly for sandwiches after Christmas Day. For Christmas lunch I have a few dishes I make - sometimes roast lamb / pheasant/ duck/goose, sometimes a pork dish I've developed from another recipe. I like the sort of meals where the bulk can be prepared the day before and just bunged in the oven on Christmas Day. I tend to do a meal that goes with the usual trimmings as one or two of our guests like the tradition of a roast. I usually make a good soup to start and though dessert usually includes Christmas pudding, it tends to be accompanied by a homemade ice cream, rather than custard.
I am determined though, that one year I'm going to order in a huge Indian or Chinese takeaway the night before and have that for lunch.

[landoflostcontent]

Crusty rolls filled with cheese and marmite eaten on the beach while the dog ran round like a lunatic. Years ago but one of the best

[Gammeldragz]

Like a PP, we have our big roast (2-3 meats, 6+ veggie dishes, yorkies, pigs in blankets, stuffing) on Christmas Eve. Then on Christmas day DH makes his amazing bubble and squeak and we have that with meat and gravy. DD doesn't like roast dinner so last year she had pasta and pesto!

[Whatwaswrongwiththatusername]

@HerondaleDucks so have you decided what's left to have this year yet? Sounds like a great tradition! Any disasters where you felt you'd made a mistake and wished you'd chosen something else, or has it always turned out well?

[HerondaleDucks]

My mum and I have a tradition. We never eat the same meat again. So after a few years we ran out of conventional, all the birds, all the game... we moved onto kangaroo, ostrich, crocodile, buffalo, moose, camel etc. Makes xmas a laugh as we always get asked what we're having this year. I remember one year we had Aberdeen Angus steak dinner.
Last year we had turkey and hated it with a passion so we'll be back to weird and wonderful again this year.

[LARLARLAND]

I love Christmas dinner because I enjoy a roast and it feels traditional. Having said that a lot of the alternative meals mentioned here feel really special and celebratory, which is all that really counts.